My left knee (MCL) is improving but begins to hurt about 30 to 45 minutes into a run. This was better than the last two weeks, when the pain started about 15 to 20 minutes into a run. I switched back to my old Nike Frees, which seems to help, but the damage is already done and the slow healing process continues. I was able to run 15 miles this week and completed a slow one hour run this morning with some mild pain, but it was encouraging. I’m somewhat hopeful I can at least slowly jog the half marathon next Sunday, but I would say my chances are 50/50. We’ll see how the running feels this week, then I’ll need to make a decision by Saturday.
Otherwise, things are going really well. I’m continuing to sleep well and all my vital signs and weight remain relatively consistent. Without much running the past few weeks, I’m really surprised that my weight did not really increase. For cardio, I have been using my indoor bike trainer in lieu of the running, but it is not nearly the same. I credit the weight stability primarily to minimizing the grains and sugar in my diet.
I decided I won’t taper this week since I don’t plan to run hard for the half marathon. I’ll do a normal workout week, which includes running, biking, short intervals, strength training and stretching.
Well, I hope I’ll be able to at least participant in next weekend’s race. If anything, if I can get at least 10 miles into the race at a slow pace before the knee starts hurting too bad, I figure I could walk the last three miles in. But again, we’ll see how this week’s running goes. What I want to avoid is dropping out of the race halfway through or pushing myself through the pain and then setting back the recovery period for several more weeks.
Weekly Assessment
Training Plan
Running Inspired Blog 