I had a bit of a breakthrough at PT this week. I was told to give my legs a try and go for a run. So I did… And it seems like everything is going pretty well. I can still feel the sciatic pain on uphills, but for the most part, things are looking up. Running on road feels a little weird, but not painful. Luckily, I live in SLC where there are tons of trails. I’ve mostly been sticking to those.
This week was definitely the first in a long time that made me think that I could run a good marathon time relatively soon. It’s basically a miracle that I’ve healed so fast, so I am not totally convinced yet that I am tI’m not taking on any speedwork for a while, but that’s ok. For now, I just need to get my endurance back.
This was my week:
Monday: Went to PT (I’m usually pretty tired after that so I don’t run)
Tuesday: 5.1 miles running and walking with overall 10:31 pace (on road) + Bikram Yoga
Wednesday: 6.4 mile trail race 11:51/mi with 1600 ft gain
Thursday: Went to PT + Bikram Yoga
Friday: Easy 3.1 miles on road (10:36/mi)
Saturday: 3.4 easy on dirt road (10:44/mi) w/ 400 ft of gain
Sunday: 12.3 miles (10:30/mi) w 1100 ft of gain
Total: 30 miles w/ 3400 ft of gain
The long run was the real test and except on a few uphills, I got no pain at all from my leg or back. Here are a few pics from the run (and yes, that’s me in the background freaking out about the snake).
I’d say that it was a rather good week. Lately, I’ve been feeling like I’m making a transition from roads to trail. It’s easy to get trail mileage here since the mountains are so close. I’m learning a lot about myself during this injury, but most of all, I’m learning that my favorite type of running is on trail. St. George Marathon might be my last road race for a while and, assuming my injury is settling down, I have a few wild plans in mind for some awesome trail races.
This week has started off to a good start. Check out the video I made on my run this afternoon on the Pipeline Trail!
Hope your training is going well! Have you ever had an injury that sidelined you for a long time? What did you do to stay active while you healed?
She Runs the Wasatch 
It’s wonderful that you are running without pain. Loved the video. It was fun to go on a run with you. ❤ ❤
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Thanks! I took you and dad on that trail! It’s a great one for running.
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What kind of snake was that? Do you see snakes a lot? I’m glad you are running pain free! You must have worked hard in pt.
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Frank said that it was a Glossy snake… but as far as I was concerned it was a man-eating rattler. He was laughing really hard as I ran away in fear. I think he laughed for the rest of the run.
I’ve been working crazy hard on my PT. I do my core exercises twice a day and I stretch before and after running. I’ve even been going to Bikram Yoga a few times a week. It’s been pretty intense. But it’s working!!!
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Glad that you are running pain-free! I know from personal experience how frustrating a chronic injury can be. Love the trails around SLC and Pipeline for an easy day although it’s been a while. Snakes not so much.
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Yeah, I am a little concerned that it’s gonna come back. You live in SLC, right? We should go on a run together and try and dodge the snakes. lol.
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Yes! I’ve been in SLC for a little over 7 years now and still have a ton of trails to explore. I’m also in the paranoid-retruning from injury-have no endurance stage too! My email is fogartysc@gmail.com if you want to run sometime although I’m maxing out at 40-45 mins right now. BTW my husband was at Western States last weekend – crewing for his friend – and had a blast while I was at home constantly checking twitter. He’s doing Wasatch 100 this September.
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That’s great that you’re able to run again! I’ve been sidelined lately from an ear problem of all things, or more specifically from the medicine I’ve been taking for it. It totally wiped me out and I’ve barely had enough energy to exercise at all, let alone run. I’m hoping to get back out there in another week or so, though, since I’ve stopped taking the awful medicine.
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I’ve had that happen when I’m sick before. Usually if I feel weird, I just don’t run. I’d rather be undertrained than over trained walking up to any start line. Good luck with the ear infection! I hope you get better soon (and off those meds).
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Thanks, but unfortunately it’s not an ear infection. I have tinnitus, for which little is known and there are few treatments. The treatments I’ve tried haven’t worked so I very well may be living with this forever. The good news is the tinnitus itself doesn’t effect my running.
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AHHH! Snakes (and other possibly dangerous wildlife) are part of the reason I don’t want to run on trails, haha. Which is silly because statistically speaking I’m much more likely to be attacked by a fellow human than an animal, but still, a snake bite is just not something I want to experience in my lifetime! What kind of snake was that? A rattler?
I’m glad you are starting to make PT breakthroughs! If I lived there I’d probably want to run more on trails too! We don’t really have good trails around here. I’d have to drive somewhere to do true trail running which is why I never do, lol.
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I’ve ran (and hiked) on a lot of trails and only come across dangerous stuff every once in a while. Frank said that this snake would not have bitten me, but I still don’t trust that. It was a scary looking snake.
Living in the midwest was hard for me because I didn’t have access to trails. I think SLC suits me a little better and assuming this injury doesn’t come back, I think I’ll probably concentrate a lot more on trails in the future.
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OMG, I am SO envious of that trail! I was for real running through a jungle this week.There aren’t a whole lot of trails close to where I live.And the views. To die for!
I’m so happy that PT was right and you’re finally finding relief! That’s awesome. Although that is a lot of elevation gain. Wow. I’d be pooped.
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I love that trail so much! I should have told you about it when you were here. I totally forgot. It’s the only trail that’s flat, but it is still at like 7000 ft, so I don’t get going too fast on it. I love the canyons around here. They really make SLC such a great place to play.
Me too… I still run very scared and I haven’t tried running hard yet because I can sometimes feel the tingling in my lower leg when I do. The elevation gain does kill me still. I’m hoping that over time, I’ll get used to it.
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By the time we met I was done running. 🙂 And I didn’t have time to run before the race, either. So no worries.
I’m sure you’ll get acclimated to the elevation — and it will make you a stronger runner, too! You’ll have time to push the pace later in your training. You’re just rebuilding that base right now. Seriously, you have enough time! Not that I’m a coach, of course. 😉
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So glad you’re back to running and feeling pretty good!!!
I saw your tweets about Western States. You know this was the first year that I didn’t get into it? So strange. I think I just didn’t follow the build up where iRunFar talks about the front runners, and I wasn’t familiar with a lot of them to begin with. I’m super excited for UTMB though! I hope Kilian gets to run. I heard that he might not have qualified because Hardrock didn’t submit themselves as a qualifier this year? That would be crazy because I mean, it’s Kilian! But if it’s true IDK if I think they should break the rules for him. I mean the race is definitely more interesting with him in it though.
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Oh dude, I am way too obsessed with iRunFar and Western States. Frank and I’s Saturday was entirely dictated by making sure that I had enough service to see who was winning. It was crazy!! Jim was up front for so long and then fell apart. I seriously need to run a qualifier so I can put my name in the lottery and actually get a chance at being there.
I would actually prefer if they did not bend the rules for Killian. He should have to get in the way everyone else gets in. Also, that will really open up the field for everyone else. Haha! I wouldn’t be surprised if they let him in though. He is pretty much a rockstar.
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Pain free running? What’s that? I kid, because I’m in the “pain” boat right now. That is so great you are feeling good. I’m hoping to have a breakthrough that will save me sometime this year. Seems like sometimes it’s one thing after another!
You have some beautiful trails out there!!
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