Week 10: Boston Training or Not Boston Training... We Shall See.

I rested last week so that I could have a chance to return to training safely. All went well until Saturday. It seems like the universe is really testing me during this training cycle.  I am watching my fall race goals disintegrate. Sometimes this is how it goes. When the body is struggling, it is time to deal with the issues happening in the moment and not worry about what was supposed to happen weeks from now.  

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The week actually started off really well. Dave and I did two hill days on Tuesday and Thursdays.  It was an amazing workout.  We found a hilly loop. It was lovely.

7.25% incline/decline. .
35 miles up and down.  

We would climb at moderate intensity and then crush the descent at top speed. It was so much fun.  Our descent were averaging 5:30-5:40 pace, top speed 5:24.  I am sure that hard work primed me for what happened next but it is hard to predict in the moment which step will be the one that is the straw that breaks you.  

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I was feeling great on Friday, just a little tired but nothing significant. I meet Alanna for an easy 6M which we accidentally ran as a progression down to 9:00 pace. Not blazing fast, but not our normal easy pace normal.  It felt good and I had no reason to believe anything was wrong. 

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I decided to take it easy on Saturday and save my 20M LR for Sunday.  I ran an easy 4M with Sidney and again felt fine.  Nothing to suggest any thing was wrong. 

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Sunday, I finally got out the door in the afternoon for my 20. It felt so nice. I didn't look at my watch for 4 miles. It felt easy. I felt fluid. I wasn't working hard at all. I suspected my pace was about 10:00.  When I finally looked at my watch, I was averaging 9:01.  I felt so very strong and was excited to just hold my pace until 10M and turn back home.  The course I run is slightly more incline on the way out so I knew once I swung back around it would be slightly easier home and if I felt ok, then maybe I could actually negative split this run and come in under 9:00 pace. 

My long runs have been horrible this training cycle.  I have marathons I planned to run. I told my self on the way out to 10M that if I could manage this 20M LR then I could finally give myself permission to believe that a marathon this fall was realistic.  I just wanted 20M at any pace. I didn't need sub-9. I wanted distance not time. But when the pace was peppy my confidence soared.  It felt so nice to find flow. 

I passed 6M and was holding steady and feeling good until suddenly my right calf spasmed.  WTF was that?  I paused.  Massage it for a second and kept on going. The at 6.5M again it spasmed hard and I felt a popping sensation.  WTF? I am running a 9:00 mile. How is this happening?!   

6.5M from home. No one around to save me. I don't have Uber on my phone.  This was not planned out very well.  

Sid is in the air somewhere, ironically flying to Boston. He is headed to Boston while I am watching my dream of racing Boston disappear.  

I text Dave. Somehow lately I feel like all I do is complain and annoying complaining seems to help me feel better. That is not the type behavior I want reinforcement for. ugh. 

I turn around. I drink the remaining fluid in my bottle and run again. I start easy but I loosen up.  I realize that spasms did some damage but I can run.  I run back to the park. I get more water. I run home.  I have to pause a few times to massage my calf.  

I think this happened because I am overcompensating with my right to take some pressure off my left side which has the angry bursa.  

I make it back home and stop at 13 miles.  I weigh in.  I'm 116 lbs! WTF. What is happening. I drank 40 oz on the course. I drank before I left.  I carried sports drink this time when I started.  I didn't feel like I was that dehydrated. This is a 5lb weight loss.  No wonder I cramped!  I don't know what is going on lately with my body.  I have trained for marathons for about a decade. I never cramp. I usually don't even drink or eat when I train. I made an effort today and it didn't matter.  

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The universe is testing me.  

So what is the answer?  I need to revise my plan. I don't think I have any realistic chance of running a marathon any time soon. Not with a sore bursa and not a sore calf.  

Boston may be out. I will think about that. Boston tortures me.

I need to drop back my LR distance to something I can handle and rebuild my mileage back up without any pain. 

I may be DNFing a lot of the thing I was excited to race but I can't do what I can't do. Racing should happen when the body is healthy. I had that I paid to enter races before I was trained for them. This is not my usual MO. I always try to wait. When I don't wait it seems like things are more likely to go sideways. But some races you just can't wait to register for so I did.  I entered and now I may not be able to race them. 

But I don't need to decide now.  

One step at a time.