No temporal anomaly — it really is August already.

2 08 2019

temporal anomaly

Unlike the many instances in Star Trek, we have not been thrown forward in time even though it feels like it.  Due to a long extremely wet, cool and grey spring, I find myself staring autumn in the face with the distinct sensation of summer just having arrived as Part 2 of my three-phase outdoor athletic season also comes to an end.

When I started 2019, the strategy was for a spring half-marathon, summer duathlon and autumn weekend of  “obstacle course race and second half-marathon” as my major projects.  Being an older and fatter runner, I tend to get overuse issues if I concentrate on just running all the time so I’ve added some other sports to the mix in an attempt to mitigate that.  This is the first year of many I’ve managed to stay injury-free and so I think this is the way to go hence forward.  The spring half builds an endurance base, then cutting back on distance and adding in biking for the summer maintains fitness and builds leg strength without as much pounding on the pavement as running alone.  Following the duathlon, resuming distance running while increasing upper body strength work with lifting, carrying and climbing seems like it should add agility to the mix and close out the year without having worn my legs ragged like I’ve done before.  Throughout the whole season, corework and flexibility are also required although I admit to neglecting them more than I should.  I mean I do have to eat, sleep, work and keep up a household too.

It’s hard to believe I’m already approaching Duathlon Weekend though because I feel like summer just started!  Yet here we are again where temporal anomalies seem to be the theme of the year.

I started the season late because of the awful crazy weather and some poorly timed bouts of colds and flu on the weekends of my usual winter races.  February’s annual 1:00 pm Winterfest 5k found me accidentally napping through it, and then for the Irishfest 5k in early March I had influenza, so I didn’t really start running regularly until almost April.  Other than a couple of virtual races I did on warm weather vacations, my first actual race of the year was the No Foolin’ 5k which is always held right around April 1.  As luck would have it, instead of the usual above-freezing early spring climate, we ended up with a dead-of-winter throwback to 24 degrees Fahrenheit the morning of the race.  I did okay though.  I hauled ass to get it over with quickly and finished with a smile.

No Foolin 5k

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I had no idea that temporal anomalies would be the theme of the year, yet the next race followed the same pattern.  Having gotten from 3.1 to 5.5 miles through the training plan over the following two weeks, the 6.2 mile Champion of Trees 10k at Morton Arboretum on April 14 was my next distance effort.  But wouldn’t you know it, Mother Nature decided to bounce us back in time to winter again with a freak blizzard that blew through just as the race was starting with a few small wet flakes.

By Mile 5 it was icy with white-out visibility and slow, tough, miserable going.

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But I finished.  Freezing, exhausted, wet and slow as hell, I finished.  Not knowing where I was or how to get back to my car probably had as much to do with it as mental and physical stamina, but that doesn’t count.  There’s something about thinking “I can’t take this another minute” yet still continuing that always makes me feel good.  Self-torture for self-satisfaction.  Weird, I know.  But other runners get it because we all do this.

Having built a base of 6.2 miles, I needed to get to 10 miles a mere six weeks later and then a half-marathon two weeks after that, but figured I could do it by running three or four times a week with a long run every 10 days or so.  It would be intense but if I could well prepared for the 10-miler, I could easily jump up to 13.1 without any problems.  And that would have worked if it hadn’t rained almost every day for the next two months.

OLD AGE SELFIEI managed enough interval, tempo and foundation runs between Easter and Memorial Day but only a seven and then an 8-mile long run before the next big event — the Soldier Field 10-Mile in Chicago.  On that day, oddly enough, it was not cool and rainy at all even though yet another round of thunderstorms had been predicted for the morning.  Just like the 10k day, we encountered another temporal jump when the weather plunged us into hot, muggy, sunny summer as the race took off.  But just like before, I slogged on and got it done — slow, ugly and plodding again the theme — but I finished.  I was so happy about it, I even made a meme of myself.

By the time the year’s first half-marathon arrived, we were back to cool cloudy days again and mercifully so.  The Wonder Woman Half Marathon in Gurnee Illinois was a joyous event where, unlike every other race I’d done thus far, the weather was my friend and I enjoyed just about every step.  Being dressed up like a super hero among hundreds of women of all ages, shapes and sizes was so much fun.  For that one day, we were all Wonder Women.

Commemorative Photo-WCAK0012

The weather being what it was, I managed a better pace than for the 10k or the 10 miler and, although I can’t say it was effortless, it was certainly much easier.

spring paces

Wonder finish

This particular half was their inaugural outing for Illinois.  There were some glitches at packet pickup with registration bar codes not being scannable and extra swag not readily available so that took a little longer than expected but it went off well otherwise.  There were plenty of porta-potties and ample water on the course, and the route was not at all difficult.  At one point we ran through Six Flags Great America which was really entertaining and we may have passed some extra bathrooms there too (but I didn’t have to go at that point so I wasn’t on the lookout).   It would have been nice to have more than bananas and water at the finish but that doesn’t really matter much.  I’m sure I am just spoiled by doing small local races with lots of food at the end.  Overall, it was a fun event that I’d do it again some time.  Oh, and they gave the course photos away for free!

And thus ended Phase One of the 2019 annual plan.  An injury-free endurance base was built, and I was ready to cut distance to a maximum of about 5 miles while building biking up to 15 miles with hills and heat added to the agenda as I prepared for the August 4 duathlon which awaits me in a mere two days.

I’ll be back with the Phase Two run down next post, including the “three races in three days in three states” weekend and the actual duathlon which will have all transpired in the interim.

Until then,
LLAP

 

 

 

 





Out of the Vortex and Back to the Blogosphere

5 07 2019

I guess I stopped blogging almost 2 years ago.  I started visiting various fitness websites and spent a lot of time checking in there, building relationships with people, getting in weight loss challenges and stuff like that, thus spending most of my online energy in other places.  However I started this blog in 2008 to chronicle my journey from that of non-runner to Couch-to-5k-trained slow-running racer to my first half-marathon.  Having completed that, I caught the running bug big time and decided to do a race in all 50 states so I kept the blog going to write about those.  Then I got distracted.  But I’m back, for real, starting now.

FIRST, THE UPDATE:

Since the beginning of the 2019, I haven’t done a whole lot really– just a 5k or two, a 10k, a 10-miler and a half-marathon.  But I did two fairly eventful things within the first six months of 2018, so I’ll write about them first.

Ages and ages ago when I was training for my first 10k, I worked with a nurse who was very athletic.  She’d done half and full marathons, plus triathlons and even a half Ironman once.  We were talking about those and I mentioned I could never do a triathlon because I don’t swim.  She said, “well you could do a duathlon.”  A duathlon?  I’d never heard of those.  “Instead of swim-bike-run, they have you do a run-bike-run.  There’s one coming up soon.  You should do it.”  So I said, “okay” and impulsively signed up.   I figured I’d just train for it and knock it out of the park (meaning: not come in dead last but maybe second to last).   But it wasn’t really as easy at that.  There was stuff like riding up hills and riding in the street and riding close alongside other people, things I’d never imagined doing.  I signed up for a group ride at a local park as part of my training, and I was so slow I got lost.  The night before the race, I chickened out and didn’t go.  The failure (because that’s how I saw it) clattered around in my mind for a few more years.  I ran a full marathon, got a little better on the bike, and started to feel like maybe I wasn’t as big a loser as I’d originally thought.  So I signed up for the same race again eight years later in 2018 and this time trained like it was my job, watching YouTube videos, going to seminars and even riding the course once before race day.

Then the day arrived.  It was rainy and cool, the course got shortened because of road construction, and the start of the race was held up by lightning a few times so it wasn’t the typical well-attended and vigorously competitive event.  But on June 9, 2018,  I completed my first duathlon.

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And I didn’t even come in last!  I came in 5th to last!  But the best thing about it was: there were only two of us in the Female 60-64 age group and since I came in second, I got an age group award too.  And that’s how I caught the duathlon bug which resulted in me signing up for another one this year.

Last 5 MedalsJust like the very first 5k I ever ran when I got a ribbon for coming in 7th in my age group (out of 10 of us), that serendipitously-acquired medal inspired me to decide I’m not as shitty of an athlete as I originally thought I was, so I might as well keep on training and try to do it again.

I have my next duathlon in just about one month and I don’t think there’s a single thing that can make me chicken out the night before like I did so many years ago as a fledgling runner.

Then the following weekend, I completed my first Spartan race.  It was a BurpeePalooza because they make you do 30 penalty Burpees for every missed obstacle, but I got it done.  I weigh too much and have too little grip strength to shinny up the ropes or swing from the rings or any of the acrobatic stuff that comprises probably 1/5th of the obstacles, but I’m a beast at carrying heavy objects and am not afraid to climb high walls or netting so I did okay.  I freakin’ HATED the mud though!  I said I’d never do another Spartan because of the mud.  But now they have mudless events in baseball stadiums, so I’m going to give it another go.

 

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My next Spartan is in November, so I have plenty of time to try and develop more skill with the pull-up type stuff I couldn’t do last year but I can’t promise I’ll be successful.   I’ve still got a big bucket-butt that weighs too much so I’ll hedge my bets and practice doing Burpees as well, just to be on the safe side.

Those were the two big events from the first half of 2018.  I expanded my athletic horizons and learned a few new things.  I feel like I can do more than just run now and that makes me really happy.  I like having goals to strive for and competing against nobody but myself as I seek to attain them.   Since I’m only competing with Me and my last performance, it doesn’t matter if I suck at it or do worse because I always learn something.  That means it’s always a Win.

NEXT TIME:
Five more states off the bucket list.

Oh and there really IS a Blogosphere!  There’s pictures of it on the internet.  Who knew?  And it even looks a little like outer space.  So I can picture myself floating around in the darkness and finally ending up back here where I belong.

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“All good things…” Closing out 2016.

23 01 2017

all-good-thingsThe final episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation was called “All Good Things…” and involved a temporal anomaly (gosh, how I love those things!) which caused Captain Picard to jump back and forth through time from past to present to future, while simultaneously saving humanity (because that’s all in a day’s work on Star Trek).  It was a fitting finale for a wonderful series, and came to mind immediately when I thought about a blog entry closing out what was a wonderful running year for me.

I certainly didn’t save mankind but I did finally conquer the 26.2 mile beast that was eluding me for years, saved myself from another disappointment and prevented it from frustrating my efforts past, present and future.  Running that full marathon, in 86 degree sun and heat no less, on October 29, 2016 in the high altitude of Las Cruces, New Mexico, allowed me to prove to myself that I did have it in me all along. And even better, it is an endurance milestone I will never worry about again.

I also remember 2016 as the year I won some age-group awards for the first time, three of them in fact, and achieved my fastest 5k time yet.  That was a complete shocker.  The marathon I’d struggled and grieved and sweated over.  Getting old and entering the 60-64 age group happened without any effort on my behalf.  Everybody tries to get a little faster because you’re always competing with your own last best time, and I will do so again this year, but I never thought of slow chubby Me as an age-group winner.  What a nice surprise!

I think this past year may also be one in which I ran the most races ever, since becoming a runner in 2008.  It is certainly the one in which I finally was able to run enough with a club I joined to actually meet people and earn a circuit award.  I even volunteered at a race for the first time.  And as much as I wanted that 26.2 with every fiber of my being and wished some day to be able to run faster, the best part of 2016 was feeling like I had finally joined a community of runners.

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So, like Picard jumping through time, I was able to look back and smile on those early days of uncertainty and struggling at the back of the pack and wondering if I could run a 10k or a 10 miler or a half-marathon some day and whisper to that person “oh yes, you will.”  And the next time I’m running long and feeling tired or weak or uninspired, I will be able to repeat to myself “oh yes, you can.”  And when I’m 80 or 90 years old and looking back over a life spent striving for goals and always seeking to get just a little bit better at everything, I will be able to remember “oh yes, you did.”

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Next up: 2017 plans and training





Marathon Training Weeks 1 and 2

1 09 2012

Heading out for my run this morning in an over-sized baseball jersey and baggy black shorts, I looked like a refugee from a Kris Kross concert in the 1990s.  With baseball cap and shades, the only thing missing was a big ugly gold chain.  I don’t usually care what I wear when I run but I did recently purchase a new outfit (on clearance) for my marathon from Skirt Sports.  I figure it will be a special occasion so I might as well look good.  My new threads, while definitely more gamester than gangster, in no way resemble these duds worn by Capt. Kirk and company during the original series episode “The Gamesters of Triskelion.”

But, fashion statements aside, what can be said about my first two weeks of training is:  “So far so good.”

The Kiawah Island Marathon is 14 weeks from today, and I find myself looking forward to it.  Cooler weather should be approaching as well and I am also looking forward to that.

Getting back in the swing of serious training after two months of heatwave and a family tragedy has had its ups and downs, but I am dealing with it all.  There are days I have to shove myself out the front door and others that I am virtually bounding like an 8 year old.  I guess that’s life.

The weight loss efforts which fell by the wayside after the half in Alaska have resumed (albeit sporadically at first) because it would really help to be at least a dozen pounds lighter by race day.   I haven’t regained any weight but must acknowledge a slow erosion of the self-discipline I had built up over 6 months of carefully planning and logging 90% of my meals.

The Run Less, Run Faster training week features three “quality” runs (that means “tough”) and two non-weight-bearing “aerobic cross training” workouts like swimming, rowing or pedaling a stationary bike.  I can’t say I have the cross training stuff up to par yet but I’m working on it.  Since I don’t swim and have neither a rowing machine nor a stationary bike, I did rejoin the local gym during their current $10/month special and will make sure I get myself there as soon as possible.  The authors also advocate 2 or 3 quick strength training workouts weekly which I can do either at the gym or at home.

I really want to give myself this successful effort as a 57th birthday present in December.  It will provide a nice end to what has been an otherwise sort of crappy year.

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Week One
Sunday  —  Rode the bicycle 35 minutes.  It was hot, I was tired and I didn’t have more than that in me.
Monday  —  Took the day off.
Tuesday  —  Long slow run:  8 miles.  I hadn’t run this far in a long time.  I was suprised at how easy it was.
Wednesday  —  Upper body weights and abs; very short quick workout because I procrastinated too long and then had to go to work.
Thursday  —  Speed intervals:  15 minute warm-up followed by 3 x 1600 meters and a 15 minute cool down.  I was slower than I wanted to be, but it wasn’t a bad effort considering I hadn’t done speedwork in a couple of months.
Friday  —  Rode the bicycle around the neighborhood.  Short easy ride.
Saturday  —  Hot, hot day for a 10k but I did it:  the DeKalb Cornfest 10k.  Slow, slow day too.

Week Two
Sunday  —  Took the day off.
Monday  —  Walked the dogs two miles.  Didn’t feel like much else.
Tuesday  —  First attempt at the week’s tempo run:  I got out late because it took too long cleaning the house.  Started out from home but fizzled due to heat and sun.  So I drove to the woods.  It was hot there too and full of mosquitos.  Quit after two miles.  Very disgusted with the return of 90 degree temps the past week and dejected that my running is so affected by hot weather.
Wednesday  —  Second attempt at a tempo run:  A bit more successfully, I ended up doing 4 miles.
Thursday  —  Rode 30 minutes on the bike (6 miles), then came back and did a thorough upper body workout and abs.
Friday  —  Speedwork:  15 minute warm-up, 4 x 800 meters fast (faster than usual which made me very happy), 15 minutes cool-down.  Nice!  I felt my smile coming back.
Saturday  —  Long slow run:  9 miles.  Yes, I should have taken a day off in between but my schedule didn’t permit it.  It was a good run, faster than the schedule called for but still quite comfortable.  The smile is definitely back.  Even with the remnants of Hurricane Isaac pelting me the last 4 miles, it did me good.





Lured in as if by tractor beam

10 07 2012

A few years ago when I was a fledgling runner, I thought the end-all and be-all of my existence was an annual half-marathon.  Once this feat had been accomplished however I would always experience a bit of a let-down and find myself wondering what to do with the rest of the year.  Then somewhere — I think possibly in Outside Magazine — I read an article about a year-round fitness regimen and a new vision began to take shape.  Since I wasn’t really thrilled with running in the hot summers and puttering in my garden didn’t provide the same endorphin rush as pushing my body to its limits in sport, I seized upon a notion to work on strength in the winter, running in the spring/fall and biking in the summer.  Never having done a bicycle event in my life, Old Impulse-Control-Issues Me declared an autumn century ride to be the perfect next training goal after the annual half.  And I do believe this will be the year to finally follow through.

With that in mind, I signed up for the 2012 North Shore Century on September 23.  What I liked about this event was the range of distances available (100, 70, 62, 50 and 25 miles) and the fact that it was described as “family-friendly,” which to me signaled riders of all ages and abilities were welcome.  I felt  like this guaranteed:  (1) I shouldn’t feel too terribly much like I didn’t fit in with the crowd, and (2) there would be various “safety net” distances I could drop into should I not be up to the entire 100 miles.

Having investigated these bicycle outings a bit further since then, I now realize there is way more to them than merely showing up on a bike and pedaling.  In my research, I have encountered terms like “pace line”, “drafting” and “big/small chainring”, each one of which I greeted with a quizzical “huh?” followed by a slight cramp in the stomach.  I mean, I’m still not entirely sure what all 21 of the damn speeds are supposed to be used for.   And then there was the next-door neighbor who immediately dissed my bike when I told him about my goal (and prompted the “don’t underestimate me” rant I posted maybe a month ago).   So I realize I do have much to learn and indeed far to go.   But that’s okay.  It wouldn’t be me if I didn’t bite off early more than I realize later I might be able to chew so I’m feeling quite at home with all of this right about now.

I did go out and buy a new bike.  It meant postponing my dental work but hey, a girl has to have her priorities.   And mine apparently don’t include Manolo Blahniks and Jimmy Choos (or better teeth).

But isn’t she gorgeous?!  My new Trek Lexa XLS.  Once my big fluffy behind gets used to straddling that little bony seat, we are going to tear up these roads!

And new bike or not, I am also not stupid enough to show up a total virgin at this Century, so I registered for a couple of other rides in which to practice the new skills I’m going to need.  The first is Venus de Miles, the all-girl 25-or-61 miler, on July 29, and the multi-distance Bike Psycho Century on August 26.  So, what the hell.  Here we go with new bike in hand and training plan on the calendar boldly riding where my fat ass ain’t never gone before.

Lured in as if by tractor beam, I begin my Century training.

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WORKOUTS SINCE THE LAST POST:

After the Anchorage half-marathon on Saturday, June 23, I took almost the entire next week off although I did do a lot of walking around on vacation.

Friday, June 29 – 45 minutes easy on the bike.

Saturday, June 30 –17 miles on the bike with some gentle inclines

Sunday, July 1 – I ran 5 ½ miles in the forest preserve near the house.  Still getting re-acclimated to the heat, I was pretty slow but I salvaged the workout by doing a few hills and then ran negative splits the last 1/3 of the outing.

Monday, July 2 – OFF

Tuesday, July 3 – The day got away from me due to chores and errands, and then it was 100 degrees outside (the first of three deadly hot days).  I had to do something so I spent 35 minutes outdoors on the bike after dinner.

Wednesday, July 4 – Four on the Fourth race in Elmhurst, IL.  We started at 7:15 and it was already 89 degrees by the time I crossed the finish line less than an hour later.  Scorching day!

Thursday, July 5 – 16.5 miles on the bike, a couple of pretty impressive hills

Friday, July 6 – 11.5 miles on the bike, mostly easy stuff around the subdivisions

Saturday, July 7 – OFF

Sunday, July 8 – 13.1 miles walk/jog, it cooled off outside but was still too hot to really “run”.  Yeah… so crazy for half-marathons,  I made up my own and did it.

Monday, July 9 – Active rest; worked in the garden for an hour before work

Tuesday, July 10  – Today.  First day on the new bike.  I’ll be back with details later.





Seriously…. I have not been trapped in a stasis chamber!

6 05 2012

ImageActually I have probably been more active in this past month than any month of the year.  However, I have been remiss in reporting those activities to whomever in the galaxy actually reads these entries.  Therefore, I will summarize the activities of the past month and hope to stay current going forward:

April 
April 4 —Prevention Walk Your Way Slim DVD, an easy but invigorating cardio
April 5 — MotionTraxx Treadmill Coach MP3 followed on the treadmill, a tough but fun mix of speed, hills and then speed uphill
April 6 — Jason Crandell 15 Minute Beginner’s Yoga video from YouTube followed by extra calf and Achilles stretching; it was an achy day
April 7 — took the day off to go into Chicago and see Jersey Boys with friends/family

April 8 — lazy!  took another day off
April 9 — Cathe Friedrich’s Pure Strength DVD, chest/shoulders/triceps segment
April 10 — walked the dogs 2 miles
April 11 — Cathe’s Pure Strength DVD, back/biceps/abs segment
April 12 — ran 2 miles
April 13  — 10 Minute Solutions Carb Burner Slow and Steady Burn segment followed by Cathe’s Cross Train Express Upper Body download (chest and back portions only) followed by an oldie from the FIRM captured on YouTube:  5 Day Abs, Day 3
April 14 — a most truly EXCELLENT run!
The Rockdale Ramblin’ Run 10k, touted to be the Toughest 10k in the Midwest, really just a super hilly 6.1 miler, but what was MOST EXCELLENT and wonderful about it was the fact that I beat last years time by 5 seconds per mile….even with the half-assed and sporadic training I’d been doing.  It was great.  It boosted my confidence and put a huge swell of inspiration in my sails.

April 15 — worked at the Urgent Care, took a day OFF
April 16 — 3 miles of mixed speed/hill intervals on the treadmill
April 17 — Cathe Friedrich’s Pyramid Upper Body DVD followed by an oldie-but-moldy from YouTube (which I love) 8 Minute Abs
April 18 — 4 miles outdoors:  1 mile warmup, 2 miles of speed work and 1 mile cooldown
April 19 —  20 minute YouTube Cardio Chellenge workout by Kendell Hogan of Exercise TV followed by the opening abs portion of the FIRM’s Sculpted Buns Hips Thighs
April 20 — 3 miles easy run outdoors
April 21 — a day OFF

April 22 — 8 miles easy run outdoors, my longest outing of the year so far, and pretty tough to accomplish.  It was hot and sunny but I made it.   Jumping up to 8 miles after maxing out with 6.1 for the past 3 and 1/2 months is not recommended on most training plans but it’s what I had to do in order to be ready for the 10 miler on April 28.
April 23 — most wisely chose to take a day off and rest those tired legs.
April 24 — 4 easy miles outdoors; went well, not too sore.  Picked up my race packet for the 10 miler.  Very excited and a little bit scared.
April 25 — FIRM Tight Buns and Killer Legs DVD followed by another round of 8 Minute Abs
April 26 — 2 fast miles outdoors.  I did good.  I surprised myself.  Confidence came home to roost.
April 27 — OFF
April 28 — CARA Lakefront 10 Mile Race.
The weather was AWFUL!  It was rainy, 44 degrees and gusty with winds up to 20 MPH along the ever-windy lakefront.  It was HORRIBLE.  But it was WONDERFUL, because I beat my previous 10 mile race pace by 40 seconds per mile.  That was HUGE.  I never thought in a million years I would do that well, but I did.  And under very challenging conditions.  Go me!

April 29 — worked at the Urgent Care; took a day OFF.  Felt really good.  Better than I expected I would after jumping from 6 to 8 to 10 miles in a two week period.  Nice.
April 30 — in a fit of stupidity, tried a new workout:  Cathe Friedrich’s Lower Body TriSets.  Just about killed whatever leg muscles I had left.
MAY 
May 1 — Oh the freaking DOMS!   I could barely sit and could hardly walk, yet a 5 mile run was on my agenda for the day. I walked it.  Slow.  The new workout damn near killed me.  I vowed that day:  as soon as my muscles recover, I’m going to do it again.  And again and again until it doesn’t hurt any more.  What doesn’t kill you will only make you stronger.  So I will do it again.
May 2 — In an effort to make my legs work again, I walked another 2 miles in the morning and then followed it with Cathe’s Pyramid Upper Body chest and back segments.
May 3 — Ran 3 miles.  Still sore.  Took it slow.  It was a struggle.
May 4 — Took the day OFF.  Finally starting to feel normal legs again.  A few twinges but nothing like the past 72 hours.
May 5 — Lake Bloomington 12k Race.
Still struggling despite the DOMS being completely gone.  It was hot and I was slow.  It took a lot of positive self-talk to keep going mid-race because I was so tired.  I think I’m feeling the effects of the rapid jump in Long Run mileage.  Will definitely take it easy next week.

May 6 — Today.  Resting.  Left Achilles tendonitis rearing its ugly head.  Will do some stretching later on tonight.

And that brings us up to date with the events of the past month.

On tap for the week:
Possibly running the Lemont Quarryman 10 Miler coming up this Saturday, May 12, if my legs are at 100%.  I don’t want to risk being injured before the big  events on my calendar:  Soldier Field 10, Peoria Steamboat 15k, and the Anchorage half marathon.

Pencilled in for the interim:
A pair of total body workouts.  Two mixed-pace runs, none greater than 5 miles in length.
Stretching.  Resting.  Hydrating.  Eating well.

More later.