Sports soapbox

Alriiiiiight, I've got an appointment with a sports med doc tomorrow morning! They called on Monday and set everything up with me, so we're gonna do this. And I guess I didn't mention this a couple posts ago, but I got x-rays taken of my legs after my doc appointment last week for a leg length survey. This is all because I have a sneaking suspicion that my right leg is shorter than the left. Well, I got the x-rays back today so I can give them to the sports med doc tomorrow, and here's what the radiologist said...

• My right femur is 51.1 cm long and my left femur is 51.28 cm long
• My right tibia is 41.85 cm long and my left tibia is 42.16 cm long
• There is a mild pelvic tilt, where my left hip is about 0.2cm higher than the right hip

So basically it's saying that my right leg is shorter than my left leg, which is what I had thought. Truth be told, results don't lie. So we'll see what happens tomorrow morning, I'm actually looking forward to it.

Ok, time to jump on the sports soapbox!

• Did anybody catch the end of the Indiana/Duke basketball game tonight? Wow...Indiana had some piss-poor play execution in the last five minutes of the game. Duke literally gave them a couple gifts (missed free throws, a stolen inbounds pass, etc.) and Indiana did NOTHING with it. I know it's a young team, but still....if Kelvin Sampson is your coach, that shouldn't happen. And isn't it crazy that it was the first time Indiana has ever played in Cameron Indoor Stadium? Yea....you think it's crazy too, huh?
• MSU (finally) hired a new football coach - Mark Dantonio, who was the head coach of Cincinnati. I really think it's a good hire because he has ties here (was an assistant for a few years), was the defensive coordinator for Ohio State when they won the national championship a couple years ago, and he's got a straight-up bulldog mentality. That's exactly what we needed - somebody to take the bull by the horns. But man, it seemed like a new "flavor of the day" theme with the searching process. A new coach seemed to emerge as the frontrunner every morning, but then again a lot of that was perpetrated by message board junkies.
• I watched that new show "My Boys" tonight on TBS....the one about a girl who lives/hangs out with a bunch of guys. I sort of got dragged into it, but I actually kind of like it. I guess the girl is a sports journalist or something, I don't know exactly, but she's cute and she made a bunch of sports analogies during the show and I sat there thinking, "Man, where can I find that kind of girl?" Because, for all I know, all the girls out there who may be reading this probably lost interest at "sports soapbox" and stopped reading.

End rant.

Feels like forever

Hope everybody had a fantastic Thanksgiving weekend....

The 6th annual Lansing Turkeyman Trot 5K was held on Thursday morning. I didn't run (obviously) but my buddy Greg did, so I went out to watch him. Little did I know, there were a couple other guys participating in the race whom I had no idea were planning on running it, so it was good to see them too. It was an almost perfect morning for racing - the skies were clear and there was barely any wind, but the temps were right about 30 degrees. Hell, I'll take that over last year's race....last Thanksgiving, it was 15 degrees with a wind chill of 0 and there were 4 inches of snow on the ground that fell overnight. The picture is proof. Half of the course is on a trail that follows the river, and nobody thought to plow the trail for the runners, so everybody had to run in a single file line in order to keep from slipping. And if you got caught behind someone going too slow for your liking, you spent a LOT more energy trying to pass them. Personal experience!

The most hardcore person in the race was an older guy who ran barefoot, and I noticed he finished around 20th place. I looked at the results later and found that 20th place was good for 18:07....imagine running that fast in bare feet!

As for me, the knee and foot are slowly but surely improving. This weekend was great for me because I didn't have to move around or have anywhere to be, so I rested my leg as much as I could. I did some more research on how to treat IT Band Syndrome, and I found one website that explicity told me NOT to massage where it hurts because that will just aggravate the friction of the band against the bones. Oops....my bad! So I stopped doing that, and my knee feels a lot better today. I'm not saying that's the main reason why the knee has still been hurting, but it could be. I've also been doing some lightweight leg strengthening exercises, mostly for my hip flexors/abductors/adductors, so I think I'll be coming back quick. Today was the first day I can remember in the past 4 weeks where I could go up and down stairs repeatedly without anything hurting.

Wow....4 weeks. It's hard to believe it's only been 4 weeks since I ran the marathon, or done any running for that matter. It feels like forever, and I'm sure all you runners out there understand that. I've been going stir crazy, so to speak, because it's been so warm here since Thursday. Today the temp got up to 60, which is 20 degrees above normal. Plus, it's been sunny for the most part. It's all apparently gonna stay til Thursday, when the bottom drops out and we stay in the low 30's with snow. Grrrreat. Oh well. If anything, I'm intrigued by the fact that I'm feeling much better. We'll see how things progress this week.

"I'm wearing, uh....actually, you'll find me, you'll see my fat ass." --Greg, on the phone with me before the race

Who knew?

So I had the much anticipated appointment with the doc this morning. He checked out my alignment and he thinks that my right leg is just a little bit shorter than the left, if at all. I also told him how I've had pain in my right heel when I walk barefoot and some pain in my medial arch when I get up in the morning. I guess I didn't tell him that last time, but apparently I've got plantar fasciitis too....who knew? This is something that's been bothering me since July or August and I never got it checked out because it never bothered me too much. So to make a long story short, he referred me to a sports med doc (whom I'm going to see sometime next week most likely) and that the IT band syndrome and plantar fasciitis are minor - they're not a big problem, but they're still there and I have to "erase" them before I get back to running.

Treatments? For the IT band, he told me to keep on doing what I'm doing (ice, stretch, ibuprofen if needed, etc.) and for the plantar fasciitis he gave me a little handout on things to do. A couple are good calf stretches and another is a stretch where I roll my foot on a frozen juice can for 3-5 minutes. So hopefully (fingers crossed) everything clears up SOON!

And in case you were wondering...the MSU men sort of surprised people by placing 17th at the D-1 NCAA championships yesterday (they were ranked #27) while the women slipped a little by placing 12th (they were ranked #4). It's insane how fast those guys can run. The men ran a 10K, but for the first 5K, 245 out of 250 runners ran it under 17 minutes. Out of the top 5 guys for the national champion Colorado Buffaloes, their slowest 5K split was 15:45 and their slowest 10K total time was 32:03. Can you imagine running a sub-16 minute 5K and then doing it again without stopping?? That's just sick. Congrats to everybody though.

That's all I've got....happy Thanksgiving to everybody if I don't post again before then!

Random thoughts

This is a bullet kind of post, I can feel it...

• A grand 'welcome to the world' goes out to my new nephew! Born Friday night at 8:31 pm, 7 lbs, 11 ounces, and apparently LOVES to sleep.
• My fantasy football team is 3-7, probably about to be 3-8, and has been mathematically eliminated from the playoffs. That's the last time I forget about the draft and let Yahoo pick my players...
• The knee sometimes seems like it's getting better and sometimes seems like it's just not healing at all. In response to Annette, however, I have been lifting the upper body and core. That's something I've been good about since high school. Hopefully this week I'll go swimming...we'll see what the doc says on Tuesday.
• Not gonna run the Turkeyman Trot on Thanksgiving, obviously. If I'm cleared to run, I may just jog it with my buddy Greg because he wants to do it.
  
• Good luck to the MSU men's and women's cross-country teams tomorrow at the NCAA championships in Terra Haute, Indiana! The men are ranked #27 in the nation and the women are ranked #4 in the nation....so it's more likely the women will bring home some hardware, but we'll see.
• I really want to run again. It's been 3 weeks.

"Don't allow injuries or other setbacks to derail your faith in your ultimate goals. Everyone goes through hard times." --Kara Goucher in this month's issue of Runner's World

Bummed out

Well it's been 2 weeks and 5 days since I last ran. I really haven't had any motivation to write any entries in here because nothing has been going on. Oh well....reminds me of the month of June when I had to sit out, but at least then I could do other things like swim or use the elliptical or bike.

The knee is getting better, that's a plus. But it still hurts a little after walking for a prolonged amount of time. And if it hurts while walking, it sure as hell is gonna hurt while running. The weird thing about all of this is that when it starts to hurt, I take a couple of Advil caplets - usually around lunchtime - and the pain goes away for the whole rest of the day. It's weird to me because the bottle says "temporarily removes aches and pains...", and I don't know about you but my definition of 'temporarily' in this context isn't more than 4-5 hours.

I scheduled a doctor appointment for Tuesday morning since it's the first time he had available. Perhaps he can check on my alignment and, if not, refer me to a good physical therapist around here. One thing I've been doing in the meantime is strengthing my gluteus medius muscles a little...I've found that weakness in that area can contribute to IT Band syndrome, so might as well try to make it stronger.

Play on, playas.

Time flies when you're having fun

Well....an era has come to an end. Yesterday was the last time that I'll ever march as part of the Spartan Marching Band, five years that seemed like forever, yet flew by in the blink of an eye. It was crazy this whole weekend because all of us seniors shared stories of the past 4 or 5 years...and now we're all going to go our own separate ways after graduation.

This whole week I've been trying to lay low and rest the knee because there was no way in hell I was gonna sit out this game like I did last week. Everybody knew about the knee, everybody kept asking about it, I always gave the same answer - "It's (optimistically) getting better...." - and more than once I mentioned the quote, "Pain is temporary. Pride is forever." I didn't care how much it was going to hurt, I was going to march my last game.

Overnight Thursday into Friday morning was the first time I slept without night pains since the marathon, but then I got "nervous" pains overnight Friday into Saturday and it persisted to gametime. I popped some Advil and hoped for the best. The march we do to the stadium is only about a third of a mile, but it takes some time...the knee didn't hurt at first but once I started to really think about it, it was pretty bad. My parents stand at the same spot every time, and I just thought to myself to just hide the pain until I get past them. Eventually we got to them, and as I was trying to hide the pain, I heard my mom cheer for me and my dad say his usual sarcastic comments to pick my legs up. I NEVER cry, but I honestly almost broke down right there. Both of my sisters played instruments too (in high school and at MSU), and ever since my oldest sister was a freshman in high school in the fall of 1992, my parents have supported us and come to just about every home performance...and this was the last time they'll ever have to do that. Plus my knee really hurt, so that added to it.

The game sucked, we lost 31-18 (I honestly didn't realize what the final score was for a few hours after the game because I was just trying to have one final good time with the friends I've spent much of my time with the past five years), but I'll always remember the final farewell. I'm gonna miss those guys so much. Time flies when you're having fun...

Today the knee felt really good. Who knows why....my best reasoning is that I'm subconsciously thinking that I don't have to worry about marching anymore so I can finally rest it. I didn't have time to ice it at all yesterday after the game, but I'm sure glad it's feeling better. I realllllllly wanna get back out on the roads. It's been a whole two weeks since I finished the marathon.

Oh and in case anyone was wondering, here's some stats from my training. It was a 16-week training plan but these stats will be about the first 15 since the 16th week included the marathon:

• Average miles per week: 21.93 running, 25-30 biking
• Largest week: 34 miles (week 11)
  
• Longest runs: 20 once, 18 twice
• Total miles over 16 weeks: 367.5

Ok, so by looking at that, I know I was unorthodox in the sense that I was low in the mileage department. The biking helped with some of that, but I still feel I can improve if I increase the workload a bit. Two things I know I didn't do enough of were speed workouts and lifting sessions focusing on the legs.

I'm ending with a couple quotes from an MSU football player whom I met a couple years ago during class. I didn't realize I had sat next to him until I was getting my stuff out of my backpack, and he noticed I was wearing a marching band t-shirt, so he struck up a conversation with me. He one of the nicest/funniest guys I've ever met, and what he said seemed to mirror how I felt after the game on Saturday.

"It hurts. I've been here five seasons and we only had one winning season out of those five. You come in here with hype and expectations and it just doesn't work out like you hoped. That's life." --MSU senior defensive tackle Cliff Ryan

"I always believe things happen for a reason. I believe I was here for a reason. Maybe someday I'll figure out what that was." --Ryan, when asked if he regretted playing for MSU

More than useless

I've read about something called the Post-marathon Blues, but did they really take knee injuries into consideration when discussing that? I wouldn't say I'm sad, I'm just frustrated because I really wanna get back out there again. I've almost felt helpless in a way, but what can I do. The knee is getting better, I can walk again now instead of limping everywhere, but I still have pain where the IT band is. A positive sign is a positive sign, and I'll take it.

I've been putting the pieces of the proverbial puzzle together recently and I think I may have an alignment problem with my right leg. It's hard to explain, it's something I gotta show people...but I think a trip to a podiatrist or sports med doc may be in my near future.

I take solace in the fact that I ran a marathon only 9 minutes slower than Lance Armstrong.

Dean Karnazes is a beast. 50 marathons in 50 days in 50 states....he runs the first 49 mostly around 4-hour pace and smokes the last one in 3:00:36 at NYC. Then he ran 28 miles the next day to keep the muscles loose. Sick.

In response to Jess, I'm kind of apathetic about the MSU coaching situation. I sort of feel it's more of a problem than the head coach, but I also felt a change was needed. I just hope we find the right replacement...

That's all I've got.

"I thought I had 2:40 or 2:45 in me, and ran the first half in 1:21:29 (2:43 pace) but really fell apart in the 2nd half. Start slow and finish strong. I need to listen and follow my own advice." --Steve on his 2:56:56 performance at the Chicago Marathon

My Detroit Marathon experience

Something happened between Sunday and now...I got busy and couldn't find time to write this.

Anyway, the marathon went great! I got to Detroit around 5:45am for the 7:15am start so that I could be sure to find a parking spot as well as get myself situated and not have to rush. Everything went smoothly, save for the long lines for porta potties but that's the case with any race. Eventually the gun sounded and we were off and running. I tried to take it easy in the first three miles (around 7:05-7:10 pace) but those ended up being 6:57, 7:00, and 6:56. Not too much faster though, but still faster. That's where it got iffy....right after that was the Ambassador Bridge into Canada, but there was no mile marker on the bridge. The next mile marker we saw was for mile 5, so I split my watch at 15:06. Divide by two and that's 7:33 for miles 4 and 5 - understandable because we spent some time going up a steep grade on the bridge. Mile marker 6 came unbelievably fast, 3 minutes and 49 seconds later. Damn, I'm running at break neck speed and I'm not passing anybody! It was funny because all the guys around me were quiet and then we all of a sudden just looked at each other like "WTF was that??" Our theory is that the Canadians marked their portion of the course in kilometers and not miles. Mile marker 7 came 8:09 after that and mile marker 8 was 8:50 after that, so now we were just searching for a good explanation. It sucked because we couldn't get a clear gauge of what our pace was and how consistent we were running. And we sure as hell weren't running THAT slow. The pace I was running at felt good, so I just kept at it.

The end of the 8th mile and the beginning of the 9th mile took us through the underwater bridge back into the Detroit and the USA. Somewhere in there, this kid named Jimmy pulled up alongside me and asked if I knew if the exit of the tunnel would be the last big hill. I said yea, probably, and we started running together. It was great because we were both gunning for the same time (better than 3:10) and he just happened to be a senior at MSU too! Small world, huh? We were both getting pretty frustrated with the mile markers, and neither of us saw the 9th one. At mile marker 10, I split a time of 14:52...divide by 2 and that's 7:26/mile, a little slower than we we wanted to be. Miles 11 and 12 were the same way, we didn't see mile marker 11. Those two miles were 14:02, divide by two and get 7:01/mile...this is better. It just sucked so much because the miles weren't clearly marked at all. They were pretty much just little signs on the sidewalk maybe twice the size of a "Caution - Wet Floor" sign. There wasn't a sign at mile 13, as they took our time at the halfway point of 13.1 miles. We passed those 1.1 miles in 7:50 for a total first half of 1:33:46. Not bad...on pace for a 3:07 marathon.

The first half was great because the wind really wasn't a factor, and it was nice and sunny out so it gave me the confidence to run well. All during the week before, I was worried about what the weather was gonna be like, especially the wind, but it wasn't bad at all. Also, I shed all my unwanted layers by mile 6, so I didn't have to worry about any extra baggage or whatnot. I was able to run comfortably both mentally and physically.

Second half! We hit mile marker 14 in 6:13, but that was for .9 miles. Mile 15 went by in 7:03...sounds like we're running smooth, but WAIT! Last Sunday I wrote this post and commented near the end about how I twinged my knee and had to take care of it, then eventually it felt better. Well...at this point in the marathon, it came back. I was still running with the same kid since mile 8, and just talking to him took my mind off the crazy pain coming from the outside of my right knee. I also never said anything to him because I feel that talking about pain is like admitting defeat. So we kept on trucking.

Mile 16 was 6:51 and mile 17 went by in 7:05...this is where it really got tricky. The beginning of mile 18 took us onto Belle Isle, a little island that struck me more as a park than anything. And there was absolutely NO protection from the strong winds coming off the river. It sucked, we were running into the teeth of the wind and felt like we weren't going anywhere. That mile (18) somehow happened to be 7:19 (we thought we went slower) and the next mile (19) went by in 6:47 with the wind at our backs. Coming back across the bridge from Belle Isle into Detroit brought us back into the teeth of the wind. I made the comment of "This is Mother Nature's way of making us tougher." and Jimmy was like "Well, forgive me if I don't thank her!" That mile, number 20, was 7:35. We were going into the wind a little longer than the 18th mile, so that explains why it was a little slower. Mile 21 was with the wind, but I was starting to really fatigue. I felt like I was cruising but I passed the mile marker in 7:20. It was also about this time that Jimmy announced that he had to slow up because he had a cramp. He told me to go on ahead, I told him to finish strong if I don't see him, and that was that.

Now I was on my own for the last 5.2 miles. I was tired, my leg muscles were starting to become heavy, and my knee was absolutely killing me. I thought to myself, this is gut check time - how bad do I really want it? I didn't train for the past 16 weeks for nothing, so I went through every positive thought in my head that I have ever heard. I was also concerned that I was slowing up a little...I knew I was close to 3:10 marathon pace, but I wasn't sure how far ahead of that I was. I couldn't read my pace band that well either, it had become faded from spilled water and gatorade. The 3:10 pace guy never passed me, but at the same time I was afraid that the wind might have held him back a little. Mile 22 went by in 7:17, so that calmed my feelings a little because a 3:10 marathon is 7:14 minutes per mile. If I was ahead, I wasn't losing any significant time. Mile 23 went by in 7:40, so now I was really getting worried. I knew I shouldn't have been, but it still made me want to finish REALLY strong.

Everything after this was straight into the wind, mostly down Lafayette Ave. Everything I had was also due to adrenaline, because I had absolutely nothing left in the tank. Mile 24 - 7:17, mile 25 - 7:20. I can feel it now! The crowds were getting bigger and louder and some of my pain seemed to go away. Mile 26 went by in 7:43...which gave me a total of 3:07:21, so I knew I had clinched a Boston berth! I saw my parents right around the point, so that gave me a boost of happiness too. The last .2 miles passed in 1:11 for a finishing time of 3:08:32 based on my watch, but 3:08:29 based on my chip. HECK YES! Good for 16th in my age group and 129th overall out of 3875 finishers.

So that's my marathon story. If I learned one thing, it's to take more fluids during the run because I was unexpectedly more dehydrated than I thought I would be. I took a bunch of fluids during the run, but apparently it wasn't enough. That can be chalked up to experience.

Also...you may wanna know about my knee. It still hurts, I can't walk without hurting. I saw the doc this morning, and he pretty much confirmed my prediction - IT Band syndrome. The pain is where the tendon attaches to the tibia and fibula on the outer side of my right knee. It may not be the best picture, but this side view of the right leg kind of shows where it is (ITB = Iliotibial band)...

So yea. A couple weeks of rest and ice and all that good stuff is in store for me. Oh, and MSU fired the football coach. I won't rant about that, this post is way too long. Oh, and Jimmy unfortunately finished in 3:13:26 and missed qualifying for Boston by 3 minutes. He sent me a Facebook message the next day to say congrats, and I responded to thank him for helping me get thru the pain. It's crazy how you meet people sometimes.