Jul 13

FIT:
On Sunday, did the 10mi LR, the first LR in over a month.  My legs were really sore last night (Tuesday), the kind of soreness that makes your legs absolutely itch to run.  Really... does anyone else know what I mean?  Like the first day or so, your legs may just feel kinda worn out, but then the second or third day, they just want to flex and stretch.  I watched Runner's World videos of Boston and Kara Goucher and was sooooo hyped up about running.  That, coupled with my legs, made me legit feel like I could've run a marathon right then.  I didn't have time to, though... well, I did plan on waking up at 3am to work for a couple of hours and then run and then go to work.  But you know how that goes... woke at 5am instead and went straight to the office, no run, boo.  Not sure why I was watching videos instead of running, now that I think of it... I guess I figured I'd do it in the morning, and that way, I could just shower then.  Streamline everything.  Oh well.

I ran today.  Had to debate about that one.  I worked... 12.5 hours today, and I was tired from lack of sleep this week and stressed.  I knew my body was in a zombie-like plus stressed state.  I needed the sleep, but I knew that if I had tried to go to bed immediately at 11pm (after I had eaten and watched some Ryan Hall videos), I'd just be fretting for an hour or two.  So why not spend that hour or two wiping away the stress with a run?  And boy, did it work!  Just 3.1 little miles.  I didn't know how many I'd do.  After LRs, my legs always want to go fast, so I started faster than average.  I didn't wear flats, so I didn't do a speed workout, but it was a fast run.  Due to the speed or the heat or my tiredness, I only managed 3.1, but it was a good 3.1.  That last half mile was tough, holding it. 

3.1 in 23:24, 7:33 ave.  My sophomore year (first year of XC) PR, at the state meet.  I was so proud of it. 

Just got back from the shower, where I might've figured out why my legs feel that way on the 2nd and 3rd day.  I think it holds water... literally.  I noticed earlier today that my leg muscles looked bigger, and I've kind of learned that it's swelling, not hypertrophy.  Then, I linked the itching to the tingling, which you might expect if nerves in your legs are being squeezed a bit by the extra fluid.  Eh?  Sounds good, huh?  And maybe the body's quite smart to make me want to run it off or stretch it off, since that'll pump the blood out and make things back to normal.  Hmm??

Splits> 7:52, 7:25, 7:25, 0:41 for 0.1. 

After running, I always feel like I can tackle whatever assignment had previously been weighing on me like crazy.  Happened back during school, and same thing happens today.  I guess that's also smart of the body to do that.  Running gets you in flight-or-fight mode and ready for action, so that you aren't paralyzed with fear or too sluggish to do something that you need to do. 

Bodies are designed to be pretty cool, huh? 

What to do now... I had considered waking up early tomorrow for strength training, but now, I know that's not going to happen.  I'm ready to get what sleep I can (once I get through winding down a bit more, maybe reading a bit more a/b running).

Oh yeah, after the run, I did some strides.  Never bought into them much before b/c there's no cardiovascular benefit, and it's such short distances that it seems to not do much.  But it's the neuromuscular connections that you want to build up.  You want muscle memory to be developed, and firing patterns of the nerves to become second nature.  Ryan Hall had a segment on why he does strides.  So I did the 6 that he recommended.  Normally, I've a little banged up after runs, but since this one was so short, and since I had spent like 5 minutes walking around afterwards to cool down and get blood flowing naturally again, I was physically able to give them a shot.  We'll see how it goes as I do more of them.  It's supposed to make your intervals sessions or speed work feel easier. 

Kara Goucher takes in protein afterwards... so I just refueled with some whey powder.