A 5K Summer and the Battle of the Hammie

Run in the Sun

After topping off the trail running season with the completion of my first 100 miler at Thunder Rock, I was ready to get back to short distance racing this summer.   My plan was to knock out a 5K every other week or so, and just have fun along the way.   A nice bonus of the 5K is, with a little effort, it's not too hard to place in your age category, pick up a nice medal or two along the way, and get a few of those much appreciated store gift cards (Thanks 1st Place Athletics and Fleet Feet!)   

Everything started out on the right note with the Sherwood Park 5K.   I headed over there two weeks after Thunder Rock with very few expectations.   However, the day turned out great.   There were about 50 runners and I wound up placing 2nd overall and 1st in my age group.  I knew for a fact that would be the highlight of my summer (if not my entire 5K running life).  I could almost hear the wise old Master from the Kung Fu series say, "Grasshopper, you chose your race wisely."  

Over the following weeks, I ran in the Firecracker 5K, the Blossomwood Blizzard 5K, and the Huntsville Track Club's Twilight 5K.   I placed 2nd in my age group at Blossomwood and Twilight, but trouble loomed.

Yes, I will take a side of "Yow, What the.., Son of a..." with my Ham...string

As part of my "short mileage" summer,  I also started going to the Huntsville Track Club's Tuesday evening Cross Country runs.   These are a series of 1,2,and 3 mile runs held at Huntsville's XC course.   On my second evening out there, I was following closely behind Eric "Prez and the Revolution" Fritz and Kathy "Bad Water / Spartathalon" Youngren as they got in an easy 3 miler, but just keeping up with them qualified as a tempo run for me. :)   Somewhere near mile 2, I felt it.   It was as if a strip of tape in my left leg had been rolled up.   It wasn't terribly painful; it certainly hurt a little, but the most dramatic sensation was that the back of my left leg was extremely tight.   I managed to walk/run the final mile, and decided to take a couple of days off after that.

Knowing that the Twilight 5K was just a few days away, I got back out on the road for a couple of days of easy miles.   I actually felt okay, and decided that I could run the Twilight 5K.   However, about a mile into the race, I felt my left hamstring tighten up.   I finished the race, mostly because my three girls had come to see me run and I didn't want to quit on a rare night like that.   I managed to finish 2nd in my age group, but I was hobbling.

I decided not to fool around this time, and I took a full 6 days off -- relying on advice I read in an article on the Internet.  You know -- the Internet -- the place where all advice on medical issues is sound and trustworthy.  Long story short, yesterday, I went out for a trail run with some friends on Monte Sano.   As per usual, I took my obligatory fall during the run and thought nothing of it until I got up and felt my hamstring had tightened up.   This time, I was frustrated and thought to myself, "I will just run it off.  It will loosen up as I go."  At one of the breaks we take to make sure everyone is still with us, a guy said, "Hey man, you've got a bruise on the back of your leg."  My heart sank, because I knew what that meant.  I had just taken a mild hamstring pull and turned it into a tear in my muscle -- the blood from my disappointed muscle was forming the bruise.  If my hamstring could talk, I know it would have said, "You, dummy.  Why didn't you lay off for a few weeks?"

So, as I've talked to some folks that know a thing or two about hamstring pulls and read a few more articles (this time from much more reputable sources), I realize that my running is going to have to be shelved for 3 to 4 weeks.   Initially, good old Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation (RICE) are key.  Soon, I can start to do non-impact workouts to strengthen my hamstrings -- I will probably choose swimming, along with a few other exercises.   

My only take away from this, and advice to others, is to concentrate on your hamstrings and glutes.   Running alone will not adequately build these muscles, especially as you get older.  I picked this up from a Runner's World article.   

So, in the meantime, I will see you at the pool.   Have fun out there, and take care of yourself!