Back on the wagon

Fortunately the long off-season is mostly over for me.  It’s been a trying one for me in not being able to run throughout the winter as I normally enjoy, especially given the pretty mild winter Chicago had this year.  As of this week, I’m partially back to running—not full speed & volume yet but SLOWLY getting there.  I’ve been focusing a little more this winter on biking on the indoor trainer and swimming.  As I’ve said all along, I don’t need to be in great running shape in April.  I don’t want this hip injury to linger on longer than it needs to.  Unfortunately I ran starting in early November and competed in a 5K which I think dragged this injury out longer.  I’m hoping that by having these past few months of mostly non-running that I can be a little fresher as I get going in high gear. 

A few weeks back while Melissa & I were on a Caribbean cruise, I thought things were progressing nicely as I ran 5 out of 7 days, including an 8 miler in the Cozumel heat.  The leg felt really good and I thought I was finished with the rehab.  Then I came back to the Chicago cold and the leg just wouldn’t loosen up, or it would be okay during the run, but after would tighten up and hurt worse.  The pain right now (as it has been all along) nothing to serious, but it’s the injury sort of pain that means something is wrong, not the hurt sort of pain.

The delay in running has also prolonged my shedding my off-season pounds.  As my races get closer, I become more disciplined with my diet but once the season is over, I do enjoy the occasional sweet.  Okay, truth be told I have a sweet tooth that has more endurance than I do.  I fully expected to put on about 10 lbs in the off-season and as of the end of January I successfully did that.  One request from a loyal reader is that I post my daily caloric intake.  I certainly do plan to do this as once my volume increases to a normal amount and see what gas I put into the tank. 

Dessert on the cruise--Melissa was of little
help so I pretty much finished both plates. 

Since the end of January, I have been more closely following my training specific diet, which for me is essentially limiting the alcohol and sweets I enjoy.  This really isn’t for the physiological benefits as much as the mental strength I feel I get by saying no to the things I enjoy.  With the Ironman training I certainly bike and run enough where I will get to the goal weight I want, so I don't think these calories would actually hurt me any, especially since they are simply replaced by other foods.  I do this because at some point during the Ironman race everything in your body tells you to quit.  I have only done 2 of these races but during the first race, this feeling lasted for about 4 miles, for the 2^nd race, this feeling lasted for about 18.  If I convince myself that I’ve done everything to make myself better, at those moments when the body says quit, I feel I have a stronger mind to block that feeling out.  So the limitation I put on myself is alcohol in moderation (less than 3 drinks on any given day) and one desert day per month, with 2 exceptions: 1) when celebrating someone’s birthday & 2) when on vacation so Melissa doesn’t have to enjoy dessert alone.  So, Emily France, keep posted for the food report. 

Oh, and for a quick update, I did pass my board exams so I’m happy to report I can put that behind me and continue to move forward focusing on other things at work and training.