With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams...

Walked.  Groin still sore.  Maybe tomorrow. 

Almost got chewed up by another dog this afternoon.  I didn't have my mace, but I had Mike.  He got a good kick in for me.  Stupid owner just wanders over slowly while his dog is in full "I want to bite you" mode.  I do not like it when people can't follow the rules in regards to leash laws.  I'd like the sherrif to deputize me and let me be the "dogs on the loose" ticket writer. I'd generate some revenue for the county.

Walked again.  Groin still sore.  Maybe tomorrow.

Trying to work on core strengthening while I'm KO'd from running.  I found there are some things I can't do because they involve the pelvic floor where the groin muscle is attached.  I need some motivation.  Injuries suck.

Here I am complaining.  I need to keep things in perspective.  Just got an email from my 40-something year old friend who is now under hospice care for her cancer she's been battling for 9 years.  Cancer sucks worse than anything.

Got up and got to walk two miles today! 

I'm still looking for a good stretch for my groin area.  All the stretches I know are targeting the area that isn't sore.  Is it okay to stretch it out when it's still sore, or should I wait for it to stop hurting before I work on stretches?  

I wish I had a personal trainer/sports med/physical therapist that I could keep in my pocket and utilize whenever I needed them.  I saw a man that looked like he had a squirrel in his pocket once, but I'm looking for a professional.

Can't wait to get out of town this week-end for the Marine Corps 1/2.  Probably won't be running it, but Fredricksburg, Virginia is a beautiful place to go and get away for a couple of days. 

Didn't get to run this week-end.  Drove 4.5 hours to Fredricksburg and had a great time at the expo.  We were even given free tickets to the pasta dinner, which was delicious. Got to hear Ryon speak.  Very inspiring!! We were winding down for the night and getting things ready for bed so we'd be 100% ready for our wake up call in the morning.

Then the phone rang.  Someone broke into our home and we had to leave right away so we could drive the 4.5 hours home and assess the damage.  Not really the way I'd planned on spending my get away/race/birthday weekend.

I decided to just keep doing the recovery for my groin instead of running and making it worse.  It would have been worth it for a fun race, but not for daily training.

I've tried RAD's happy baby stretch.  I can actually feel it stretching the right area.  Thank you for the helpful hint!

Did 8.2 walk with a backpack full of  30 lbs of rocks.  It was on a nice paved path that follows the Cape Fear River.  It was gorgeous.  Nice breeze to cool us off in the shade, and everything was green.  We saw big spiders, grasshoppers, frogs, squirrels, and lizards.

By the end, every part of my body was tired.  But it felt good to really work out.  I just couldn't get my HR up above 120, and that was on the steep up-hill part.  How can I get a good cardio workout without running when I can't go to a gym?

It's been almost 3 weeks since my injury.  I tried running a little, but after .5, I could feel the pain.  So I stopped and walked a little, then tried running again.  After another .5, I realized it was really hurting, and I had to remind myself it wasn't worth another 3 week set-back to keep running.

So I guess I'm in this recovery for the long haul.  I'll keep walking and try some short runs along the way.  But I'm not pushing anything beyond my comfort level.  I've got to be ready to run with RAD in July, and I'll need everything to work just right so I can try and keep up with her.....who am I kidding....I'll never keep up with her, but I'll at least need to try and keep going behind her!

She's in great shape now, so at least the view will be good while I follow behind her.  :-)

Ran 1.5 w/o needing to stop.  Did the stretching & ice after.  Felt good the rest of the night.

After my small success yesterday, I was motivated this morning to go out and try it again.

I managed 3.5 miles of straight running.  I could feel it at the end, but I stretched & iced and I'm hoping it will be good the rest of the day.

Still sore from the 3.5 on Wednesday.  Took yesterday off, but I just needed to run today.  So I ran anyway.  I ran 3. It felt so good to run.  My groin is sore, but I stretched and iced it, and I took some pills to manage the pain.

I just need to run.  Too many demons knocking on my door, and running seems to be the only healthy thing I can do to quiet them.  I think Tennessee sour mash would help too, but that would only unlock new demons later down the road.

Ran 6 today.  The first 2 miles were hilly, and my groin was aching like crazy.  I'd stretched and warmed up before hand, but it was still a tough start.

After the first couple miles, the course flattened out and I just felt great.  It was an out and back, so by the last 1/2 mile, I was feeling sore again.  I don't know if it was from the hills, or just the distance.  It sure did feel great to run again.

Did a 1.7 cool down walk.