Wednesday, October 22, 2008

The Mighty IT (Band, that is)

Isn't this beautiful? This is my entrance to Garin. As soon as I get here, my mood changes. Boomer's does too because he's leash-free from this point on. I went here Monday morning to hopefully get back into my normal routine of running 35-45 miles per week. The weather was absolutely perfect for running (56 degrees) and the sky was as clear as could be. Aaaaaah, what else could a girl want?
I'll cut to the chase. My IT Band is F'd up! It has been for a while now and I have been working around it by wearing a brace, (foam) rolling it, taking Ibuprofen, stretching, and even using a different technique when running down hills. Us runners (aka "junkies", "addicts", "whackos", etc.) will do most anything to run. Even if you don't admit it, I know I'm not the only one like this. I was able to complete an eight mile run on Monday but decided I am going to take a four to six week break from running for now.
Now, seeing that I am a confessed single track junkie, it means I NEED THOSE TRAILS. I can not and will not give them up! Not now, not ever. I still go out and enjoy everything I do about running, except the "flying down the hill" part. I still get the mind-clearing silence, the leg muscles working, the quality time with my boy (um, I mean dog), the heart and lungs pumping. Boomer and I went to Garin this morning and enjoyed 4.5 miles of dirt under our feet. This loop normally takes me about an hour to finish. This morning it took almost an hour and a half. Okay, so I'm not going to be able to put as many miles in this way. But at least I still get to get out and do something.

And......... I still get my single track fix!


Monday: 8 miles
Today: 4.5 miles
Monthly total: 88.5 (btw - I keep this tally because for every mile I (run) in October, I donate a dollar to breast cancer research).









2 comments:

Rick Gaston said...

I have chronic IT problems. Not running for awhile is a good idea. Back when the flare ups were really bad I would stop running for 3 weeks. These days they flare up but are ready to go at the end of the week. I credit that to years of foam rolling and leg strengthening.

Now it's my understanding that ITB is a compensation type of injury. Something else might be going on in there that caused your IT to get overloaded; tight glutes, issues with your hamstrings, too much running not enough recovery...

Jo Lynn said...

Thanks Rick, for your encouraging words. Three weeks is easier to think about than six! I seriously need to do strength training, this I know. Thanks again!