Slo Jo: Movin' on Up

Distance: 4.26 miles but irrelevant
Pace: Unknown but also irrelevant
Stairs: 15 sets of 46 (I counted)
Hills: Countless
Awesomeness level: Very high

BOOM!

I have some endorphins going from today's workout. First, I felt good the whole time. Second, I dominated my own PR from the last time I did this workout--and improvement feels great! Third, my knees held up! Phew!

I haven't posted about my last few runs because I've been really tired and couldn't think of anything to say. Well, I could, and that something would be "running sucks." On Wednesday, Clancy and I ran seven miles on the bridle path. Not sure why, but it was a terrible run. I know I started out too fast. I was thinking, "It's only seven, why not power through it?" Of course, that means at mile 2 I was thinking about calling the whole thing off and going back home. Even Clancy was worn out and lagging behind, and he has energy to spare.

(Okay, so this is an old picture of Clancy sleeping. But look how cute Betty Bamba was as a puppy sharing his dog bed. We should call this blog Running on Wine With Cute Dog Photos.)

After the Sucky Seven, I took a few days off. Then on Saturday, I did 14 on the bridle path with Coach and another friend, whom I will call Flash as she is super-fly fast. Flash was a sprinter in high school, and you can tell. When she runs with Coach and me, she seems like a colt that is being held back at the gate before the race. We ran a seven-mile loop back to the cars, and then Flash took off and ran another six or seven without us.

(Picture the female version of this trying to run at Slo-Jo pace.) 

Coach and I did another seven, too, only, you know, at human speed. Actually, I only did six. Recall that I only got into this madness because Toe-Shoes Tina talked me into running the relay of the half-marathon with her last January. I only had to do six miles, but I was a little undertrained for it, and I only managed to do five before my knee gave out. I made it to the relay point by lurching along like a motivated zombie.

(Post-race, it is important to re-fuel with protein.)

After recovering from the relay, I trained for the half in June--same thing. Knee gave out at mile 4...my friend's Advil and support got me through it, but it hurt. My knee recovered by July.

So on Sunday, at mile 13, my familiar adversary came back--knee pain! Coach gave me some Aleve and some advice on how I really could carry my own Aleve if I were so inclined. But it didn't help--whenever I ran, I had debilitating pain in my knee and up my right thigh. Coach had to do 16, so he went off to finish while I lurched back to the car. I wouldn't call Sunday a bad run--actually, my pace was quite good, and I felt good until my knee hurt. But I was concerned about whether the knee would hurt today.

It did not. And I felt terrific. I ran at Papago Park, which is beautiful.

(Gorgeous view from the top of the amphitheater stairs.)

I did the amphitheater stairs again. Remember my earlier post, where I only ran up them three times? I ran up them nine times. NINE TIMES.

(I was mildly surprised this woman didn't fly in from Santa Monica to photobomb me.)

I ran up that hill again and did hill repeats: nine times. Hills are so great, because when you start running flats again, it seems so easy. Then I went back to the stairs and did them another six times. I wanted nine, as nine seemed to be my number today, but I felt a little twinge in my knee and I was afraid I'd overdo it. And six, like nine, is a multiple of three. I find I do a lot of math while I run, such as trying to multiply 46 stairs by 15 sets.

In sum, the whole workout took about an hour and I got a ton of good training in. I think I am ready for the Bisbee Stair Climb Race this weekend!