I dunno.
I had a training plan in mind for the GHM. I would start early and do double distance weeks (10,10,12,12,14,14,etc). In my mind this would give my body time to adjust to the longer mileage. That it would actually be easier on the body.
At the same time, I've been running with someone who is a bit faster than me. It's great as I push myself into paces that I don't normally run. It also makes for a lot of huffing and puffing, but I have felt ready for it and welcome this opportunity.
When people hear that I run distance I often hear the comment "I can't run because ______ " Usually mentioning one ache or pain. The more I learn about running, endurance and the body the more I understand that everything is linked and that a sore knee might be a hip out of whack. Keeping the supportive muscles in shape is as important as the main muscles.
Before I ever ran farther than 3.5 miles I was trying to get into shape by running a trail loop in a park "every day in June". I ended up with two sore knees. When I started training for my first half marathon I thought it could never work because I would get the sore knees again... but what I learned by following a training plan was that rest and recovery are crucial. To my amazement, I never had any aches and pains!
So here I am. A sore knee (usually only the day or two after a long run). And the dreaded plantar fasciitis. A real nightmare for runners. It has threatened me a few time prior when training for a few races... but this time it has gotten pretty severe.
Uncle. Maybe.
I decided to take a week off (rest and recovery) but might just be playing hooky (feeling depressed about the injuries while trying to train for my second full trail marathon). I don't really think that a week off is enough for much recover of the PF (it's plenty for the muscles and knee though). I have done a bit of research and will do my best to deal with the PF with stretching and massage and whatever else I can sneak into my schedule.
I have enough time before the race to jump back into training and this time I will just follow the 'plan' and hopefully I will still be able to attain my goal of running a faster race than last year.
