A short, painful run...

Tuesday, August 12, 2014

I was driving home and thinking about a workout.  Jack had suggested we meet for a Survival Workout, something he hadn’t done in a long time.  He’s always looking to change up his routine, which is a good thing and had wanted to go before I left for work.  Clearly, he didn’t know what the world looked like at 5 a.m.

“Jack…maybe after work?  It would be pitch black if we tried to go to the park before I work.  You do know about sunrise and it happening long before you wake up…right?”  I said.  He agreed that after work was better.

I knew I’d be driving past Headwaters Park on drive home and decided I’d get in a short run in addition to the Survival Workout.  I haven’t been doing much weight bearing exercise lately and with all the hiking I could be doing over the next several days, thought it would be a good idea.  I arrived just as a thunderstorm was concluding and found the parking lot empty.  I changed right there and started a slow jog down the bridle trail that ran along the reservoir.

The first part of the trail winds through a camping area, which is in the midst of a stand of conifers.  With a lean-to in place mingled with the smells of the pines and the lake nearby, it reminds me so much of places I’ve camped in the Adirondacks.  There was someone using the lean-to and a kayak on the shoreline.  This truly is an ideal site for someone testing the waters for back country camping.

I’d only run about a mile when my right foot began to give me pain with each step.  I tried running through it, but it persisted to the point that I stopped to walk it off.  It continued for several minutes before finally dissipating so that I was able to complete about 15 minutes of running.  I was hoping for 20, but saw no sense in pushing it with the pain I was experiencing and the fact that I hadn’t run a step in four weeks.

Once home, I knew I was done for the evening.  I had packing to do for the trip and my foot and ankle remained sore.  I convinced Jack to go with Savannah and the dogs and do the Survival Workout between playing with them.  He tried to guilt me into going, but I’m too old for that trick.

I finished the beef stew and drank about 30 ounces of water through the evening.  I’ve been filling my 20-ounce sipping cup I took from the Clinic at least twice a day, which is 40 ounces more than I ever drank before.  I’m trying to be particularly sensitive to my fluid consumption with the trip I’m planning.  I really don’t want to end another one with a trip to the ER.

Run Workout: 15 minutes

Training Heart Rate:  140 bpm.

Calories burned:  250