back to running

I've slowly been making progress on my running lately. I've been pretty intense with my stretching before and after running. I been like a nice little hamster, running on the treadmill several times a week. A month and a half ago, I could run 6+ miles without being very tired. Now? I look pretty awesome at the gym running 6.5 miles an hour for five minutes, then walking for one minute. Fortunately, I have been able to increase that a bit each day, so I look a little less pathetic.

Tonight was a different story though. With my first tri of the season on Saturday (Air Force Academy sprint), I was pretty nervous about being able to do the entire run pain-free. Tonight at Jack Quinn's, I managed to do the 5k without even a hint of ITB soreness. Sure, I only jogged at a 10:00 mile pace, but it felt good to not have to walk after six minutes. After the first time through, I did it again, but went back to my timed runs. I didn't want to push it too hard and get hurt just a couple days before the race.

Running is slowly becoming one of my stronger sports again. I was never super fast by any means, but if I could just get a full year of injury-free running it, I know I would be running at a pretty good pace. Heck, I'll take a full year of injury free anything. I've already seen some nice gains in my swimming, biking and running... so this coach thing is paying off, even if it's just a mental boost.