March Running Round Up

March went much better than February in my running world. I'm off the Aleve, mostly. Sometimes I take one before a run, when I remember. I still have the pain in my right hamstring but it's a lot less prevalent. The doctor suggested physical therapy but for now, I've declined. I'm learning that a good stretch regularly, foam rolling and yoga help keep the pain at bay.

Running makes your muscles SUPER tight. I never knew the meaning of that until I started running twice as many miles a month as I used to.

Here's how it played out for March:

Mar 3: 3.5 mi in 32:00, neg splits, pain toward end
Mar 4: 6 mi in 57:11, avg pace 9:35, pain last 2 miles
Mar 10: 3.3 mi in 29:45, neg splits, would have done 4 sub36 but ran out of time
Mar 11: 6.5 mi in 61:41, longest run yet 10:00/9:42/9:23/9:16/8:46/8:41/5:00
Mar 13: 3.4 in 29:53, 1 aleve only, 9:01/8:46/8:36
Mar 17: 3.6 mi in 36:00, first outside run - no aleve, some pain
Mar 18: 4 mi TM, 1 aleve 9:51/9:41/9:28/9:22
Mar20: 3.45 mi in 29:45, 1 aleve, 8:36/8:25/8:07-fastest mile yet!
Mar 24: 4 mi outside in approx 40 min, no aleve had pain
Mar 25: 4.5 mi in 41:40, 9:15 pace, leg pain :(
Mar 27: 3.35 mi in 30:00, no aleve, no pain- walked Sadie beforehand
March 30: 3.4 mi in 32:04 9:51/9:31/9:20, pain halfway

49 miles

Not too shabby, eh? Did you see that 8:07 mile in there? Fastest for me, EVER! The pain is still there, yes, but I'm learning to manage it. I had two outside runs, first ones for 2012. I hate transitioning from the treadmill to the road. I feel so much slower and it's a lot harder to propel yourself down the sidewalk than it is on a rubber belt that's moving for you. My pace outside is all over the place, I know. I take some walk breaks, something I never have to do on the treadmill. It's a process, I suppose. I'll get there. Maybe this month I'll actually hit the 50 miles that I've been striving for.

Warmer temps in April and a beach trip coming in 6 weeks? Better keep on, keepin' on.