Stupid Leg!

It's a bad day, I hurt my leg.  I was playing basketball and pulled/strained my calf on my left leg.  It hurt, I couldn't keep playing and I've been limping ever since.  The worst part, I have a race on Saturday I do not want to miss. 

If it was just another race, I would be disappointed, but it would be OK.  This Saturday isn't just another race though.  Last year I found out that one of my co-workers was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, while she was pregnant.  We have never been close friends, but she is someone who is always nice and always has a smile on her face.  In short, she is the person who makes the office a happier place to be.  Today, my coworker and her baby are healthy, and I am running a part of a work team in honor of her as a cancer survivor. 

I want to run for every time her smile brightens my day.
I want to run for every time she said thank you for even the littlest of things.
I want to run because the world needs more people like her.

So now I'm alternating ice & heating pads, I'm going get my leg healthy, and I'm going to run on Saturday.  I have to admit it is a long shot, but I am determined to do it, so I'm just going to do it.

Week 5-21 Wrap-up & Week 5-28 Plan

Another week done and it was a good one, except for the abs.  Turns out every day I would think about doing my ab workout in the evening, but then forget when it came time to do it.


Week of 5-21
Special of the week: Abs!  I'd like to shrink my love handles, so it is going to be a week full of ab work.
Monday - Stretch & Strength & Abs - I did the first two and I'm moving on to abs as soon as this post is up.
Tuesday - 2 Mile Run & Abs - I ended up playing volleyball instead of running, and this was the night I actually did get an ab workout in.
Wednesday - 3 Mile Run & Abs - It was on a Treadmill, but I did a 5K route in under 29 minutes, which is better than my last race time.  No Abs.
Thursday - Cross Train & Abs - I got an invite to the "Sales Basketball Game" instead of my regular "Fun Game."  Those guys are good, I held my own, most of the time, but they ran my butt off. No Abs.
Friday - Basketball & Abs - More basketball, another good workout.  No Abs.
Saturday - 5.5 Mile Run & Abs - Postponed due to rain.
Sunday - Rest & Abs - I did my long run on Sunday, and it was great!  I pushed myself to
6.5 miles, and then managed to still get all my yard work done after.  This is the distance I've been working up to for a race at the end of June, so it is great to already be at the distance this far ahead.

Week of 5-28
No long run this weekend because I am doing a 5K on Saturday
Monday - 2 Mile Run & Strength - Done, although I got a groin strain, so I finished my run as a walk.
Tuesday - Volleyball or Stretch & Strength
Wednesday - Basketball
Thursday - 3 Mile Run
Friday - Rest
Saturday - 5K Race
Sunday - Rest

Week 5-14 Wrap-Up & Week 5-21 Plan

Hello friends,

Another week is in the books.  It was a tough start with traveling, but I made it a good one.  I'm also working on some other posts besides the Wrap-Up & Plan format, so be sure to check back later this week.

Week of 5-14
Monday - Rest - Done
Tuesday - Rest - Done
Wednesday - Basketball (CT) - Done, tweaked my knee a little, but it didn't slow me down.
Thursday - 3 Mile Run, Stretch & Strength - Done and had a great time.  I happened to hit the gym at the same time as some friends at work, so we ran "together" on the treadmills.
Friday - Basketball (CT) - Done and my knee felt good.
Saturday - 4 Mile Run - Done and then some!  I felt good, so I pushed to over 5 miles.
Sunday - Stretch & Strength - Done, focused on core work.  I also took advantage of some great weather and got about 4 miles of walking in.
Total Miles 12 - 8 running, but I'm counting the walking too.

Week of 5-21
Special of the week: Abs!  I'd like to shrink my love handles, so it is going to be a week full of ab work.
Monday - Stretch & Strength & Abs - I did the first two and I'm moving on to abs as soon as this post is up.
Tuesday - 2 Mile Run & Abs
Wednesday - 3 Mile Run & Abs
Thursday - Cross Train & Abs
Friday - Basketball & Abs
Saturday - 5.5 Mile Run & Abs
Sunday - Rest & Abs


Check back next week to see how I did!

Week 5-7 Wrap-Up & Week 5-14 Plan

Sorry I haven't posted for a while, it's been a rough week.  Early last week it seemed like work was getting in the way of me keeping on schedule, and I was so proud of myself for adapting and staying on track.  Then my week got derailed completely, I found out my uncle passed away.

On one hand it made all this seem silly, on the other hand it has a lot to do with why I'm doing this.  My uncle was an amazing man who had a great influence on my life.  The past few years he suffered greatly from a number of health problems.  I don't know that exercise would have prevented any of his health problems, but I know that exercise can improve my health.  I don't know that it will prevent health problems in my future, but it is part of my health that is in my control, so I'm going to take control and make exercise a positive part of my health.

OK, I'm off my soapbox for now an on to how I did last week and this week's plan.

Last Week

Monday - 2.5 Mile Run - Already Done!
Tuesday - Volleyball (CT), Stretch & Strength - Done!
Wednesday - Basketball (CT) - A lunch meeting forced me to miss basketball, so I did my Thursday run & strength instead.
Thursday - 2 Mile Run & Strength - I wasn't able to get on the basketball court, so I did 30 minutes on a bike and abs.
Friday - Basketball (CT) - Done!
Saturday - 3.5 Mile Run - Done! My legs felt good, so I pushed my run to over 4 miles.
Sunday - Rest
Total Miles: 9 - I ran a little extra with each run, which added up to over a mile during the week.


Next Week
I've scaled back for the week because of travel & stress, but I'm going to make sure I push myself to make all my workouts good ones.

Monday - Rest
Tuesday - Rest
Wednesday - Basketball (CT)
Thursday - 3 Mile Run, Stretch & Strength
Friday - Basketball (CT)
Saturday - 4 Mile Run
Sunday - Stretch & Strength

This Week's Plan

Here's what I need to fit into my week:

1 Stretching Session
2-3 Cross Training Sessions
1-2 Strength Sessions
2.5 Mile Run
2 Mile Run
3.5 Mile Run

Here's how I'm going to fit it into my week:

Monday - 2.5 Mile Run - Already Done!
Tuesday - Volleyball (CT), Stretch & Strength
Wednesday - Basketball (CT)
Thursday - 2 Mile Run & Strength
Friday - Basketball (CT)
Saturday - 3.5 Mile Run
Sunday - Rest

If I can stick to my plan, I'll get 2 Strength Sessions and 3 Cross Training Sessions in this week.  Tuesday & Thursday will be the key days because I'm going to be fitting different types of exercise into the day.  I may switch Saturday and Sunday to have fresher legs for my long run, but I would rather run on Saturday and take my rest day heading into a new week.

Wish me luck and check back at the end of the week to see how I did.

Saturday Morning Run

Friday Night

I decide I'm not too sore from basketball and not to have another drink. I'll get a good night sleep and get up and go running first thing Saturday morning.  I go to bed and leave my alarm turned on to wake me up before Abi gets up.

Saturday 5:40 AM

My alarm goes off.

I roll over and turn it off.

I roll over and try to go back to sleep.

6:09 AM

I haven't fallen back asleep because I know that if I don't get up and run, I'm probably not going to run today.  I drag myself downstairs, grab an apple and glass of water and sit down on the couch.  Outside looks gray, wet and cold, which I've learned is spring running weather in MKE.  I finish my apple and start stretching.  I take my time stretching and getting my running clothes on, I put on a long-sleeve shirt because all I can think about how gray, wet and cold it looks outside.  

7:07 AM

Kris & Abi are up, I give them a kiss and head out the door on my run.  It's not as cold as it looks, the sidewalk damp, but not slick.  I start Pandora and RunKeeper and start running.

7:12 AM

I hear the five minute mark from RunKeeper as City Hall comes into view.  

City Hall is one of my favorite landmarks to run past.  It isn't a pretty building, but I love the courtyard.  For some reason, I always smile when I see the statue of the two kids on the bench.  I keep running.

7:27 AM

At 20 minutes I'm past the 2 mile mark.  I feel a side cramp coming on, my pace has been good so I decide to try to walk it out quick before it gets bad.  It works, I'm running again and I feel good.  I keep running.

7:32 AM

At 25 minutes I'm still on a good pace, even with walking, and I come up to the Farmer's Market, another of my favorite landmarks.  

It's quiet now, but I remember all the busy times here.  I remember my mom and dad taking me here when I was a kid and always looking forward to getting apple cider as a treat.  I remember Kris and I bringing Abi here last summer and getting apple cider as a treat.  Summer is around the corner, and with it more trips to the Farmer's Market.  Life is good, I keep running. 

7:37 AM 

At 30 minutes I'm over 3 miles, I've reached my distance goal, I stop running.  I walk and stretch as RHCP Under the Bridge comes on Pandora.  Great cool-down song.  I think about high school and old friends as I walk the final two blocks home.  

7:44 AM

I'm home.  Abi is playing, Kris has made breakfast and I go to get cleaned up.  It's still before 8:00 AM on Saturday, I've gotten my run in and I feel good.  It's going to be a good day.

  

10K Training Program

Here's my trianing program to get ready for a 10K at the end of June.  It's adapted from a Hal Higdon training program.  There are a ton of running and walking programs on his site and it has been a great resource for me over the past eight months.

At the end of each week, I'll follow-up with a recap of my training for the week compared to the schedule below.  I should think of something cool I get to do if I finish each week, and something funny I have to do if don't.  Any suggestions?

Week of May 7

1 Stretching Session

2-3 Cross Training Sessions

1-2 Strength Sessions

2.5 Mile Run

2 Mile Run

3.5 Mile Run

Total Miles: 8.5

Week of May 14

1 Stretching Session

2-3 Cross Training Sessions

1-2 Strength Sessions

2.5 Mile Run

2 Mile Run

4 Mile Run

Total Miles: 8.5

Week of May 21

1 Stretching Session

2-3 Cross Training Sessions

1-2 Strength Sessions

3 Mile Run

2 Mile Run

4 Mile Run

Total Miles: 9

Week of May 28

1 Stretching Session

2-3 Cross Training Sessions

1-2 Strength Sessions

3 Mile Run

2 Mile Run

4.5 Mile Run

Total Miles: 9.5

Week of June 4

1 Stretching Session

2-3 Cross Training Sessions

1-2 Strength Sessions

3 Mile Run

2 Mile Run

5 Mile Run

Total Miles: 10

Week of June 11

1 Stretching Session

2-3 Cross Training Sessions

1-2 Strength Sessions

3 Mile Run

2 Mile Run

5.5 Mile Run

Total Miles: 10.5

Week of June 18

1 Stretching Session

1 Cross Training

1-2 Strength Sessions

3 Mile Run

2 Mile Run

10K Race!

Total Miles: 11

Welcome to Run Daddy Run

Hi!

I'm Matt. I live in Wisconsin, just outside of Milwaukee with my wife and daughter. I started running in August of 2011 in an effort to improve my health for myself and my family. I've had my ups & downs, and one of my ups is that I'm down 25lbs.

Recently, I didn't complete the running program and race I set out, so I've created this blog as a way keep myself accountable to complete my next running program, race, and work my way toward running a half marathon. You'll see posts about my training programs, goals, weekly running summary, and my family life (my motivation for all this).

Thanks for stopping by, and check in on me again. I'm going to keep running, keep improving my health, and keep posting.

-Matt