Fri 8/13 - PM 70 minutes plus 20 minutes in Walden

Right hip/TFL/high hammy twinging more than I expected, discouragingly so in fact. Got progressively tighter as the run progressed until I stopped for the dip in the pond. Finished with the locus of soreness shifted to lower back/SI joint as it often does. Not left in a positive frame of mind for tomorrow's effort. It occurs to me that the left leg issues could also be related to the ongoing stiffness in the left ankle, something I haven't really thought about but it's just been there for a little while now. Not sure when it cropped up but I think it may have been after one of my wacky adventures in CO last month. Regardless, need to continue putting the time in on flexibility work or else I'm sunk going forward. Conditions just about perfect for this time of year, warm but dry with a breeze.

Thu 8/12 - PM 95 minutes plus 20 minutes in Walden

More tired than usual after work today, took a while to get going as a result. Gradual pace increase, second half of the run substantially faster than the first. Small tight spot in left high hammy all that's left of last weekend's adductor strain, at least for now. Cooler and more overcast today than it has been lately.

Wed 8/11 - PM 65 minutes plus circuits and 20 minutes in Walden

Left thigh has come a long way from where it was Saturday when I could barely move. Still some tightness at lower iliac attachment, but SI joint not as sore today. Somewhat tired by the end of the run. Less humid today, much more comfortable.

Tue 8/10 - PM 95 minutes plus 20 minutes in Walden

Further improvements in the status of the left thigh and lower back, encouraging after being very stiff and sore in the morning while at work. Much of the soreness centered around SI joint in lower back. Generally, the run was a smoother less hobbling version of yesterday's. Moved out of the initial putter phase more quickly and less restriction in range of motion in the left leg throughout. Still warm out but not as hot or humid as it was yesterday.

Mon 8/9 - PM 90 minutes plus 24 minutes in Walden

Very slow and rickety at the outset, left hip/adductor/back has improved markedly from yesterday but still a long way to go. Range of motion increased over the course of the run, but still not the same as the right leg, plus some swelling/stiffness in upper quad to go along with everything else. Pace mostly easy as a result. Also kept things low-key thanks to the return of hot and humid conditions, no desire to force anything at this point.

Sun 8/8 - AM 2:15 very easy plus 24 minutes in Walden

Not sure if I'd be able to run at all today after yesterday's unexpected blowup with the left adductor. Woke up not feeling quite as bad as when I went to bed but still nothing so great. Gave it a try in hopes of things loosening up over time. Moving very gingerly and extremely, mind-numbingly slow at first. Range of motion in left leg microscopically small during the first 35-40 minutes of superslow plodding, gradually the leg did loosen up just a bit with less pain and stiffness. Pace increased somewhat but still quite slow. Kept it there for the rest of the run. Could have run for many more hours at this speed, relaxing if very boring. The time spent in the water felt the best once again, able to move the leg through the full range of motion. Spent nearly an hour stretching after the run. Still at a loss to understand how the left side came to be aggravated so badly by yesterday's race, the answer has to be some kind of previous injury/aggravation to the area while I was in Colorado. Avoiding a recurrence of what happened yesterday is another matter entirely, the current stretching/strengthening protocol apparently isn't sufficient which is troubling.

Sat 8/7 - double, 90 minutes plus 20 minutes in Walden, incl. 5m road race

AM - Sandown road race. Did enough to win, took more than expected and I don't know how much faster I could have gone. First mile of the race was controlled, had more company than expected. It would appear the time spent at altitude recently was key, as I established a 10 second or so gap by 3 miles using the uphill sections and then held on to it from there. The uphill fourth mile was not so fun, hoping to be able to coast in on the last downhill mile but had to do work until the last 200m or so to ensure the win. That wasn't so fun, leg starting to lock up on the downhills (more on that below). Splits of 5:22, 5:08, 5:19, 5:53, 5:13. Conditions pretty much perfect for this time of year.

The most salient aspect of the race was how badly the left adductor locked up immediately after finishing. Didn't notice it so much during the race, focused on the effort and all, although in hindsight it was starting to get sore the second half of the race. The adductor got tighter and tighter after finishing, to where I could barely move 10 minutes later. Spent the next half hour with a lacrosse ball trying to work out the spasm which of course was in the worst most inaccessible spot. Eventually tried a cooldown and could barely move on it, more of a limping crawl. Difficult to express how surprising the acuteness of the aggravation is, esp. in light of the leg feeling better yesterday after stretching. It all goes back to the original aggravation/injury in January running on the slippery roads in Newton, but hadn't been bothering me of late. Noticed some stiffness last week after running in Waldo Canyon. Could have been from the descent of Longs Peak, the lack of stretching last week, or all of these. Whatever the case, the area is a mess again.

PM - 30 minutes very very easy plus 20 minutes in Walden. Desperate to get in the water to get the range of motion going in my left hip, the problem was getting to and from the pond. Unable to run in any recognizable form, had to stop twice on the way out to do direct pressure on the afflicted area. The water running helped it feel better somewhat, but still not really ready to run on it for the trip back to the car. Adductor, iliopsoas, TFL are all very sore and tender right now.