A Good Day for a Run

Today is Sunday, January 31, 2010, and it is a good day for a run.

My first run outside in two weeks was today, and my first long run with the loose shoe strategy. On the one hand, my confidence has been increasing ever since my runs have become less troublesome. On the other hand, the idea of a big setback is still looming in my mind. So I was very nervous going out there today, but at the same time, I was tightening up my laces a little more than before to see if there would be any improvement.

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Today is Thursday, January 28, 2010, and it is a good day for a run.

Today was the first day in a couple weeks at least that I ran essentially pain-free. I don’t know how it could make so much difference to just lace my shoes more loosely, but it really does. Today I did six miles on the treadmill and never once during the run was I thinking about my heel.

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Today is Tuesday, January 26, 2010, and it is a good day for a run.

And today, I ran! For the first time in over a week, I actually managed to run. It was a short, boring, and somewhat angry run, but it was a run nonetheless.

Today was my first day tying on my running shoes since my long run nine days ago. I was very apprehensive about it, but I felt it was time for me to test the waters after “resting” the heel all last week. When I first put on my left shoe, that old familiar pressure point was there, but it didn’t feel too bad. I was so determined to run outside today, I didn’t even bring any backup inside clothes. There was just no way I was going to be on the elliptical today.

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Today is Monday, January 25, 2010, and it is a good day for a run.

No run today though; strength training day on Monday as usual. I didn’t write yesterday night because I was busy watching the Vikings fumbling their trip to the Super Bowl away. The Vikes have never been to the Super Bowl in my lifetime, but I have had the pleasure of watching them lose four NFC championship games now. At least two of which, including this one, they should have won. On the other hand, the Hawkeye wrestlers shut out Michigan in the Big Ten opener and then won eight of ten matches at Purdue this weekend. But hey, isn’t this supposed to be about running?

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Today is Thursday, January 21, 2010, and it is a good day for a run.

Oh that I could have run today, but I am still braving my way through my injury-imposed running moratorium. The heel is feeling better every day, but I know I need to be patient, lest I screw up and undo all the healing that has been done.

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Today is Tuesday, January 19, 2010, and it is a good day for a run.

I have finally resigned myself to the conclusion I have been dreading, which is that this heel thing is not just a minor injury that I can run through and have clear up on its own. As much as I hate to face it, I have decided to accept the fact that I am going to have to rest it or keep prolonging it indefinitely.

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Today is Sunday, January 17, 2010, and it is a good day for a run.

I haven’t written in a while, because I haven’t run in a while. This is not due to anything sensible, like the weather, or a lack of time and opportunity; no, this is because of my stupid heel. As before, it still feels 100% fine when I am not wearing shoes, and hurts when I am wearing them. I was able to avoid shoes for most of the week, and when I wore them, it was getting a little better every day, but so frustratingly gradually that it put me in a serious funk.

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Today is Tuesday, January 12, 2010, and it is a good day for a run.

It looked like it was going to be a great day for a run: the sun was shining, the temperature was mild; it was going to be a beautiful day and I couldn’t wait to get out in it. I even had dug up an old five-mile course by work that I had forgotten about and that I was sure would be clear of snow. There was only one problem: my left heel hurts like hell.

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Today is Monday, January 11, 2010, and it is a good day for a run.

It is also a good day for a strength training workout, which is what I did today, as I do most every Monday. I didn’t run at all today, not even for a warm-up before lifting, like I usually would. The Achilles problem I mentioned last time I have determined is not actually an Achilles problem at all; it is a heel problem not related to the tendon. But it is bothersome enough to send me to the elliptical today instead of the treadmill for a warm-up. And as much as I dislike treadmills, I dislike ellipticals even more—but they do serve one good purpose, and that is when injury dictates something low impact.

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Today is Thursday, January 07, 2010, and it is a good day for a run.

In the morning when I am getting ready for work, I have to pick out my clothes for my workout at lunchtime. Usually I have a pretty good idea of what I have planned for the day. Today was one of those days where I was not quite sure. When I went out to start the car to get it warm, there were already two or three inches of fresh snow on the ground and it was still falling. It was definitely a run day, but I wasn’t ready yet to decide if I was going to be able to run outside or if I was going to have to bite the bullet and hit the treadmill. I packed both my cold weather clothes and shorts and a tech shirt.

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