Temporary Break

I haven't posted in a long time. I keep re-injuring my knee, so I'm done running, at least for now.

Long Time No Blog

I haven't done ANY running so far this year. Until today that is. Well, actually I was taking Ares for a walk last night and it ended up being a short run. My knee felt fine; granted it was only a few blocks.

So, today I decided I was going to try an actual, planned run. Ares and I are both so out of shape! I have some new shoes I purchased a few months ago from a running shop. So, Ares and I got up and around and decided to go for it.

It was just a short run -- only two miles. And the last mile was much slower, with a lot of fast walking mixed in. The funny thing is that Ares got tired, too.

My knee was doing fine until we got home. Ares decided to chase a squirrel. He got the leash wrapped around a tree and actually had the squirrel by the tail! I strained a bit getting him away from it. My knee is OK, but I can feel it a bit. But I'm hoping it's just a "twinge", and that's something I can live with.

I hope this is the renewal of my running. I have really missed it. I am going to try to very slowly work back into this. My plan for this week is to run a few days, and keep them short runs.

Gotta run ...

No blogs for a while

OK, while out running the dog yesterday (Wednesday) I fell and hurt my knee -- yes, THAT knee. Being the stubborn person I am, I went ahead and took him for a short run around Riverside park (twice) and back home. It wasn't worth writing a blog about (less than 2 miles) Then I walked on the treadmill -- the first time it's been used in 2009.

Well, that was really stupid. Today my knee is swollen and it really hurts :( I should have just come home and elevated my leg.

So, I'm going to stick to walking the dog outside for now; no outside running. I will be using the treadmill to try to rehabilitate my knee, but I need to take at least a week off.

I will start blogging again when I'm back running outside. There are often breaks in the winter weather, so if my knee heals quickly I may be back at this sooner than I expect.

Gotta run ...

well, I guess walk instead

Short Sunday Run

It's windy and seems a little cold today. I guess with a wind chill of about 17 degrees all but a husky would consider it cold! I didn't really feel like going for a run today, but I knew Ares needed one. So, off we went. He has really become accustomed to running in Riverside Park, so that's where we headed. It was icy on the way to the park, so I had to watch my footing very carefully.

There were several other dogs at the park. It's nice to see other dogs at the park, but I don't like that fact that so many of them aren't on leashes. One dog came up, with her owner, and introduced herself. She was an older dog that we have seen before. She was clearly under the control of her owner. But, as we were running around the park, there were two other loose dogs that came running out of the woods. It was a little unsettling so we ran (and I mean RAN) to the other side of the park. Before we got around again, their owner came out and walked them out of the park.

Anyway, we ended up with a very short run. We ran a bit over two times around the park and then back home. It was 2.90 miles, but I figure any run makes the day go better.

Gotta run ...

Christmas Eve Morning Run

Ares and I needed to burn off some energy and get prepared to handle the stress of the holidays. And with a Winter Weather Advisory for this afternoon/evening and tomorrow calling for ice, we decided we needed to go this morning.

We started off, and found the sidewalks and roads were still slippery. So, we again went to Riverside Park. Ares loves running around the soccer fields and near the woods. We could see many footprints -- dogs, human, and deer. We did a lot of sprinting and then stopping to sniff (Ares did the sniffing, not me). We managed almost three full loops around the park. It's a different kind of run on the snow-covered grass, and it really works some different muscles.

We then went on down Riverside Avenue a bit on the road. I made sure that if there was ice, I was someplace with traction. We played it safe and walked if I felt it was too slippery. There was enough clear road, though, that it was a decent run. After running through the park, the road running seemed easier. I thought I was going much slower than usual. I checked my pace on my Garmin, and I was actually going faster than usual.

We went up Horace Street and turned around, coming back by Riverside Park. We managed to finish with the usual sprint up the hill. We didn't go as far as I wanted, but we were tired because of the park running. It was a decent run, though. We ended up with 4.25 miles. Now I have to clean/do laundry/last minute grocery and Christmas shopping. Ares -- well, Ares has to nap. He's tired.

Gotta run ...

Different Run

Ares and I needed to run this morning. But, as we started out, we noticed the roads and sidewalks were very slippery. I guess a few inches of snow and then melting and refreezing will do that!

So, when we got to Riverside Park, we decided to do something different. We ran in the park, on the soccer and football fields. It certainly was a different run. We both wore ourselves out with less mileage. Running on grass through several inches of snow made me work some different muscles. It was fun, though. And, we didn't have to worry much about slipping on the ice and breaking something!, Ares loved it; after all, he is a snow dog! We only went about 3 miles, but it feels like more. I think we will do the snow/grassy run more often.

Gotta run ...

Winter Weather Advisory Run

There was a Winter Weather Advisory this morning, but since it had been so long since we ran Ares and I decided to go. The weather has been too cold for even a husky this past week.

It wasn't bad when we started off. The temperature was right around freezing, so the precipitation was not sticking too many places. It was a light rain with a little sleet. We almost slipped while crossing the bridge; there it was a slushy surface. So, we carefully walked across (both times -- going out and coming back).

For fairly obvious reasons, we didn't see anyone else out there running or walking. I guess we were the only crazy ones this morning.

All in all it was a decent run. Because of a few slippery spots, we probably did more walking than usual. We both were covered with a light spray of mud when we got back. Ares didn't like getting dried off with a towel, but he tolerated it. He was just so happy to get out and run! We didn't go as far as I wanted, but we ended up with 4.5 miles.

We probably won't run much this week. The family is busy every night. We'll try to keep up with the walks, but many mornings lately it's been just too cold.

Gotta run ...