The Run that was Not To Be

A rare treat: temperature nearly 60 degrees and rainy in the middle of January. I actually didn’t believe the Weather Channel when I checked the temperature before picking out my running clothes this morning. I thought the website was glitchy and hadn’t updated properly so I went to the kitchen window to check the thermometer outside. Sure enough, it read nearly sixty degrees.

I grabbed a pair of shorts from the neglected stack. I haven’t worn shorts on a run since November. Shorts are so much easier than tights; easier to put on, easier to pull off. The thought that was literally running through my head was, “YAY!” (Confession: I may have quietly squealed “YAY!” as I got ready for my run this morning.)

I still braced myself for the cold as I stepped out on to the deck. Could it really be nearly 60 degrees outside? Impossible. However, my body and mind clenched for not reason. It felt wonderful outside with the steady rain coming down. Well, this should be fun I thought to myself as I walked around to the front of the house and as soon as I hit the sidewalk, I took off for the bike path ready for a good time in the rain.

I made it to the end of the block.

My left quad / inside thigh started to hurt immediately. My rule of thumb of pain while running is if it doesn’t affect my running gait, I can keep going but if it does, I stop immediately. I was definitely limping and the pain wasn’t going away. Images of my fun, rainy run disappeared; I turned around, shut off my GPS and walked back to the house.

Damn! I am able to (mostly) walk without pain so that is a good sign. I think it is simply a muscle strain and a few rest days will do the trick but I’ve had such a strong few weeks of running I am disappointed to have that much momentum coming to a whimpering stop in the rain.

When I got back to the house, I kicked off my shoes and decided to curl up on the couch for an hour and read. I also decided I would do some strength exercises (pushups, sit-ups, pull-ups, etc.) before jumping in the shower and getting read for the rest of my day. Even if I couldn’t run, I could still do something productive.

However, I wasn’t ready for the sheer exhaustion that would overcome me when I sat on the couch. I simply couldn’t keep my eyes open. Even after that extra hour and a half of sleep, I have been exhausted for the rest of the day. My body just feels run down. I’m not sure what message it is trying to send me; I was so pumped for the run this morning and not five minutes later, I felt utterly drained. My stomach and head are also feeling a little unsettled so maybe I am fighting something and didn’t realize it.

My plan is to taking today and tomorrow off completely and go to bed early both nights. (Sleep does wonderful, healing things. It is truly a miracle.) I’ll reassess how my leg feels but hopefully be up for the planned easy four-miler on Wednesday. Fingers crossed!

Daily Dozen:
Attempted 5 mile run and strength training – thwarted! Unscheduled rest day.