A Training Setback & Stories from my iPhone

I have a lot of random stories to talk to you about from my iPhone and TOMORROW I’ll have the video of ways to wake up our glutes before a run.  I also have a minor setback to talk about at the end of the post but I truly believe it won’t make a difference on my race day finishing time!

*We went to the BYU football game on Saturday (against USC and we won) and we had a donut that was almost as tall as Skye.  It was delicious and the game was great too.  Andrew even got to watch the game on the field with my bro-in-law for a while (once I took the girls home because they were getting hot).

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*Skye gets so excited when she gets to be around my sister’s little boys.  It won’t be long until they are all in elementary school together.

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*This picture would most perfectly describes marathon training if there was a bunch of food wrappers placed all around them.  This is how I feel haha:

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*Andrew and Brooke had a Panda Express at home picnic date while I was in Seattle.

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*This set-up was at Brooks Headquarters and those shoes are a beautiful sight to see in real life.

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*We stayed at an EVEN hotel in Seattle.  I just love what they have in each room.  I actually got back from my run and stretched for a while… it felt so nice.

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*Jim Weber is the CEO of Brooks and one of the most positive people you will ever meet.  He is the definition of ‘Run Happy’ and it’s been fun to get to know him more and more each year on these Brooks trips.   Brooks is pretty great because ALL of their focus is on running… and you can see it and feel it with their products and their people.

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*My friend sent this to me and I laughed so hard… “My friends are into running and they say they are addicted to running…. And I’m addicted to STOPPING running.” Hahah

*I just liked this picture of these two and if you zoom in on Andrew’s sunglasses you can see I’m waving something in the air for Skye to look at… that’s how we get her to look at the camera ha.

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*Jen and I showed up to meetings on Friday in almost the exact same outfit (the only difference was our shoes… I was in the Launch and she was in the Hyperion).

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*My niece (the one I blog about all of the time) is falling in love more and more with cross-country.  I’ve got her geared up in one of my old watches and a pair of the Launch.  I’m just so so excited about this.    You can never start too young with the GPS and running shoe selfies.

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*From last week’s long run… water, vest, gels and a headlamp all in my pockets.  I get really excited about pockets and I know a lot of you do too.

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*Picture from right before our last PR… can’t wait for our picture before our next PR in a few weeks:)

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Okay, let’s talk about a mini set-back in my training!  Last week the afternoon after my 20 x 400s my left calf was feeling a little off.  It didn’t hurt again until after I finished my run on Saturday.  It felt normal again on Sunday and then I ran Monday (below) and it felt great during the run but then didn’t feel great after so I went into Dr. Bennett!  This last week was also a crazy week of little sleep because of some big life stressors so I’m sure that didn’t help my recovery after that workout.

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Diagnosis—> posterior shin splints and muscle tightness which is something I can run through but Dr. Bennett told me to ease off on any ballistic movements for a little while.   AKA the workout I was supposed to do today (26 x 200m).   I may have also slightly pulled the muscle supporting my arch too.   I don’t like the idea of missing workouts but we are so close to the race, I’m sure it will all work out!  Little things always pop up for me during the taper period too.

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From there I went to talk to Hawk (my coach) to figure out this week’s running.  Skye made herself comfortable as she watched some running clips on the TV (okay, the below scene lasted for 10 seconds… and the rest of the time she was attempting to tear apart the store;)

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We just have to be smart with this kind of stuff.  What is happening in my calf is not a huge deal (and I’m probably being dramatic like usual) but I don’t see any reason to push it over the edge if just a few days easy/off will get it right back to 100%.  I’ve worked too hard to get to this place:)  I want to feel confident with a healthy body on October 5th and if that means I am a little undercooked from missing a workout or two that is okay with me because I do not want to miss that starting line!  We get one body so we have to treat it right!

If you need me… I’ll be doing this:

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Tell me about any setbacks that you’ve had before a big race?  Share with me please!

What is your local running store?  Do you go in often or buy most things online?

What’s your run today?  I’ll live through you because I’m likely just going to sleep in today and call it good:)

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46 comments

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So smart going right in for treatment and taking a small step back from workouts! I have no doubt you’ll be feeling better asap! My workout today is a recovery workout–30X100–because I had a race over the weekend (which didn’t go that great, but it wasn’t a total failure in the heat/humidity/wind that we had, so I’ll take it….also, I thought about one of your stories because someone was smoking on the course and I wanted to puke! I remember you had that happen during a race too. Why do people do that?!).
I love our local running store–it’s always so fun to go in and talk to people who are also obsessed with running. The last time I went in the owner had a “race” with my two year old and gave him a Brooks Run Happy medal! It was so cute! :)
Enjoy your rest day today!

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AHHHH NOOOO smoking on the course is the absolute worst especially in the heat/humidity that you were experiencing. I am so sorry the race didn’t go well but your effort was 100% there! Oh I love that the owner gave your little one that…the best. Thanks and I can’t wait to hear about how you rock your next race!

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Hope you feel better soon!

I’m no expert but I found out I had plantar fasciitis this summer. One thing that I did that I think made a big difference is wear sneakers all day everyday. Like you I have a young one I carry around all day. Between that and the stretches I was surprised one week later I was pain free. Good luck

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I read this morning and I’ve been doing it all day… thank you!!! Hope your day is a great one and that plantar doesn’t happen to you again!

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HI Janae! Hope you feel better soon! I have faith you will recover and feel better in time for the race! As you’ve said, you’ve done the work and it is stored in the bank. The next few weeks are just fine-tuning. And resting to be there healthy counts as fine-tuning in my book!
My local running store is Marathon Sports (there is one on Boylston street near Boston Marathon finish!) It is awesome but don’t have a lot of time to shop so it is online for me!
My run was along the Charles river in Boston with a gorgeous sunrise…I’m not training for anything at the moment. I’d like to, but life is so overfull right now (3 very active kids and working full-time and lots going on) that I can’t get motivated mentally to handle it. I’m so impressed with your ability to manage it all….I wish I had your stamina! But I’m trying to use your advice that “running is always there for you.” Hopefully i’ll be ready to train hard soon…:-)
Have a wonderful day! Mary

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Thank you so much Mary! YES YES YES… fine-tuning here I come:) I’ve seen Marathon Sports in Boston ahhh. Your run this morning sounds perfect and I’m so glad you were able to have that this morning with so much on your plate. YES running is always there for you! AND PLEASE REMEMBER… ALL OF THIS RUNNING IS MY JOB!! You are doing what I do PLUS A DIFFERENT FULL-TIME JOB! You are amazing.

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Thank you, Janae,for the inspiring words! I hope you know how much you lift people up: in the virtual world and in the physical world! When you comment back to me, I always feel like I won the lottery! :-) And I’m still amazed by what you do every day, job or not! You are an amazing warrior. Keep up the work of resting!!
Have a great day,
Mary

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Sorry to hear about your set back! I got shin splints when I was training for my first half marathon. I knew nothing about overuse injuries so I kept running for 2 weeks until I got to the point I couldn’t even walk normally or without pain. That meant another 2 weeks of not running at all during what should have been my peek training. I was about to start back up for 1 week of training and the taper and complete the half. I wish I had done what you are doing and addressed the problem when it first started!

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Oh no!! I am so sorry that you went through all of that. Thank you for sharing, it gave me motivation to rest because it’s hard to do that! I hope you are having a wonderful day and that you never have shin splints again!

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YOU ARE SO SO SO SO SMART NOT TO PUSH THE CALF/ARCH ISSUE!!!!!! I know you’ve been there, but TRUST ME. Last May I thought it wasn’t a big deal to do some speedwork through adductor soreness from strength class. Well, I ended up with a strained adductor, which led to me hurting my foot doing a lunge WHILE AT PT, which led to another foot issue in August from the swelling. You know that Cher song, “If I could turn back time….” Boy, would I not have run through that adductor soreness. Experience is a great teacher, and you’re being super smart. It definitely helps to have someone like Dr. Bennett in your corner!!!!!!

I am running again though :) 5 easy today :) Slowly getting some mojo back!

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Oh goodness Jen, that is so hard! I needed to hear your story to help me stay away for a few more days ahh. SO GLAD YOU ARE BACK!!! Hope you are having a beautiful day!

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During my first marathon last year, at mile 12 I started getting excruciating right knee pain when I stopped to fuel. I obviously was not going to quit the race, but then at mile 16 when I stopped to fuel again, the pain got worse. So it was either change my race plan of stopping every 4ish miles to fuel so I don’t get the pain when I stop or fuel so I can get through the pain. Well, I stuck to my race plan and by mile 24, I was in TEARS. It was truly the worst pain I have ever felt. I had a 16 week training plan that I stuck to with, with no injuries or setbacks so I really couldn’t believe I was getting this knee pain. After the race, I got it looked at and it was my IT band and the injury lingered for 6 months so I wore a knee band. I really could have had a better time without the knee issues so that’s a huge bummer but there is nothing I could have done different – race gods had a different plan for me ha.

I actually work part time at my local running store in addition to my full time job. I work once or twice a week. I shopped there before I started working there!

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Hey Janae. Praying that rest and stretching helps your calf and arch issue. You have the right support team in your corner to help you get ready for race day! I also believe in the power of positive thinking. It can aid our healing by reducing the stress in our body–>if we’re just worrying/thinking negatively our body is going to have to fight those chemical imbalances + try to heal your calf! So keep on with the positive thinking!

My local running store is Running Wild. I buy a lot of run stuff online but I do like going to the run store because they have the expertise. If I’m wanting to try out something new (new product) or get advice on a possible injury (and whether I should see a dr, dial back, whatever), I’ll go in there and chat with them. They also have “my first 5k” classes where you meet 2x a week and they have a group coach and that’s actually how I started running AND how I met my fiancé and all my running friends. so they do great things for the run community:)

Before my half marathon in March I had bad shin and foot pain. It started with hamstring pain the week before the race, and then the Monday before the race we switched my speed work to an easy run. Then my shakeout run before the race was painful with shin and foot pain. My warmup for the race–>shin and foot pain. Looking back, I should’ve DNS because I had pain from mile one until mile 13 and it was a death march, and I ended up with a 6 month injury;) Who knows if I would’ve still needed that much time to recover without the half, but I’m so glad because now I’ve learned my body so much more and learned what is taper pains and what is real pain that needs addressing. & I’m less hard on myself if I need to miss a race.

Today I did my first “real” speed workout since injury! (Last 2 weeks were stride workouts to get back to it). Did 2 mile warmup, 10 x 1 min moderately hard (10k), 1 min recover, 2 mile cool down! I felt GREAT and my splits were way faster than I expected (and super consistent!) and I’m so thankful that all the strength training and form work I’ve done during injury recovery has HELPED my speed rather than made me lose all my fitness!!!

Again, praying for you Janae and I hope you rest and recover soon!

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Oh darn little issues that pop up! But you are being so smart in going to see Dr. Bennett and taking care of it!
Years ago I was having major hip problems that caused me to back out of a half marathon. Through PT and just learning about my body, I know I need to do more strength training and stretching! Especially stretching! That keeps my body much happier and injury free!
I can’t believe how close the marathon is!! You have had such a great training cycle, that I know race day will be amazing!
I have a couple of meetings this morning, so pushing my run off till later… Which probably means the treadmill, but that is ok!
Have a great Tuesday Janae ?

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great video! take it easy….

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Thanks Tracy!! I hope your Tuesday has been great so far!

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Sorry to hear about your set back, but you’re being really smart about taking it easy. You’re so close to race day: you did a lot of training already, you’re body is ready. I guess the hardest thing about training is to take your body seriously and to take a step back when you need to. Even though you know that’s what’s best.

I always go to my running store to buy new running shoes. I like getting good advice and the owner of this place always remembers what shoes you run on, even if you bought them a year ago. I wish my memory was that good!

Have a great day, and take it easy. Resting is a form of training as well, right?

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It seriously is at this point too… bring in all of the resting! Thank you so much Sanne, I know I’ll bounce back. Hahaha I wish my memory was that great too, that is awesome. Hoping you have a wonderful day!

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Sorry about the setback! Overall, though (and you already know this) it’s better to get to the start line healthy and slightly undertrained than injured and overtrained. Rest up, and you’ll be just fine.
My run this morning was an easy 4 miles, and it felt great!
Today is my husband’s birthday, so I am looking forward to pizza and ice cream tonight :) Have a great day, Janae!

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Happy bday to your husband! I think I’ll join you with pizza and ice cream too;) . Thanks so much… I’ll be back to normal in no time!

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Oh Janae, I am sorry you have a little wiggle area. I have not had any huge setbacks before a race (I just do not race that much) but I have had physical setbacks just when it seemed liked my body was dialed into a really really good groove. I do my best to remind myself that bodies are not robots and there are certain things you are going to feel simply from the fact that you are moving and working your body.
Remember: Having a body with no aliments does not guarantee PR, just as having one with does not mean you won’t.
Have a great day, friend.

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Thank you so much Erica, I’m sure I’ll bounce back asap! That is just what I needed to remember… I’m not a robot!! Thank you for this: Remember: Having a body with no aliments does not guarantee PR, just as having one with does not mean you won’t.
You always know just what to say! Thank you Erica, YOU TOO!

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The hay is in the barn!!!! Just get yourself to the starting line healthy! 45 grueling minutes on the stairclimber for me today- I am dealing with an ongoing injury to my calf which I sustained BECAUSE I TRIED TO RUN THROUGH THE PAIN for too long. If only I could go back to the very beginning and take a few days off, I’m sure I would be running now. What you are doing is absolutely perfect. Your body is strong and knows how to heal itself quickly. Good luck!!!!!

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Oh Jenny… I am SO sorry that your calf is still angry! I really hope we have 4 healthy and happy calves between the two of us soon! Thank you so much and I hope you are having a wonderful day:)

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I hope your calf/arch heal up quickly! I did 3.5 miles with my pup this morning. It was supposed to be an easy run, but Lulu was flying this morning so we’ll call it a tempo workout instead and go easy tomorrow :-)

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Hahaha Lulu needed a tempo today and that is so nice that you got that in for her haha:) . Hope you have a great day Kelli!

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I love that purple run shirt! :) Can you link it!

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Isn’t it so cute?! They don’t have it online anymore but here is one of their shirts that I am in love with right now and they have it in purple:

https://www.brooksrunning.com/en_us/womens-distance-graphic-tee-running-top/221364.html

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AHHH WAIT… that is the right one! Each color says different things so the purple one says what mine says hah. Sorry!

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What a buggery thing for your calf to do to you! Setbacks are so stressful. And annoying. But they are also, at least for me, reminders of what I’m not doing. My current (minor) setback is my tendon is acting out like a tired 2 year old. Manageable with tender loving care and patience but annoying as all get out! I’ll be thinking happy healing thoughts for you!
I don’t have 1 local running store (if I had guts I would look into opening one in my town) but I do have several running stores close enough. I purchased my last pair of road shoes in a running store I had never been to before and I will most definitely go back to. If I know my brand, size, etc I usually purchase online but when I want to try something new I go in. I really like the idea of purchasing in store to show support.
My workout today was 30 min on the bike at the gym + glute & upper body strengthening. I did some of the glider routine from my PT, Asher (catchingupwithdasher on ig), band work and half bosu w/ KB and man alive were my legs burning!
Have a great day!

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My biggest set back from running is when I got hit by a “cyclist” (I use that term loosely because it was a man riding one of those freaking city bikes, you know, the ones that weigh a bajillion pounds). I had to bail on a lot of races following that because I was out of running commission for 3 months. I was devastated not only because I couldn’t run but this was right after my first ever BQ and I was in the best shape I had ever been in up to that point, so I really thought life was over. I’m truly lucky I didn’t lose my friends/family/boyfriend during that time because rumor has it, I was mildly unpleasant to be around. ;) Other than that, I’m lucky I haven’t had any nagging injuries from training, but I will say I almost ALWAYS get sick during the taper. Nothing major, just like a 10 day head cold that shakes my confidence and annoys me. I feel like that happens to a lot of people?

Anyway, I’m proud of you! Be smart with your bod and as my fiance (who is a running coach) says at this point of training, “the hay is in the barn!” The work’s done, the most important thing now is to leave the hay in the barn and not undo all of the work (I added that last bit).

Get lots of sleep and try not to worry :)

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Hope you feel better soon, Janae! Injuries are no fun. I have been blessed to not have a ton of setbacks and injuries, but I will always remember my second 5k race that I had been training for four months to PR for, and a week before I figured out I was overtraining. I was just a kid, so the whole thing was quite traumatizing. I rested for a full five days (not even playing outside with my friends), and when race day came, I was only 55 seconds off my goal. I also beat everyone in my age group, including the 13 boys. Considering what an amazing runner you are, I believe you will have similar results. Good luck!

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You’re so smart to get that calf checked out right away and treat it right, so you will be ready for the big day!
During training for my first marathon, I suddenly had severe pain along the top of one foot. I was so worried about stress fractures. Turned out to be an inflamed nerve because I laced my shoes too tightly before my long run. I was on crutches for a few days just because it was so painful to walk on it, but within about a week, I was back to running with a different shoe lacing pattern that didn’t press on the nerve.
The workouts between now and the race are more “final touches” to all the building-up work you’ve done for so many more weeks. You’re still going to fly at St. George!

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Oof, I’ve had issues with that muscle supporting my arch, and it was NOT fun. I had to cancel a race because of it! But I also waited WAY too long to get it checked out because I thought I was just being dramatic–with some time off and exercises (and learning how to KT tape my arch), I am back to normal! I think since you were so on top of it, you will be good to go. Super manageable as long as you respect it, in my opinion.

No run today–did some strength training! Yesterday was intervals, tomorrow will hopefully just be a steady pace!

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Oh bummer Kristin! I am so sorry that you went through that but SO HAPPY YOU ARE BACK! Love your advice… time to respect it. Great job on your intervals yesterday and strength today. Enjoy your day!

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So sorry about your setback! I am actually in the same boat you are right now. My goal race is Sept. 28th and I’ve had some inflammation in my joints on the top of my foot flare up the past couple of days. Instead of doing the 8X800 workout I was supposed to do this morning, I made the smart (but very hard!!) decision to sleep in and skip. Why is it SO hard to skip workouts during training? I just keep telling myself that I’ve put in all the work to get to this point and one missed speed session isn’t going to matter. And, like you said, I would much rather show up to the starting line feeling good than injured or over trained. I’ve been there WAY too many times to count! Ha!

Hope you feel better soon!

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NOOOOOOOO Kristen, I am SO sorry about this and you are not alone. You really did make the right decision. Right now is just about rest and fine tuning so missing this workout won’t effect your race. You made the right choice! Keep me updated.

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Thank you for sharing that calf stretching video! I’m all too familiar with achilles tendonitis and PF and haven’t found a good way to use the ball on the calves before. That is genius! I’m sending all my healing energy to your calf, but you’re right, I don’t think this is going to affect your training much and the extra rest is a good thing. Glad you got in to Dr. Bennett!

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Probably smart to back off. My chiropractor is my go-to person when I’m hurting.

Question- what watch do you wear (the one in your picture above)?

You will crush your race!

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Praying for a speedy recovery!

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Hi Janae! Hope you are back to your workouts soon! I developed a horrible case of plantar fasciitis this time last year while training for my first half and ended up having to drop out. Good news is that after a few weeks of wearing a boot at night and some PT exercises I was back to normal and am training for the half again-this time pain free!

Anyways just wanted to say hi because you inspire me to keep running! Have a great day!

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I just have a 10 k race on 9/28 but my knee has definitely kicked up. I did 6 miles today as my last longer run before the race and it hurts now but honestly not awful. I think it is my bursitis ( one of many issues with that stupid knee). After the race I need a rest. I am also having a lot of stress currently am in a big nutrition depletion. I am struggling to really eat and sleep consistently and it’s taking a toll. We all have those rough patches I suppose.

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So sorry to hear about your calf! But I agree, you’ve put in all the hard work and I’m sure it’s not going to affect your race! I was dealing with shin splints leading up to my marathon last month and while probably not the smartest thing, I had some ibuprofen on raceday and had the best race with zero issues. I did pull up pretty sore after and am just making sure to really rest and recover now! It does mean not running for a while, but I got my goal time and a 45min PR so in my opinion it was worth it haha!

No run for me today but I have been enjoying all of the cross training! I did a circuit class on Monday, a Tabata and ab class on Tuesday and will do a Strengh class today and swim on Friday and cycle on Saturday ;)

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Hi HG,
I’m a little late to this post but in a yoga class I took in the past, we did a similar thing to relieve tightness in the calf. We used what looked like a pool noodle but had a water shooter in it. I found one called Max Liquidator Eliminator Blaster. It gets both legs at one time! Good luck with the mini injury and the marathon!

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Thank you for posting the calf/foot stretching video! I’ve had a weird arch issue for the last few weeks, and this video helped tremendously. I hope you’re feeling better and back at it ASAP! You’re going to crush your race :)

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PS – Janae, IT WORKS OUT!!!! :D

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