Running. With a bad jet.

~ Live & Learn

Homer Simpson6:15am.  77°F and 89% relative humidity.  I walk out the door and air is thick and soupy. (Hmmmm.  Maybe this sauna will accelerate the decomposition of the Oreo cookie intake yesterday. Count: 16. Yep.  Strapped on the feedbag and ravenously wolfed ‘em down. But lets be balanced here. This was spread over lunch and dinner – not so bad when looking at it this way – a modest amount actually.  I don’t think this even adds up to a full row.)

0.5 miles: I feel a pinch in my right knee.  The pinch advances to bite.  I grimace. (D*mn weekend warrior. I slow the pace but don’t stop.  “Run through it.” I recall the 2007 NY Times article – ‘We want you to keep moving…injured tissue heals quicker if it’s under stress…moderate exercise aids the healing.’ 5 year old article and its stuck with me.)

1 mile: It’s not going away. Limp-running now.  Slow pace further. (So, where’s the d*mn moderate exercise will heal part.  Healing can show up anytime now. I’m almost walking know.  Sweat is raining down…and tastes a bit creamy. (Oreos?)  You would think this humidity would be lubing my knee. Odd, my right shoulder is stiff now.  Oh, yea.  Re-started my push-up routine yesterday.  Man, my entire carriage is coming apart!  Another 1/2 mile and we’ll need to call 911.  As long as I don’t keel over into all of this Goose dung and avoid rolling into the cove…I should be ok.)

2 miles: I get back on highway.  Flat surface seems to be aiding recovery. (OK. This feels a bit better.  Feel like Homer, moving sooooo slow.  Hope no one is watching.)

3 miles: I reach Stamford Cove Park.  Knee seems ok.  (I’ve stopped glancing at my Garmin for time checks.  This isn’t a good story.  Let’s see if we can just get home without a major incident.)

4 miles: Young lady runner passes me.  She’s running at comfortable pace. She looks fresh. (This is totally unacceptable. I feel a surge of testosterone. No.  Don’t even think about it.  Which part of the lunacy continuum are you targeting here.  Let her go.  High School was many (many) years ago.)

4.5 miles: Knee seems to be tender but manageable.  I accelerate my pace.  And pass her.  That’ll teach her to mess with me.  (It’s clear that these people have NO idea that I was a Division I scholarship athlete in my day.)

5 miles: I’m running out of steam.  I can hear the pitter-patter of little feet behind me. She passes me.  (OMG.  D*mn it.  Distress!  Distress!  Did I see her smirk at me?)

5.5 miles:  She’s gone.  I stop.  This is over. (It wasn’t a fair match with my right jet sputtering.  It was an off day for me.  Next time…)

Time Check: 2.67 minutes worse than last Sunday.  Time for an ice pack. And a very long nap.

NY York Times Articles: When It’s O.K. to Run Hurt & To Stretch or Not to Stretch? The Answer Is Elastic.  Image Source: Principals Page

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24 thoughts on “Running. With a bad jet.”

  3. I really makes me happy to know how much you enjoy your weekend runs, David. ‘Cause if it didn’t make you happy, then I would think that you’re being so overly competitive with yourself (not the teenage girl – that was just a testosterone surge) to the point where you’d be willing to hurt yourself…
    Hope the ice and the nap help…:-)

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      1. I’m sorry!!! Andy needs to have arthroscopic surgery on his knee in late August – tore a ligament because he bent down in a peculiar position while picking up a golf ball. This is a cautionary tale – not a prediction!! I hope this morning it is better, no swelling and just mildly irritable – cause that would be progress, right? ;-(

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      2. No worries. The words knee and surgery are frightening to me. Let’s hope Andy does well with his surgery – and I can avoid it altogether. And yes, no swelling today – just irritable – and it is progress. 🙂

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  5. Humdity, thats one of the worst conditions to run in. Thankfully there has been few of those days in UK this year.

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  7. David you always make me laugh, I just finished a 3 mile jog/walk and understand the pinches and bites. Yes, we do need to keep moving though because if we do not….we stop in more ways than one. 🙂 enjoy the nap.

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  9. Makes me think of a “fusion circuit” class a friend and I took recently. At the end of the class, she looked at me and said, “Wow! I thought I was gonna throw up–that was great!”. Ya just have to laugh at what we put ourselves through at times…. Stay strong, David!

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