Jared Brown in Training

11 Miles & No Sharp Pain

After speaking to my Dr. he told me I should run 10 miles or try to run 10 miles on Saturday so I don't lose my legs with only two weeks to go before the marathon. EK had me scheduled for a 10K test so I tried to incorporate both into this workout.
Atlanta was calling for 56 and sunny starting the day and warming up to 60 around noon. Today I ran the Silver Comet trail one because the tri team was there but also because the trail is pretty flat and I have had the most issues with my knee when climbing hills. Going down hills is where the Dr's would expect me to have issue but why be part of the expected category at this rate. Having a Dr's visit yesterday my knee/leg is bruised and pretty sore before I even started. 8:00am came around and the run started. Due to my lack of real long run lately and EK's test I started out with a pretty fast pace and was able to keep up with the faster guys for about four miles. We stopped at a water stop for about 30 seconds to get a glass of water and I took down a Hammer Gel (yep I usually use GU but I met a Hammer rep and he gave me some free samples to try. The apple cinn. was by far the best tasting gel I have ever had but I am not sure I noticed a performance difference today). So after the break off for the next few miles I ran. I happen to catch up with a few people that were running 12 miles today so I ran two more miles and turned around (6 miles down) and EK's test. I finished 6 miles in 51 min which is slower than my previous test but I wasn't unhappy with the time. My knee at this point was sore and ached but I hadn't experienced the sharp pain that was making me stop running. I headed back and after two miles stopped for a little Gatorade at the same water stop I had previously stopped at. Off I ran for the four miles with a pretty sore knee but I never experienced the sharp pain. A few times I felt it coming on but it never actually occurred. Is the Dr really fixing it? At the 10 mile mark I decided to go one more mile and then walk the final mile to cool down. I needed to go over 10.5 miles because that was the distance the last two long runs that I have experienced the sharp pain. I made it the remaining mile and walked a mile to cool down. I never ended up experiencing the sharp pain this day! Overall I ran 11 miles in 1:30:00 which is a really good pace for the state I have been in. I have to keep in mind this course is much flatter than the marathon course which has a ton of hills but I will deal with those on marathon day. I have two more appointments with my Dr prior to the marathon which is in two weeks.

The knee felt good when I got home meaning there was no MORE additional pain or soreness. I took a nice warm shower (I tend to be pretty cold after running over 10 miles) and iced my knee. The sharp pain showed up and my knee was really stiff for most of the day after the icing. This is good and bad. Bad because it happened again, Good because it shows that the issue is the IT band muscle locking up especially when it gets cold. So Monday I will share that information with the Dr and see what we can do to keep the knee warm for 3:50:00 for my time I run the marathon :) Still shooting for under 4 hrs.

Went and saw "Alice in Wonderland" movie tonight. It was in 3D so that was cool but overall it wasn't anything amazing.

read more “11 Miles & No Sharp Pain”

Training Mind Set

So with the physical issues I am experiencing there are also mental thoughts associated with the process. So I thought I would put my thoughts down here for anyone who reads this so they know where my head is right now.

Today the plan is 100% to run and complete the 26.2 ING Georgia Marathon. I have four appointments already scheduled with 1st Choice to fix the physical issues I am having within the next two weeks. I am looking forward to them because I want to get back to 100% but I am still bruised from last week so they won't feel good I am sure. I have had a pretty big decline in the training that I have been physically able to complete due to the pain so being honest I am losing confidence on achieving my second goal of running the marathon in under 4hrs. It is very frustrating to have the will and fell strong enough to stay on task but be physically unable to complete workouts that were elementary to me just a few short weeks ago. Some have asked if I would consider not running at all to help healing (My Dad of all people, lol). The answer is NO! In my short time with the tri group and the mindset working with EK the words "QUIT" are no where close to a thought. The goals of completing marathons and Ironmans aren't completed by thinking in that manner.

Now, through other conversations people have asked what my plan is if I don't get better before the marathon. Seeing as I haven't been able to run more than 13 miles in a month there may become a point that the Dr's tell me not to run the marathon. That decision won't be made until the Wednesday before the marathon and only if running the marathon would risk the rest of the season. I have a full schedule planned for triathlon events this summer ending with my "A" race of ESi 70.3 Ironman Augusta. If there is no improvement and the Dr's tell me I will most likely ruin the rest of the year then, and only then would I back it down to the half marathon.

Overall my mindset I feel is still strong but I am frustrated and a little concerned I am losing physical conditioning that I gained up to the injury with my training. I am lacking a few of the long runs that I felt were necessary to be fully ready for the marathon so that is in the back of my mind.

Another Dr's appointment tomorrow so hopefully another step closer to recovering! I have a few questions for them that hopefully will help gain some confidence back. I have some training runs the rest of the week that will hopefully help me start to regain confidence in my condition for the marathon mentally and physically as well.

I am still very focused on the marathon but it will be nice to finish the marathon so I can break up the training of all the running and get more swim and bike training in my schedule. Today I look at it as the 70.3 is 1.2 mile swim which I couldn't complete today, a 56 mile bike and I rode 31 for the first ride of the season and felt great Sunday, and 13 mile run which I can do now and I am injured. I also have 6 more months before Augusta so I just want to work on my swimming and get faster in the other two areas!

Thanks for reading my blog and especially your support! Miss everyone back home!!

1st Bike Ride of the year & in Georgia

So today a group from the tri club were meeting up to take a group bike ride. Carterville is a little less than an hour north of Atlanta and a good place to get away from the traffic and ride our bikes. The weather was calling for partly cloudy and 56 degrees so I told them I would join them.

After yesterdays run I really wanted to get some exercise in so I don't lose my conditioning while I heal my knee. I woke up and the knee felt pretty good so I got my gear together and headed to the starting point. The funny thing about the starting point for the Carterville ride is it starts at an Anheuser Busch Plant. There is a big parking lot and the company lets us use the parking lot especially on Sundays.

The weather was nothing like what the weather men were calling for. It was cloudy and about 43 with a pretty solid 10 - 15 mile an hour wind. This course is a pretty hilly course which is different from the Silver Comet trail I have run at before (people bike that course as well).

So we started the ride and it was pretty chilly. I was a little under dressed but overall doing OK. We rode up and down the roads and this route is marked really good on the roads as were to go for rides anywhere from 27 miles to 100 which is really nice especially for new riders. After about 3 miles the group of about 16 people was pretty spread out. I found myself riding in a group of 4 people who I know pretty well from swimming and running. We rode along the winding and hilly roads. My body felt really good and it was super nice to get back on my bike and away from the traffic congestion of Atlanta. For the first time since I have been down here I kind of felt at peace and was reminded of riding back in Connecticut. Lots of fields with cows, bulls, and donkeys! I laughed each time I saw a donkey, not sure why it just makes my smile riding past a field of donkeys. At about the 18 mile mark the group stopped and people decided how far they were going to go. Being my first ride I decided to ride 31 miles today so I only had 13 miles to get back to the truck. Feeling good one a few of us took the 31 turn and headed back to the beer plant.

Overall I my hands and feet were cold but it was a great ride and my body felt really good. I got back to the car and some people were going to run for a few miles (people do this to get their bodies use to the triathlon bike to run transition. That type of workout is called a "BRICK"). Due to the day before I didn't bring my running shoes and wasn't going to push it I felt good.

Headed home with a smile and thinking of home.

Tough Day

Today was cold in Atlanta with a pretty solid wind. The plan was to go as far as I could up to 21 miles as this was the last long run of the marathon training before the recovery started.

The plan was to start the run in Piedmont Park and head west for 10 mile loop and then return back to the club tent in the park. Take a bathroom break, refill our liquids, and then head west for 11 mile loop back to the park and tent.

There was a group of about 8 people doing the 21 mile course today. Smaller than most runs for the marathon group but I think that was because of the weather.

I started the run with some feeling of soreness in both knees but much more in the left knee. Right now the right knee is fine and isn't a concern at all. So I started off the run and felt pretty good besides the constant ache in the left knee. Part of the course we ran was the same as on marathon day. My first experience of any part of the course. Good thing I am seeing some of these roads now because they are a lot of hills and some rather steep ones. Now I know why people were saying this marathon isn't easy. So up and down and up and down we ran for about 5 miles, holding a pretty good pace, and then made the turn back to the park. During the run back I got one sharp pain in my knee but it went away pretty quick. Some light conversation with a few of the runners took my mind off my knee and made the returning 5 miles pretty easy. Once back to the tent we refilled out liquids, did a light stretch, took a GU, and went to the bathroom (there is a public no touch toilet right next to the tent). It was still pretty cold and one of the coaches asked me how I was feeling. I said my knee was sore but overall I was pleased. So after about 5 - 10 min we start our route west. About 3/4 of a mile heading out of the park the sharp pain in my left knee returned and my knee locked up pretty good. I told the others to go ahead I would catch up and I headed to a park bench and started stretching my legs out to see if the pain would decrease. After about 5 min. of stretching, poking, and prodding of the knee I couldn't get the knee to loosen up or the pain to go away so I made the dreaded decision to head back to the tent. I knew I wasn't going to make it 11 miles so rather than push it I jogged/walked my way back to the tent and headed home for some stretching and ice.

The rest of the day the knee was stiff and sore but the sharp pain went away. Wednesday when I was at 1st Choice they said I probably wouldn't be able to make the 21 mile run but to run until I couldn't any longer. So I was pleased in that manner that I made it 10.5 miles but my confidence of making it 26.2 is decreasing and at this point that isn't what I am looking for.

Any day I can't complete a planned run is a bad day and tough day.

IT Band Update

So last Saturday I was running my normal long runs that I do on Saturdays with the Tri Club but this week was an easier week from EK. I had some burning on my right knee but I have been doing my IT band stretches on my foam roller. This helps the aching a good amount. So I was doing fine into the run at about the 9.5 mile mark everything changed. I had a sharp pain in my LEFT knee that was hindering my ability to bend it without getting a shooting pain. I stopped and walked about a 100 yards and tried to job a little, then experienced the same pain. I walked another 100 yards and then jogged about a 1/4 mile to the club tent. I decided I wanted to do a cool down job and see where the leg was at. I shortened my stride and jogged another 3 miles. When I got home I iced the leg. Some of the members of the team said I should go see "1st Choice Healthcare" and have them take a look.

With the pain I was experiencing I decided I would make an appointment and see what they said. This group has a large amount of experience with Ironman athletes and has a ton of credentials. So off to see Dr. Hamid Sadri I went.

I get to the office and he asks me a few questions and then has me put on a pair of shorts. First thing he has me to is some standing squats, walking up and down the halls, and then some sit ups with my legs straight on a table. He was dictating a bunch of medical terms to another Dr. who was scripting notes.

He then explained my issues:
1) Iliotibial bands (IT Bands) needed to be stretched
2) My left hip flexor is tight (hip flexors are a group of skeletal muscles that act to flex the femur onto the lumbo-pelvic complex, i.e., pull the knee upward)
3) My right glut muscle is weaker than my left

Most of the issues came down to my right hip flexor. Due to the hip flexor being really really tight it is causing my hips to open up when I am running and thus my left leg is acting longer (by .5 cm) than my right leg. This is causing my left leg to take a harder landing and longer push off than my right leg. Results = weaker right glut & pain in knee.

They then gave me a few stretches to do at home to stretch my left hip flexor and said to continue the foam roller exercises.

Then two Dr's came in and the fun started. One Dr pushed on certain areas of my hip while the other basically pulled and stretched my legs FAR PAST WHAT I WOULD EVER THOUGHT WAS PHYSICALLY POSSIBLE. This was to work the hip flexor. Then the REAL fun started. To stretch the IT Band they took hard edged tools and some lubricating ointment and at the same time while I was laying on my back on a table and swinging my legs up and back, they pressed up and down my legs and knees. To the point that the legs started bruising IMMEDIATELY! (They did warn me this would happen) After about an hour of stretching, poking, and pain I was done.

Today my legs are sore, slightly bruised, slightly red, but overall don't feel that bad. My right knee feels fine. My left knee is still sore but I will do my exercises and see what next Wednesday brings for my next appointment.

Here's to starting recovery!!

Nutrition Update

So when I started my marathon training and started looking at my event goals in 2010 I decided to get a licensed dietitian. Through some research and talking to a few people I chose Ilana Katz who owns "ON for Life – Optimal Nutrition for Optimal Energy". She specializes in sports nutrition and body composition. One of the best selling points was she also competes in endurance events so she would be able to relate well to my training.

The first day I saw her she weighed me and took my body fat % (using pinching tool)

Starting Stats (1/14/10):
Weight: 175
Body Fat: 18%
Body Fat Weight: 31.5 pounds of fat; 143 pounds of lean mass

Her plan isn't around a diet which for most is understood as an eating plan during a portion of set time. She views her plans as a change of life and works with me to change how I eat so that I can satisfy urges, stay lean & strong, while not going hungry. The first four days were classified as "detox" days and I was all out of sorts as I was hungry and had a lower level of energy. Overall I am eating every 2 -2.5hrs and there is nothing I can't eat in any given week as long as I follow her plan. *Note: she does do online programs for anyone not in GA.

Six weeks later (2/24/10)
Weight: 165
Body Fat: 13%
Body Fat Weight: 21.5 pounds of fat; 143.5 pounds of lean mass

The amazing part of the numbers is that I haven't lost ANY MUSCLE MASS and I have dropped 10 pounds of FAT!

Here is the thing I had to learn. For the last three weeks I have been a steady 165. With the exception of about four days I would say my eating has been right on schedule with her plan. The part that is showing true now is that my weight is not changing, so I could assume if I was just going by the scale that I have stopped losing body fat%. That isn't true, what is being shown is that I am replacing the fat with muscle which is keeping my weight at 165 but making me leaner and lowering my body fat%.

Goal for Marathon:
Six weeks later (3/21/2010)
Weight: 160
Body Fat: 9%
Body Fat Weight: 14.4 pounds of fat; 145.6 pounds of lean mass

First Issue of the season

So over the past few months I have experienced off and on pain that is related to the training and the abuse on my body. I have my first real issue which is called Iliotibial Band Syndrome or ITB for short. What is it you ask? The Definition is pain and inflammation on the outside of the knee, where the iliotibial band (a muscle on the outside of the thigh) becomes tendinous, and results in a friction syndrome by rubbing against the femur (thigh bone) as it runs alongside the knee joint. First you should know it is 1 of the 5 most common issues with distance runners and athletes. So how serious is it? It can get serious but right now I am just experiencing a dull ache on the side of the knee or right above the knee. I have been icing it after workouts and taking anti inflammatory medication to help reduce the swelling (non visible). I also went out and bought a Pilate's foam roller that I lay the leg on and roll from the knee to my hip which helps stretch the Iliotibial band.
This week is a recovery week for me in my training so that means less miles run in preparation for a hard week next week and then the taper (refers to the practice of reducing, or tapering off, exercise in the days just before an important competition) for the marathon. Instead of running I swam Monday and today. Yesterday I ran 4 miles with a little ache in the leg but overall felt good and kept a good pace for a 4 mile run. Tomorrow I run for about another 4 miles and then rest Friday before a longer run on Saturday. Saturday will be a good test to see where the leg is at right now.

read more “First Issue of the season”