Need some advice on how to handle the next 10 days or so.
Thursday evening, I am taking OJ to Sarasota for the CAMTRI race. I will be sans bike during the Sarasota part of the trip. I will almost certainly have an opportunity to run for an hour or so on Friday (the day before the race). Not sure about race day, but probably. We will remain in Florida on Monday and Tuesday. I will have access to OJ's bike, which isn't too different than mine in fit. (I cannot bring a trainer, but might be able to ride.) I plan on sneaking in my Thursday ride before we fly out.
Tuesday evening, we fly to Tucson. Then, on Wed through Sun, it will be hard core Junior Elite triathlon camp near Mt. Lemmon in Tucson area, so then I'll just be there. I'm going as a coach-helper. My road bike will be there and I will be riding every day. Running and swimming are likely. They are definitely on the agenda for the athletes. I can keep up with the back of the pack who will be at the camp running and biking. Anyway, during that part of the trip, I'll be working with the Juniors and just will do whatever is on board for that day. We fly home Sunday night.
I will only answer you if you've purchased me a companion ticket. That was NOT clear in your initial post.
I say you continue with Wk 10 as planned through Thursday..then you aim to get in your Sunday run at some point, and a nice longer ride...not worried about biking hard per se, enjoy the weather.
For the next week, that's where things get a bit wonky as you'll be out of pocket. I'd like you to get in minimum of 45' of aerobic stuff a day, and at least two quality run sessions with appropriately hard effort (given where you are at)... 2 x 1 mile is my go to for that stuff.
The rest of the time, just get it in...so if it were me, I'd be up early and out the door to get in some aerobic time (30-45' jog/run). Then as things open up later in the day, you can take advantage of them, but you aren't jonesing for a workout, nor are you trying to make a normal ride into some kind of faux FTP ride....you should just enjoy being in the mecca and living the life with OJ. When you get back in week 12 there'll be some friction, but it's all good in my mind!
Sounds good. Will try to find place nice to ride on Sunday. Maybe I'll be able to get some advice on the forums. And yeah, a couple of hour-ish runs while still in FL sounds quite doable. The rides with the team will be tough ones. There's one aerobic ride scheduled, but the others are either climbing (eg Lemmon day) or tactical group riding, which means like riding with roadies..where I'll be one of the guys in the back picking up whoever gets dropped and trying to get back with the group. So, I'm not concerned about not getting my work in while the camp is on. :-)
Yes, you're right there will undoubtedly be some friction when I get back, but not worrying too much about that is s a luxury of my new, non-competitive self. :-)
PS have you ever tried those Normatec leg doo-hickeys? I have no idea if they make you actually recover faster, but they sure feel good on the day of a hard workout. We got loaned a set for this week in prep for the race.
That's a great plan. And it also sounds like a ton of fun! As for the boots, yes I have a pair. They are fantastic -- use them after all my long sessions. We bring them to our training camps as well so athletes can enjoy some speedy recovery. :-)
Have you ever tried a one-leg-on, one-leg-off experiment with the Normatecs? They sure make you feel better immediately (which is nothing to laugh at), but I would be curious about what they do for next-day performance and/or comfort.
Bad news. Last couple of runs have stirred up what is clearly another tendonosis/tendonitis on my right achilles. Different spot but same leg as last time. Aging is clearly rearing its ugly head and it looks like I need to keep doing calf exercises permanently now. I'm shutting down the running at least until I get to Arizona, and will stick to the bike/swimming/elliptical/stairmaster/whatever... the good news is that I know the routine. Ice and eccentric calf strengthening. Not happy about it though.
What I can't recall very well is the trigger for thinking it's ok to start running gently on it again. I know you don't wait until the pain is completely gone... what's your recollection?
What's a greater indicator of old age...the same problem coming up....or the fact you can't remember what fixed it?
I personally like going all non-running for a week while you strengthen (so water/elliptical ok). Then we go to a week of introducing running...so think 30' elliptical main set (after warm up) as 6 x 5' -- 4' elliptial, 1' run, etc. Ideally that ramps up quickly and you are back to some form of running that next week....
So think of it as a progression moreso than --- not running to running.
Well, things don't always go as planned, even if they go pretty well. When we got to Sarasota for the race, we ended up staying in the only decent hotel in North America that doesn't have an elliptical or something similar, so I was out of luck for a couple of days. On the other hand, it was good for my Achilles. For the next couple of days, the family decided to go to amusement parks. We popped for the "express" tickets, so we walked for almost 10 miles each day and didn't have to stand in lines. So, not a work out, but at least some stimulation for the Achilles. I also had lessons in mellowing out about my exercise addiction. :-)
From Wednesday on, Olivia and I were in Tucson riding our butts off (mostly hilly stuff, including ascending Mt Lemmon) with her USAT Junior Elite camp and swimming after every ride. I was a safety rider...riding near the back of the pack to pick up anyone who fell off the group...but the effective of this is that I braked on the ascents and sometimes took it easy on the flats, but I had to work at least as hard as any of the elites going up. Because of the relatively extreme of the rides, it irritated the Achilles, but not bad, and it's back to where it felt like before the camp today. I did have one 4-mile run on Sunday, which I know you would not have advised, but I was responsible for making sure that a set of teenage girls went out and back safely while coaches were working on other things. I made sure to warm up very thoroughly, and it went ok.
My "feel" is not so different than coming off a half IM right now...maybe not quite as tired/sore...but in that neighborhood.
I had a good swim today (Monday) and am taking legs off.
What is your advice for getting back into the stream of things?
PS The race went well. OJ had been picked about 21st for the USA team and came in as the 9th American and in the top half of the field overall. It was a very good start at the new age group and at an international competition.
WJ, thanks for the update! Sounds like even if you didn't have the perfect workout week, you had a big smile on your face most of the time...life is good!!!
In terms of recovery, I'd want an easy Tuesday spin vs FTP ride, and then see how you feel on Wed for an elliptical recreation of the run before 100% back on track by Thursday.
A bigger question is whether or not you want to go "week 12 again" or stick with week 13? I don't sense pressure on the end of your OS, but let me know.
Sounds good. No rush to end OS...I can go back to 11 or 12. Outdoor weather is still pretty unreliable here for a few weeks. If it's good on the weekend, I can always ride longer outside.
I like the idea of "back" to week 12...so we can reintegrate and then close it out. I forgot about the weather...that trip report had me thinking you were in heaven...
Yup, I think this is the plan. I did a 45 min Sunday run outdoors, with no achilles issues, so I'm going to start stretching it out this week. It's not that I can't feel it at all, but it's not getting irritated by the run, there's no swelling, etc etc etc.
In your experience, is it better to do short runs on all the days between the main runs when brining an achilles back...or give it a rest in between? I know I'm probably better off taking another week without heavy speed/hill work.
I would not run on those days, or just make them super short off the bike like 2 miles. If not biking on those other days, then time on the elliptical would do. We want supple, not fried here.
Comments
Thursday evening, I am taking OJ to Sarasota for the CAMTRI race. I will be sans bike during the Sarasota part of the trip. I will almost certainly have an opportunity to run for an hour or so on Friday (the day before the race). Not sure about race day, but probably. We will remain in Florida on Monday and Tuesday. I will have access to OJ's bike, which isn't too different than mine in fit. (I cannot bring a trainer, but might be able to ride.) I plan on sneaking in my Thursday ride before we fly out.
Tuesday evening, we fly to Tucson. Then, on Wed through Sun, it will be hard core Junior Elite triathlon camp near Mt. Lemmon in Tucson area, so then I'll just be there. I'm going as a coach-helper. My road bike will be there and I will be riding every day. Running and swimming are likely. They are definitely on the agenda for the athletes. I can keep up with the back of the pack who will be at the camp running and biking. Anyway, during that part of the trip, I'll be working with the Juniors and just will do whatever is on board for that day. We fly home Sunday night.
I say you continue with Wk 10 as planned through Thursday..then you aim to get in your Sunday run at some point, and a nice longer ride...not worried about biking hard per se, enjoy the weather.
For the next week, that's where things get a bit wonky as you'll be out of pocket. I'd like you to get in minimum of 45' of aerobic stuff a day, and at least two quality run sessions with appropriately hard effort (given where you are at)... 2 x 1 mile is my go to for that stuff.
The rest of the time, just get it in...so if it were me, I'd be up early and out the door to get in some aerobic time (30-45' jog/run). Then as things open up later in the day, you can take advantage of them, but you aren't jonesing for a workout, nor are you trying to make a normal ride into some kind of faux FTP ride....you should just enjoy being in the mecca and living the life with OJ. When you get back in week 12 there'll be some friction, but it's all good in my mind!
Yes, you're right there will undoubtedly be some friction when I get back, but not worrying too much about that is s a luxury of my new, non-competitive self. :-)
PS have you ever tried those Normatec leg doo-hickeys? I have no idea if they make you actually recover faster, but they sure feel good on the day of a hard workout. We got loaned a set for this week in prep for the race.
As always, thanks.
What I can't recall very well is the trigger for thinking it's ok to start running gently on it again. I know you don't wait until the pain is completely gone... what's your recollection?
Thanks.
I personally like going all non-running for a week while you strengthen (so water/elliptical ok). Then we go to a week of introducing running...so think 30' elliptical main set (after warm up) as 6 x 5' -- 4' elliptial, 1' run, etc. Ideally that ramps up quickly and you are back to some form of running that next week....
So think of it as a progression moreso than --- not running to running.
From Wednesday on, Olivia and I were in Tucson riding our butts off (mostly hilly stuff, including ascending Mt Lemmon) with her USAT Junior Elite camp and swimming after every ride. I was a safety rider...riding near the back of the pack to pick up anyone who fell off the group...but the effective of this is that I braked on the ascents and sometimes took it easy on the flats, but I had to work at least as hard as any of the elites going up. Because of the relatively extreme of the rides, it irritated the Achilles, but not bad, and it's back to where it felt like before the camp today. I did have one 4-mile run on Sunday, which I know you would not have advised, but I was responsible for making sure that a set of teenage girls went out and back safely while coaches were working on other things. I made sure to warm up very thoroughly, and it went ok.
My "feel" is not so different than coming off a half IM right now...maybe not quite as tired/sore...but in that neighborhood.
I had a good swim today (Monday) and am taking legs off.
What is your advice for getting back into the stream of things?
PS The race went well. OJ had been picked about 21st for the USA team and came in as the 9th American and in the top half of the field overall. It was a very good start at the new age group and at an international competition.
In terms of recovery, I'd want an easy Tuesday spin vs FTP ride, and then see how you feel on Wed for an elliptical recreation of the run before 100% back on track by Thursday.
A bigger question is whether or not you want to go "week 12 again" or stick with week 13? I don't sense pressure on the end of your OS, but let me know.
In your experience, is it better to do short runs on all the days between the main runs when brining an achilles back...or give it a rest in between? I know I'm probably better off taking another week without heavy speed/hill work.