Jenny (jsnowash)'s Spring Guinea Pig Group - CLOSED (Page 8)

I went through a bout of self dagnosed pateller tendonitis last year.  I ultimately used one of those patella straps that you wear right below the knee.  It seemed to work and allowed me to run.  It was funny, at a certain point it seemed to be causing more discomfort than it was easing so I quit using it and have generally been fine since.  I do remember there being some strength exercises to help manage it.  As said - and much better advice than mine - if you are going to a PT - listen to them and get better soon.

Thanks. Trying to stay positive and making sure I'm doing what the PT is telling me because I want to get back to 100% as soon as possible. Just frustrating because mentally I just want to push. We'll see how tomorrow's appointment goes... 

I did some easy trainer rides on Monday and yesterday but I think the knee needs a rest today so just going to do some strength training. 

@Jenny - Good luck with the Long Run today.

@Larchmont - I agree.  My swimming feels that way as well.  Maybe tonight's swim session will go well.

@Hgoudreau - I can't relate to "cold".  It felt relatively cool to me this morning at 68°F.  Everything's relative!

@Jaycee - take this with a grain of salt, but when my knee starts hurting I retire that pair of shoes.  Then it goes away.  But of course, yours may be more than just shoe related.

Today is Tempo day, so I warmed up for 2 miles then started a Wave Run - 1 mile "On" followed by 1 mile "Off", rinse and repeat.  Miles 3, 5, and 7 were run @ 8:04, 7:45, and 7:44 paces.  I target 10K pace or just a tad slower for the "On" miles and usually hit them fairly close ... other than the 1st one, which is always a bit slow - still waking and warming up.  8 miles total.  Not bad considering I haven't done one of these in a couple of months now.

Last evening was fun as I got fitted for, and brought home my new Bike.  Dang, that thing is sleek and hawt looking.  I may be slow on it for now, but I'm going to look fast!  I bought a pair of clipless pedals and shoes when I ordered the bike, but haven't been able to use them at all because they wouldn't fit my old bike.  So I bought a pair of Platform pedals thinking I would start off on those and work into the clipless.

But the Bike Fit guy wouldn't hear of it.  He showed me how to clip in and clip out which all-in-all didn't seem to bad at all.  We'll see what happens tomorrow morning when I take her out for a spin.  Hopefully I won't forget I'm clipped in and fall over (or worse!).  Pray for me.  

Bill

For what its worth...I had knee surgery years ago and the strength exercises that I was given by the PT seemed really light and I sort of ignored them. Big mistake. They may seem simple, but the strength exercises are really useful, and i'm still doing them today. I figure if they were good enough to strengthen the knee after surgery, they're probably good to keep my knee strong today. I would also recommend doing the exercises on both legs. In other words, if you have an issue with one of your knees, it's probably a good bet your other knee is similar. So, strengthen your knees and you'll be back in no time. Good luck!!

Edited by LarchmontTri 2012-04-18 9:02 AM

Thanks Bill & Brian for your recommendations. 

@Bill: I'll make a mental note of that. You may be onto something but my running shoes are only a year-old at this point. I think if anything, it may be form related :S 

@Brian: I am definitely making sure I'm doing those exercises. In the past I've been cavalier about them but now is not the time. With regards to doing them on both sides, I totally agree about the knees since they're stabilizing and all that but funny thing about my legs is that I'm very apparently stronger on my left side than my right side so we're going to work on some iso strength work on my right side. 

How many miles do you have on those shoes?  I probably go between 4 to 6 pairs a year.  It usually works out to about 350 to 400 miles per pair for me.

Bill

Long bike ride was derailed by a broken spoke at mile 8.  Back wheel went so out of true that I had to REMOVE the rear brake, not just the pads, the whole brake.  Even then I had to jockey the wheel in the drops to get some clearance.  An hour 1/2 later I limped it home but the constant rubbing had ruined the rear tire.  Guess it's time for new wheels.

Overslept this morning, so pool was reduced to some drills and stretching-maybe 800 yrds at most.

Soccer dad then lacrosse dad duties this evening-so probably nothing else on tap for me.  But the weather is getting nicer.

Oh wow - I had no idea that running shoes needed to be purchased that often. Really good to know. I don't get as many miles as you but I think I've definitely hit that threshold after the past year. Another cause to look into... 

I didn't get my swim in last night because the pools were overrun with several very large classes, and the ropes were set up widthwise.  I'll try it tonight after work instead.

Oh my Gosh!  What an Amazing Bike!  Sort of like jumping on Secretariat after having been riding a Plow Horse.  I took my first ride on my new bike this morning and got better than 2.5 miles further in the same amount of time as before.  And I wasn't really pushing it.  Just trying her out.  Shifting Gears often, trying different hand positions, and clipping in and out.  Had some problems clipping in, but it'll come.  And I didn't fall over!

Bill

I think I need some yellow tape for the handlebars!

Nice!  Congrats on the new bike!  A podium finish is that much closer now...

Back from another visit to the PT. knee is still inflamed so no running for me.  Guess it's biking and swimming for me.

Bill - love the new bike and the color.  The Cosmic Stinger is born.  Good job on the not falling with clips.  I am a klutz and average one fall per year!  Usually with observers.

I got my new aerobars in the mail, and am planning a little spin with them later this evening.  They are Profile Design T+1 alloy - nothing fancy, but do the job.  Best part is I can install them myself.  (Will post a picture once done.) 

I was bummed that I couldn't get my last training bike session in yesterday.  Work called me away the whole day.  I am terrible at working out past 9 pm at night - I can start as early as 3:30 am, but night time is torture.  As I drove home in the dark last night, I fantasized about what it would be like to train if I didn't have to work for a living, had a nanny and a maid - wow, just think about the sessions I could get in - then I realized that every athlete has limitations/pressures so I quit the pity party and thought about the gifts I have to train with - a healthy body, a nice bike, a home gym, great scenery, a mentor group ....  Life is good!

Started my hydration plan this morning after my spinning class.  I am revising some of my fiber intake and limiting fats over the next couple days just to avoid GI issues.  I want to be careful with nutrition as my little boy woke me at 2 am puking last night.  What is it about the sound of a child barfing during the night that brings a mom straight out of bed faster than a fire alarm?  Hmmm... maybe my alarm clock beep needs to be revised.  Not wanting to catch whatever the poor baby has, I approached the clean up task with gloves and a mask - oh wait, I do that every time!  I am a real wimp about that - only do the cleanup myself because the sound of my husband gagging is worse!

BTW - no picture of me in gloves, mask and Lysol surrounded in laundry and puke - way too graphic for the innocent!

Janette

Sorry to hear about your knee...hope it feels better soon. Perhaps replace your usual morning beverage routine with an Irish coffee and you'll be fine for a run!

Thanks!! Don't mean to be a debbie-downer - just had a rough (laughable) morning and wasn't really news that I wanted to hear.  (I might just give into that irish coffee one of these mornings.... i'm itching!! haha)

@janette - can't wait to see those aerobars since those are the ones i'm thinking of getting!! sorry to hear about your 2 yo! hope he's doing ok!

About what you said if you could spend all day training - i 'fantasize' about a life like that too!! i watch training camp videos of ppl training in hawaii and mann.. if only that were me! but then I'm on BT and i see all these DEDICATED athletes with families and children and still managing to squeeze training in and i realize that it doesn't matter where we are, what commitments we have, as long as we're able to do what we love!

Re: my morning, just because i haven't had anyone to 'rant' to. was making coffee for my travel mug this morning and when I went to put the sugar jar back onto the shelf i accidentally knocked it over and it went t-o-p-p-l-i-n-g onto the floor.. *CRASHBANGBOOM* (sound of glass breaking and sugar spilling all over the floor) at this point i'm already running late for work, dog trying to get all over the sugar. Sullenly get the vaccuum and clean it up but the glass broke into all these little pieces. anyways - finally ready to leave for work and am rushing to leave. halfway through my walk to work, I realized - I left my travel mug on the counter. (insert audible groan)

@JayCee, everyone has those days every once in a while.  Hang in there!  Hope the knee is a short term thing.

Yesterday after work I went for a short 550 meter swim, just to get wet and get a feel for the water before my Sprint Tri on Saturday.  For some reason my Garmin 910XT keeps logging my swims as 1500 meters.  Ha!  I wish I could swim 1500m in the time it took me to actually swim 550m!  I'm trying to stay positive about the swimming but I expected to be better at it.  I have the endurance - I can swim a mile or more when I want to.  But there's no speed.  I may need to get some lessons.

This morning I got up and ran a short, recovery-paced 3 mile run with some striders near the end.  The intent was to just loosen the legs up a little.

My Sprint Tri tomorrow appears to have only 4 men signed up in my AG.  Near as I can tell, it should come down to me and another guy for the AG win.  Not that that means anything whatsoever.  But if I'm going to be out there why not try to get it?  Maybe the new Bike will gain me the few minutes I'll need.  (Sometimes it's fun to cherry pick the smaller local races!)

Bill

BAH! typed a long post and then somehow deleted it all. anyways

@Bill! good luck at the race this weekend! I say definitely try and go for the AG win!

regarding your swimming - I say it's definitely adviseable to get lessons since it could get your form checked out and can make sure your strokes are efficient. The other thing you could try doing since it sounds like distance is comfortable for you is try doing a day of speed sets. Instead of focussing on distance you can try doing short but FAST sets. However, I'm not sure if that fits into your swim training at this stage. I'd definitely say get the lessons first since it's hard to gain speed without proper form, imo.

I think the footpod is a nice to have if you have money without a home.  I think the instantaneous pace is a bit better and helpful when doing track intervals.  I ran with a polar watch (w/footpod) for years but am finding I get more and more comfortable with the "average lap" pace.  That was the # I focused on during my half marathon and it worked very well for me.  Also, footpod allows you to do speed and distance on a treadmill or if running in areas where no GPS reception (for example, the Detroit Marathon runs 1 mile through a tunnel under the Detroit River.

I think the cadence/speed sensor is a must for the bike.  Two reason: (1) I think cadence on a bike is much more important than running cadence and (2) I train a lot indoors on my trainer and that is the only way to get speed/distance when indoors on a trainer.

So - 100% buy yourself the speed/cadence sensor for the bike and if you want cadence on the run, instantaneous pace on the run, or run where GPS reception can be sketchy get the foot pod as well.