Category Archives: Running

Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells…

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Christmas is coming! To celebrate, I added a countdown on the right side of the page. Jenny and I are working on our Christmas plans, including shopping, our Christmas angel, time with family, and the Christmas Eve service at church. Christmas is our favorite time of the year. This year is particularly special because we should be within about a month of unwrapping Jonathan.

One holiday event that might interest some of you is the Jingle Bell Run for Arthritis. It’s a scenic walk or run (your choice) through Fort Worth’s beautiful Sundance Square, enhanced by Christmas decorations. Each participant receives tiny bells to tie onto his or her shoes during the race, creating an army of jingling bells marching through the streets. Many also bring Santa hats, reindeer antlers, Christmas sweaters, or anything else they can find to get into the spirit. Jenny and I did this race a few years ago and had a blast.

The race occurs Saturday afternoon on December 5. The 1-mile fun run starts at 4:15pm and the 5k at 5:00pm. I plan to run the 5k. Jenny, Brenden, and Jonathan plan to walk either the 1-mile or the 5k, depending on how she feels. Our friends Chris and Demona have put together a team and need at least one more participant. If you join our team by Nov 14, the registration fee is $16 ($18 if you want chip timing) instead of $20-27 for individuals. To join our team, contact me ASAP and I’ll send you the info. We hope you will join us!

Undy 5000 Report

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The Undy 5000 race was a big success! Jenny, Brenden, Katy, Eric, and I arrived around 8:15am at White Rock Lake and started the race at 9:15. Over 600 runners and walkers participated, raising over $93,000 to fight colorectal cancer! Despite a starting temperature in the 40s, the sky was clear and the sun bright, so we were quite comfortable by the end of the race. Since I’m sure you’re wondering, no one ran in just their underwear, due at least in part to the cold weather. Most wore sweatpants or leggings with boxers or panties over them and a shirt or jacket on top. Needless to say, it was a weird sight. Here we are in our boxers:

us

Here’s a picture of Katy and Eric:

katy and eric

Eric and I ran while the girls and Brenden walked. Eric turned in an impressive time of 26.39. RunOn posted the full results here. I was also proud of preggo Jenny for walking the entire 3.1 miles while pushing Brenden and cooking/carrying Jonathan. It wasn’t easy and left her very tired and sore, but she pushed ahead and finished. Great job, love!

I tried ChiRunning, a fairly new (?) approach to running that alters your stride and posture to help you run more efficiently and reduce injury – just what I need. Although I haven’t mastered it yet, the technique allowed me to finish in a PR (personal record) of 28:18 with only minor pain in my leg. I was so happy and grateful to God and the designers of the technique. I ran most of the way with short stretches of walking. When I ran, I ran significantly faster than I normal do. ChiRunning helps you cover more ground per stride with less effort. I hope that by further improving my technique and building my endurance, I might be able to keep up the same pace for an entire 5k or longer.

Leg Update

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A couple of months ago I wrote about my new rehab plan for my right leg. I’ve been using the Three Pillars of foam rolling, supplements, and exercises fairly consistently and with some success. When I go out to the park for a jog, I start with stretching and a 5-10 minute warmup walk. Then I run-walk 3.1 miles (5 kilometers), running for a minute or two and then walking a bit. The proportion of running to walking depends on how quickly my knee starts to hurt.

Compared to what I could do before the new plan, I am grateful and happy with my progress. However, I seem to have plateaued in my recovery. My goal is to run 5k or more continuously like I did a few years ago, but I can’t get there until the pain goes away. On the plus side, my thigh and hip muscles are growing stronger and more defined. Ever notice how runners and other leg-intensive athletes have a cool line on the side of their leg between their quads and hamstrings? I want that line. But I would rather break 30 minutes on a 5k.

Water is Basic 5k Report

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Despite the cool weather and early start time, Jenny, Brenden, and I had a fun time at the Water is Basic run on Saturday. J & B did the “one-mile” fun run, which was actually more like two miles because the turnaround point wasn’t clear. I ran-walked the 5k. Due to some knee pain, I didn’t run as much as I’d hoped, but I loved being surrounded by so many runners all doing their thing for a good cause. At church this evening we heard that nearly 500 runners participated, raising around $12,000. That’s about 4 wells, enough to provide clean drinking water for several thousand people. Praise God for technology that can save lives!

Rehab 2.0

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Several months ago I embarked on an unsuccessful quest to rehab my right leg so I could run again. I was diagnosed with iliotibial band syndrome (ITBS), a condition marked by pain on the outside of one’s knee that appears during running or cycling. For me, it appeared gently after a few minutes of running and gradually got worse until I gave up. Weeks of physical therapy didn’t help. Rest didn’t help. A cortisone shot to my knee left me limping for days instead of giving me some relief. Finally I gave up and accepted the possibility that despite running successfully for years in high school and college, perhaps “Old” Andy just wasn’t going to be a runner.

I never liked that idea, so I’m putting together a new rehab program after talking to friends and doing more research. Rehab 2.0 has three ingredients:

  • Glucosamine/chondroitin/MSM supplements, which help rebuild connective tissue. My friend Alexis found a liquid version that I might try.
  • A foam roller to loosen up my IT band and break up the embedded scar tissue and calcium deposits. This is cheaper and more convenient than active release technique (ART), a special type of deep-tissue massage that does the same thing (and is just as painful!).
  • A new exercise called Walt’s Special that both stretches and strengthens the muscles at the top of the IT band.

Will this plan work? I don’t know, but I have to keep trying.