Who Am I?

I am an avid runner and have been running since I was 15 years old. I began running low to medium distances while on my high school track team, running the 800 meter and 1600 meter races (I was a sub 5 miler and a 2 minute 800 runner). In addition to the track team, I also joined the cross country team. After high school I still wanted to run and decided to start doing road races. I have probably ran a couple hundred 5k races (16.29 PR)along with many 10k's as well. In 2009 I decided to step up my game and try to tackle my first marathon. I will be honest; the only reason I did this was because my father ran a few and I wanted to show him that I could do what he did. I trained poorly for my first one and regret it. If you are going to run a race, train like you want to win. I still continue to run marathons and other distances as well, and every race is a chance for me to better myself.
I started this blog to hopefully communicate with other runners and to shed any knowledge I may have about the sport that can help other runners. I believe running is the best sport and can be a great stress reliever. I encourage all runners to spread the word of our sport and show people why running is so good and why the community of runners has such great people. You can follow me on twitter @byrne1324 or find me on facebook- Shaun Byrne

Sunday, June 7, 2015

Time to evaluate my training



This week my training had some high points and some low points, which made take a step back and reevaluate my training. Last week I noticed that the knot in my calf muscle had returned and made runs a lot harder than they should of been. I tried to take a few days off and let the leg heal, but I also had a mile race planned for this week so I still needed to get in some training.

MONDAY: After taking the weekend off of running I decided to test the leg and go for a short 3 mile run. At about mile 2 is when the pain kicked in. Once I feel the pain it doesn't matter what I do it stays and makes the rest of the run uncomfortable. I ran the 3 miles at a slow 9:30 pace just to see how it held up.

TUESDAY: Before I ran I rolled my calf for about 20 minutes and did more stretching than normal before I set out on my 4 mile run.  I felt really good and was holding a 8:30 pace until mile 3. It was at the 3rd mile where I really felt it go tight, once again I was forced to pull back. I ended up finishing just over 9 minutes per mile. When I finished my run I once again rolled the muscle and I felt really good. After I took a shower I noticed that my back was really bothering me. As the night went on the pain got worst and worst and I noticed I was having trouble bending over and standing up straight.  The first thing that went into my mind was, great just before another race something happens that screws up the training.  I took some aspirin before bed and just prayed that it would get better over night.

WEDNESDAY: I decided to take a rest this day and try to let me leg and now back pains get better.  I spent most of the night with a heating pad on my back and my compression sleeves on my leg.  I still wasn't sure if I would be racing Thursday night or not.

THURSDAY: When I woke up I felt like the pain in my back was starting to feel better. I figured I would go to work and see how it felt through out the day and make a decision before the race. Only good thing going was this was a free race so if I couldn't run then I wouldn't lose any money. The race started at 6:30 so I got to the track around 6 and did a warm up mile to see how I felt.  I wasn't at 100 percent but I felt like I could still run a mile and endure any pain that may come.  In this race you predict your time and go into a heat that has your time in it. All month I was planning on running around a 5:40, unfortunately I knew with my back and calf that was out of the question. I predicted a 6:25 instead.  I was in heat 4 of 5. This actually worked out pretty nice, I was able to watch the faster runners and I was still able to watch my friend Anna who was in heat 5. 
As my race started I jumped out to the lead in order to separate from the pack, at about 200 meters I pulled back and settled in with a group of 4 runners. My strategy for a mile race is to always let someone dictate the pace. I like to hang on to the front runners and then make the race come down to an all out sprint, in which I feel like I am always the faster runner.  Everything was going good and even though my back was sore I felt really good. With 200 meters to go I decided to try and break away from the group, I got about 30 feet and realized that my calf muscle was not going to let me sprint this day.  I ended up finishing 4th in the heat with a time of 6:23.  I walked away thinking for a shitty run I felt good for the most part and I am confident that at the Liberty Mile I was be able to go in the mid 5 minute mark. 

FRIDAY: Rest day. As much as I wanted to run my back was still sore.

SATURDAY: I had all intentions of running, but I told myself take it easy and just do a an easy workout at the gym. My back finally started to feel better.

SUNDAY: Today my friend Russ and I went downtown to run 4 miles.  Russ just started running so I let him set the pace. We ran a 9:21 pace which is impressive for a person who just started to run 4 weeks ago and had to take a week off so he could go hunting in Canada. At mile 3 my calf muscle started to get sore, but since we were going at an easy pace I was able to hold the pace and finish. After the run I decided I really need to evaluate this training cycle.  First I haven't signed up for a fall half yet so I don't even have a set date that I need to be ready for. Second with my new diet and drinking a lot of water the runs have gotten a lot easier.  The next race I run is June 28th, so I have 3 weeks to get ready.  I have decided that this week coming up is going to be a "Rest" week from running, I will use it to work on lifting. I am thinking I need to let my leg really heal so I can get back into hard running. I still feel that I am making improvements and this one week will not effect my training to bad. I am tired of having an excuse for races and I want to go into every race healthy and really compete, taking a break may be just what I need.    

Have you ever had to cut back and take a week off? Do you feel it effected your training in anyway?

4 comments:

  1. It must be so frustrating to have that calf pain keep coming back! I think taking a rest week is really smart. Even if you took more than one week, your fitness level is so high that I bet it wouldn't affect your next race. And good race for being so much in pain all week!

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    1. Thanks, the problem is when I rest I start to think of all the things I should be doing for training and then I go out and run.. I need to just relax and know I am good even with a few weeks off

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  2. Have you thought about going to see a doctor about your leg? I went to a foam rolling session at True Runner, and the doctor there specializes in active release treatments (like foam rolling). If you're interested I can give you his contact info!
    I've had to rest a few times when I felt an injury coming on, and in that week I didn't really lose much fitness. The first couple of runs might feel bad, but you'll pick it right back up in no time! Hope you feel better soon!

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    1. Gretchen could you email that info.. Byrne1324@yahoo.com I have been rolling it everyday and it is starting to feel some what better so I am hoping l don't have to use the doctor but just incase that info could come in handy

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