Injury / Training Update

So the good news is as of Christmas, I've started to run at least twice a week - mostly four miles at a clip, with a small amount of walking on these severe hills around me. My endurance going up hills is quickly being re-established, which I'm happy with. Furthermore, flats and uphills are proving to be easy for the most part. The downhills are a bit trickier.

My lower outer quad is taking for-ever to wise up, which I knew would be the case since it began acting up just before Halloween. The spasms have about 95% ceased and the IT pain has diminished, but the seizing and stiffening is coming and going when it wants to. Running down hills is the biggest cause for concern, as some descents feel painless and loose while others cause stiffening and seizing up. Slowing down or walking during descents, I feel it more, and also just after I've descended.

The resolution to my issue continues to be foam rolling, ice, and some basic cross-training exercises. My girlfriend is *hopefully* getting me P90X for my birthday, so I'm excited about that. :P The bottom line is I need to ramp up training and dispense with further issues as I need to register for my early races such as the Glacier Ridge 50K and the Pittsburgh Marathon in the very near future!

The overall good news is the rest of my body is good! No significant pains or issues to report. Last week, I battled the stomach bug that's been going around, but luckily it only amounted to moderate acid indigestion and a feeling of fullness and having a knotted stomach. Then it passed.

More good news is today I fixed my treadmill, which had a severed power cord that my ex-wife's dog had chewed through in 2011. I'd let this project go during my divorce, naturally. But with freezing cold temps and snow on the way, and my Emme moving here in Spring, now was the best time to fix it. My challenge was locating a replacement 14/3 power cord and also buy a pack of mini female connectors to connect to the circuit board in the motor / computer housing at the front of the machine. It proved to be an easy task once the parts were assembled. I also found the bolts to put the elevation-changing feet on the back of the machine, which I'd neglected to put on during prior use. I plan to run barefoot on the treadmill to improve my strength and form.