Wednesday, February 25, 2015

Turning the Corner: From Base to Strength

Injuries suck. The discomfort I have been feeling in my right knee ebbed and flowed, forcing me to cut back my mileage and spend more time on the stair climber and elliptical trainer. I rode my bike more than I ran last week, which helped my range of motion. I threw in a couple visits to the chiro for some A.R.T., and I feel like I am returning to full strength. 

I volunteered at Inside Trail's Chabot Trail Runs last weekend, helping set up the start/finish festival, manning the first aid station with Inside Trail Racing Team members Chris Wehan and Craig Schmidt, cooking soup for the finishers, and then breaking down the festival area. I enjoyed supporting all of the runners; I don't get the opportunity very often. I think I'll volunteer for more races in the future!

During a lull around lunch time, I was able to squeeze in a run on the half marathon course. My knee felt vulnerable, and I ended up over working my quad and calf muscles to protect it. This was good news; if a niggle moves around, then it is likely not a chronic injury. I'm just happy my knee doesn't seem to have suffered serious damage. As I ramp up the strength building workouts (hill repeats, weight training, long hilly trail runs) I hope to mitigate any further discomfort utilizing the many tools in the kit.

Weight loss continues. I am back to the weight I tackled States at last year. Now if I could just lose another 20 lbs...

Wednesday weigh in, February 25th:
  • Weight: 192.2 (-3.6 lbs)
  • Body fat %: 18.36 (-0.47)
  • Ketone level: 1.2 mm
My adapted ketogenic diet is working pretty well. Keeping my daily carb intake below 50 g while using carbohydrates selectively during and after hard workouts has provided a steady state of energy. My climbing stamina is increasing, and the weight is dropping. As long as I can get my IT band/quad healthy I stand a good chance of returning to my planned volume. Marin Ultra Challenge looms on the horizon. 31.7 miles with 7000' of elevation will be a good measuring stick for my progress. I've finished similar courses in about 6.5 hours. I'm curious if I can improve on that mark by much.


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