Went For a Walk

I was up at 5:50am. Decided to go back to the basics. If I can't run, I shall Walk, so the good book says right there in Jacob 5:23 (see for yourself). At any rate, I decided to take a 30 mins walk. I underrated my effort so I wore shoes without socks and regretted it 20 mins later when my shoes started bruising me. I decided to do a power walk, that is fast walking and it went quite well. After 17 minutes, I could feel sweat trickling down my back. I tried running for two metres and felt some pain and stopped.
So after the walk, I did squats, crunches, pushups and calf raises then I stretched. There is a nerve in deep in my right ankle that is painful. The initial injury seems to have healed and this one generating the pain seems to have sneaked in from the backdoor but I am better. Tomorrow I shall endeavor to go for a 40-50mins walk. A hard one. No Shit. Hopefully I can run on Thursday.

Meanwhile Moses Kangogo Kibet won the Dublin Marathon yesterday.

Still in Recovery - UFC 121

On Sunday I was up at 5:40. I tested my leg and found it still having some pain. I stretched it, walked to the bathroom and sprang up and down a bit. Still painful. God, damn. I thought. Can I just go ahead anyways and ice my leg afterward? I took a long time thinking about going for a run. The stubborn me was tired of not running. But I knew I would only make it worse so I called it off. I am tired of limping. I am tired of the pain. I want to run again without worrying about when I will be okay. So I shelved the idea of running. I placed my shoes back in the rack, folded my trucks, placed my stopwatch back in the locker and started doing crunches...
Meanwhile, Cain Velasquez weathered an early storm from Brock Lesnar and proved why he has long been regarded as one of the top prospects in the sport, pounding Lesnar in a stunningly brutal and one-sided fight to win the UFC heavyweight championship at the Honda Center in the main event of UFC 121. Cain Velasquez made quick work of former champion Brock Lesnar. (Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Getty Images)

Velasquez hurt Lesnar with nearly every punch he threw and knocked him down several times. After the final knockdown, Velasquez pounded him with elbows and punches before referee Herb Dean stopped it at 4:12 of the first.

  Cheers.

A

My Hero: Sammy Kitwara

Tomorrow is Heroes Day in Kenya. I want to honour a man whose strength, tenacity, courage and relentlessness I admire. His name is Sammy Kitwara. I think that among the top ten Kenyan men (10K to 42K, he has ran the greatest number of significant races this year and appeared in the top three). He has been second when the winners (Tadese and Komon) demolished world records.

People talk about burnout, overtraining etc. But this guy is testing his limits. And I am sure he will destroy the world record within two years. Mark my words. Below is his 2010 performance:

In IAAF / SINOPEC World Half Marathon Championships 16 October 2010 21K the results were as follows:
1 Wilson KIPROP KEN 14 APR 87 1:00:07
2 Zersenay TADESE ERI 8 FEB 82 1:00:11 +00:04
3 Sammy Kirop KITWARA KEN 1:00:22 +00:15

On 26 Sept 2010 10Km at the ABN AMRO Singelloop in Utrecht, The Netherlands 10K
1. Leonard Komon, KEN     26:44
2. Sammy Kitwara, KEN     27:11

21 March 2010 at the EDP Lisbon Half Marathon. was second in 59:47, Tadese won clocking 58:23 and shattering the half marathon world record.

Bay to Breakers (12k) May 16, 2010     Sammy Kitwara     1st position 34:15

San Juan 10K 1 March 2010 1. Moses Masai   27:19 2. Sammy Kitwara  27:42

7th Jan 2010 Zayed International Half Marathon 1. Tilahun Regassa (Eth)    59:19
 2. Sammy Kitwara (Ken)      59:34

31 Jan 2010 Discovery Kenya Cross Country championship held in Eldoret (12Kms) 1. Joel Kimurer    36:14.0  2. Sammy Kitwara   36:18.6

Those are seven races this year. And he made a ton of money from them (in Sinopec alone, where he was third, he made $30,000, thats about 2.4M KShs). But what I admire is his confidence, his fearlessness, his hard work and who he is: a warrior. He makes eye candy today.

 I went back to the doc. I explained that the pain persisted. She suspected maybe the tendon has calcified at the injury point. The XRays returned nothing. So painkillers for 7 more days.
Cheers.

On a Break

I have been on a break for a full week now. I realized that I squandered 5 days of recovery last week because I was massaging the ankle with some ointment and inadvertently making it worse because the massage traumatized it. I also didn't have access to ice the whole of last week. I stopped massaging it and now just ice it and avoid stressing it.
It is much better now. Maybe in two days or so, it will be okay. I am ready to miss Stanchart Marathon which takes place in two weeks because I am on this for the long haul. I am disappointed but not particularly stressed.
The ailment set me back and was probably going to return a 1:40 something. This ankle thingy has made it probably worse. But but am wiser and stronger.
Like my friend StyrofoamDeity, an UltraMarathoner told me, There is no failure, there is only the next race.
If I miss this Stanchart thingy, I'll just recover and go back to training for the next race and possibly for a full marathon. I can start taking my LSRs to 30Kms. I can start learning to run 6X a week. I can start gunning for that sub 20mins 5K by Feb 2011. There is so much I need to do and accomplish that this Stanchart Marathon is just a dot. It doesn't mean squat. I want to be running Marathons when I am in my fifties so I wont let this bring me down.
I still need to come close to 1:20. I am too slow, I am too heavy. I am not strong enough. I need to work on those. There is Lewa, Mwea, Ndakaini, Stanchart and a whole host of other races I need to prepare for next year so I have work to do and the next race to prepare for and goals to meet.
Plus, my wife has started going to a gymn nearby. I will be going for a 2 hour run on their treadmill every five weeks or so to check my progress. I want to fly gadddemit!
Meanwhile, a lot has been happening. On saturday, in Nanning, China – After an epic battle over the final two kilometres, Wilson Kiprop of Kenya upset Zersenay Tadese to take the men’s title at the IAAF / SINOPEC World Half Marathon Championships in Nanning, China.

Kiprop’s victory in 1:00:07 was the first for Kenya at these championships since 2004, and more significantly put an end to Tadese’s reign at this event after four consecutive wins.

 

1:53 21K LSR Taking a break

I went for a LSR on Sunday and cleared 21K in 1:53.y ankle got worse so I am on a break.

Ankle Goes to Hospital - Rest

I went to Hospital yesterday. Finally. The Doc said the ankle is the most sensitive part of the body - injury-wise and I should take care of mine. We even talked about the story of Achilles. I got some NSAIDs (painkillers), antibiotics and a pain-relieving cream for application on the injured area.
I am now not limping but the pain is there and my ankle is slightly inflamed.
I iced it last night and applied some ointment on it and I rest today. I suspect tomorrow I will go for it. Thats what it means to be a running addict.
Cheers.

43 mins fartleks

My leg was worse today but I managed to do some fartleks. I iced them after the run and they feel better.
Perhaps tomorrow I will give them a break?
Meanwhile, Ugandan Moses Kipsiro (below) spoilt our glory in the 5000m in the commonwealth games in India, beating Eliud Kipchoge to 2nd position.

Kipsiro, no stranger to Indians, having come second in the Sunfeast 10k in Bangalore in May this year, ran a calculated race, keeping a close watch on the Kenyan trio of Kipchoge, Mark Kiptoo and Vincent Yator, and at the same time keeping quite a lot in reserve for the final assault.

The pace never picked up on this hot and humid day, though it was clear that the top runners, as usual, were playing a waiting game. It was only with around six laps to go that the Kenyans started pushing ahead, having been content to go along with the pack.

Taking over

With five to go, 24-year-old Kipsiro took over and he never let that advantage slip though it was a near blanket finish at the end, reminiscent of many of the Haile Gebrselassie-Paul Tergat duels in the 10,000 metres.

Kipchoge, World champion in 2003 and silver winner in 2007, did everything to match Kisiro through the final 400 metres, but in the end it was the Ugandan who showed that much extra on the straight to hold off the Kenyan.

This was only the fourth placing over Kipchoge for the Ugandan in their 11 meetings. Never before had Kipsiro won a title at the expense of Kipchoge.

In the two meetings this season when the two had clashed the honours were even, Kipsiro finishing third in Rome to Kipchoge's 12th place finish and the Kenyan coming second in London in July to the Ugandan's fifth place.

Indians Sunil Kumar (14:18.99) and Sandip Kumar (14:22.59) came 14th and 16th respectively.

46 Mins Hard

 I was up 5 mins earlier. My leg had some pain just like yesterday. I stretched and hopped on it to test how bad it was. It was bad and painful. I rotated my ankle and leaned on it. Deeply. It was bad and painful. But yesterday was also bad so bad and painful and sunday it was also painful so it appeared that me and pain are one. So, bad leg? No problem.

I rushed into the dawn mist. I started the first 100m with quick short strides to help the legs warm up while not straining my ankle too much. By 400m I was okay and I let go. I pushed hard. Mist collected in my nostrils and condensed into water and the air rushing out from my lungs expelled the water out. My nostrils could be used to generate hydrothermal power right there, I thought.

I cleared the first hill in 3 mins. I reached the second hill in 7:10 (I normally reach it in 9 mins) and I cleared it in 11mins (I normally clear it in 13mins). I pushed and concentrated to avoid drifting into autopilot.
I exceeded my expectations for the first 20 mins and met my expectations for the next 3 mins, passing my last mark last week by about 50m. It was a rush!
I was constrained to negative split and ended up evening it out. I met several runners today.

I then did my warm-down routine and some strength exercises. It was good. My morning was disturbed when I scratched a car when I was moving out of my parking space. The driver was a bitch. I was moving slowly and my eyes were not on the road but she rushed past and my car scratched her. I was taken aback.

She stormed out and asked why I was hitting her yet she had the right of way. I told her I hadn't seen her but I am sorry and will repair her car for her. "When?!" She wailed. "This weekend" I looked at her camly. "This weekend I am not around" she shot back. "What do you suggest?" She asked for my house number and I gave her my house number and she stormed back to her car and drove off.

Meanwhile, in Berlin, German - Kenyans Leonard Komon and Micah Kogo, history's two fastest men over 10 kilometres on the roads, will face-off in the Asics Grand 10 in Berlin on Sunday.

Komon (photo below) became the first man in history to dip under 27 minutes in a 10Km road race when he shattered the World record in Utrecht, The Netherlands two weeks ago, clocking 26:44. Kogo, the 2008 Olympic bronze medallist over the distance on the track, was the previous World record holder at 27:01

 I was thinking of resting tomorrow but my legs feel better after icing them so I will ice them tonight and go for another run tomorrow.

Cheers

44Mins Run

I was up at 5.45am. Very Pensive and sorta coiled. I had realized, through my ruminations and mood changes last evening, that I had become attached to running and I had come to treat my running as something very important so that when my ankle was hurt and all, my mood, my psyche and my sh*t took a beating. So anyways, I went to bed telling myself Sunday was the worst and when you have hit rock bottom, you can only go up. But I was relieved that when my leg hit the floor, there was only a dull pain.
But when I hopped on that leg in the sitting room, there was pain. Not so bad but what the hell, you would have to put a gun to my head to make me go back to bed.
So I left. Started slowly at first. but by 700m, I was almost okay. At any rate, it went on to be a good run. I even threw in some fartleks and some vertical hops. I did lunges, crunches, pushups and toe/heel walks. I got a good sweat going and it felt good.
My knees are okay. I am limpin a little but my leg is at 90%. I am optimistic that tomorrow I will be at 98% so I will shoot for a hard tempo run.

Meanwhile, in San Jose, USA - Reigning ING New York City Marathon champion and U.S. Olympian Meb Keflezighi successfully defended his title at the 2010 Rock ‘n’ Roll San Jose Half Marathon on Sunday, crossing the finish line in 1:01:45.

“I felt strong and maintained,” Keflezighi said. “My training is coming along as planned and I hope it goes the same. This is the race I really enjoy though. New York will be all business.”


Cheers

21K LSR in 2:15

Yesterday was my LSR day. And I wasn't gonna miss it for anything. I was up at 5.45. Immediately I stepped out of the bed, I knew my ankle injury was alive and well. But I decided since it was not a running injury per se, it cant be that bad. After all, it was a skin injury, right? Well, wrong.
So I went to the sitting room and tried running on the spot. Too painful. I tried for about three minutes. It was painful but I decided I can use the rest of the day or the week to recover if it gets worse. After all, this is a test of my will to run against pain. Right? Well, not really.
So I left. Slowly at first, then I evened it out. The bad thing was that I inadvertently changed my form even though I tried my damnedest to concentrate and ensure I don't favor the injured right leg. The tongue always turns to the sore tooth, they say. But I don't listen, do I? Before you die, you pass out. Right? To overcome one pain, you introduce another pain. Right? Right but bad idea.
After some KMs, my left knee started aching like it was under some torque force of some sort. I kept straining to maintain good form. I met a colleague, Mahsen, walking at about 4Kms from home. I passed him after he couldn't pick up.
I went on, focusing on my form and avoiding favoring the injured leg. I finally turned at about the 10.5Km mark. I met Mahsen at the 14th Km mark still walking. I managed to stratech thoroughly and drank lots of fluids. I cleared the 21K in 2:12. I want to go sub 2 hours next Sunday then sub 2:50 on 17th and sub 1:40 on 24th and hopefully sub 1:30 on 31st.

Today I am still limping but I hope tomorrow will be better and hope by Friday I will be 100%.
Meanwhile, Chicago Marathon is stacked with giants.

We have Merga, Wanjiru, Kebede and Kiprono WTF!?????
Here is a list of their personal bests:
Sammy Wanjiru, KEN               2:05:10
Vincent Kipruto, KEN             2:05:13
Tsegaye Kebede, ETH              2:05:18
Feyisa Lilesa, ETH               2:05:23
Robert Kiprono Cheruiyot, KEN    2:05:52
Deriba Merga, ETH                2:06:38
And below is a photo of Merga, Wanjiru and Gharib.

Cheers

Easy 46 Mins

I started out with a limp though by the end of the 46 mins I wasn't limping. My injury still pains though its better than yesterday. I hope it will be 96% okay tomorrow for my long run. I didnt feel particularly strong today. Added to the injury, fartleks were out. So I just did my 48mins and came back.
Meanwhile Iaaf.org says:
Ethiopians Deriba Merga and Feyisa Lilesa have joined the men's field for next Sunday's Bank of America Chicago Marathon, an IAAF Gold Label Road Race.
The addition of Merga, the 2009 Boston Marathon champion, and Lelisa, who has a personal best 2:05:23, significantly strengthens what organizers have billed as the top men's field in the event's 33-year history.

The pair will join forces with defending champion Sammy Wanjiru of Kenya, London Marathon champion Tsegaye Kebede of Ethiopia and Boston Marathon champion Robert Kiprono Cheruiyot of Kenya.

Merga's entry adds even more intrigue to the race's impact on the 2009-2010 World Marathon Majors series standings as third-ranked Merga (35 points) is one of the only athletes in reach of surpassing top-ranked Wanjiru and Kebede (50 points each) before the series concludes in November in New York.