Hampered by the Hammys

2.52 Miles, 23:48, 9:27 pace, Max HR = 132, Avg HR = 126

I took off today for a leisurely run around the neighborhood with Julie as she rode the bike. After no more than 100 feet I could tell this wouldn't be a fast run. My hamstrings have been tight all day, and the fact that they didn't immediately loosen up made me decide to reign in the horses and take it easy today. The last thing I want is a hamstring pull that bothers me for the next six months, a la Terrell Owens.

So, for those of you who wonder if I run too hard all the time, and for those of you who DO run hard all the time -- this is what I do when something doesn't feel right. Today I cut my intended run in half and ran it about two minutes slower per mile than I was expecting.

Now, for the more important question: what caused this? I'm going to point fingers to that darn elliptical machine I used on Tuesday. I think I exercised my hamstrings in a way that they don't normally get used, and they are a bit sore and tight because of it. The long term solution is to hit the elliptical (or some similar hamstring exercise) more often, but the short term solution is to not go within 50 feet of that elliptical beast until after the Houston Marathon.

Unless I feel like Jesse Owens when I wake up tomorrow, I'm taking tomorrow off and pondering how far and how fast I'll run with the Kenyan Way long run group on Saturday morning.

9:21, 9:29, 4:53 (.51 miles for 9:34 pace)