Sunday morning chat

Sunday, April 10, 2016 · Mike Davis

Good morning I am in a total fog this morning with this head cold that has been clinging to me for over a week. I just ate my go to pre-run Greek yogurt and sipping water and coffee of course! Right now my knee feels okay and that is encouraging. I have not run in nearly 2 weeks and today is “Reds Race for a Better Community” 5 miler. How this race will unfold for me I have no idea. Okay, well I actually have a pretty good idea. While I am uncertain of my knee, the congestion from the head cold will challenge me considerably. I know, I know, how bad it all sounds and as a coach I probably would not encourage our runners to run with such conditions. From my experience last year when I tore my left MCL, I was told to get out and run around 2 weeks after tearing it. It has been almost that much time I believe and today is a bit of a test. While it might seem not so smart to test it out at a hilly race; you can be sure that I will pull off if there is any indication that my knee is not ready. I want to run but, only if I can do so without any harm or adjustments to my running gait. You can bet that I will be going pretty darn slow up that first hill and if that goes well I will maintain an easy pace for the entire race. This run will be a training run for me that happens to have a lot of people around. Looking out the window I can see that the wind will be fairly strong. Nobody is particularly keen of running on windy days and I would agree. However, they are a reality particularly in the spring, so I tend to just accept whatever and focus on that, that I can control. Do not get me wrong, I love a good tail wind and hope that if I am still running around mile 3, that I have a push from the wind. The wind aside, the sun is out and that is always a good thing! Today’s race marks the end of our “No Finish Line Running Winter Training Group.” While I was on the road traveling for a good part of the winter, I always looked forward to getting back and running with this group. We always had a great time whether it was running along the Piscataqua on Saturday mornings or meeting up on Wednesday nights to run from the “7th Settlement Brewery.” This winter was not as challenging as the previous but, it is never easy to go out in the cold and run. Having this group to meet up with made it not just bearable but, fun! A new dynamic started on Saturday mornings after the run as most of us migrated over to the “Penny University” coffee house and enjoyed a hot drink and some socializing. Truly something I looked forward to weekly and I can see continuing with our next groups. Time to do some foam rolling! Hope you have a great Sunday and an even better week ahead. I know my week is going to be awesome! See you on the roads. God Bless! Mike