10-3-2011
Mon-AM: 2:09, 2600'
1st Flatiron+Green Mt. Went up the First with Buzz and then continued on to Green's summit. Then drove 8hrs to Rico, CO. Fall colors were at a spectacular peak.
10-4-2011
Tue-AM: 1:38, 3000'
Lizard Head Peak. Slept in the Roost at the Cross Mt trailhead last night and ran by headlamp at 5am. Above 12,000' I was in a very thick fog and could only see a few feet in front of me in my light beam. Scrambled up the final talus ridge to the vertical base of the actual Lizard Head volcanic breccia plug (~13k'). When the sky finally lightened on the way down most views were obscured by the low clouds but I got one great view of the peak (unfortunately, the Wilson Group was still largely hidden) before getting rained/graupeled on for much of the descent back to the trailhead.
10-5-2011
Wed-AM: 1:00, 1000'
Tomboy Road out and back. Another 5am headlamp affair, so the many spectacular views in Telluride were missing. Shin was quite sore today.
10-6-2011
Thu- Off. Another early morning in Rico (which involved blizzard-like conditions while getting over Lizard Head Pass and then later on when collecting water samples) and the 8hr drive home combined with yesterday's sore shin made it easy to not do any specific exercise today.
10-7-2011
Fri-AM: 1:05, 2600'
Green Mt. up 3rd and down front. Pretty tired today but really enjoyed the sun after not having it for most of the week in the San Juans. Mostly running on this outing.
10-8-2011
Sat-AM: 1:01, 2600'
Green Mt. up and down front. First snow! 32:55 ascent mixing running and hiking and with traction issues through the final talus switchbacks. My shin still won't tolerate running on the steepest grades but does okay on steep downhills.
PM: 1:26, 2600'
Green Mt. up 3rd and down Ranger-Gregory. Was caught by darkness near the summit, so most of the descent was a hike (good for the shin) despite the bright moon.
10-9-2011
Sun-AM: 1:13, 2500'
Green Mt. up and down front. Not a lot of motivation this morning because I was worried about my shin, but by sticking to completely hiking (35min ascent) up and down, I definitely didn't do any damage.
Hours: 9h32 (~4hr of actual running)
Vert: 16,900'
Ugh. I am getting tired of not being able to run comfortably and worry-free. I have another massage planned for early this week, but I wish I had been able to get in sometime this past week--it really seemed to make a difference. I also have to be better about not getting over-excited once I'm able to do some pain-free running. There are still days where I can't believe I've been dealing with this same nuisance (shin tendonitis) for so long. When it snowed here in Boulder on Saturday morning and I was out on Green I remembered that I was on Green the last time it snowed (in May) and my shin was a concern then too. Ridiculous.
On another note, being down in the San Juans this week reaffirmed my conviction that Hardrock is the number one priority if the lottery gods shine on me favorably in a couple of month's time. The mountains there are simply spectacular.
Mon-AM: 2:09, 2600'
1st Flatiron+Green Mt. Went up the First with Buzz and then continued on to Green's summit. Then drove 8hrs to Rico, CO. Fall colors were at a spectacular peak.
10-4-2011
Tue-AM: 1:38, 3000'
Lizard Head Peak. Slept in the Roost at the Cross Mt trailhead last night and ran by headlamp at 5am. Above 12,000' I was in a very thick fog and could only see a few feet in front of me in my light beam. Scrambled up the final talus ridge to the vertical base of the actual Lizard Head volcanic breccia plug (~13k'). When the sky finally lightened on the way down most views were obscured by the low clouds but I got one great view of the peak (unfortunately, the Wilson Group was still largely hidden) before getting rained/graupeled on for much of the descent back to the trailhead.
10-5-2011
Wed-AM: 1:00, 1000'
Tomboy Road out and back. Another 5am headlamp affair, so the many spectacular views in Telluride were missing. Shin was quite sore today.
10-6-2011
Thu- Off. Another early morning in Rico (which involved blizzard-like conditions while getting over Lizard Head Pass and then later on when collecting water samples) and the 8hr drive home combined with yesterday's sore shin made it easy to not do any specific exercise today.
10-7-2011
Fri-AM: 1:05, 2600'
Green Mt. up 3rd and down front. Pretty tired today but really enjoyed the sun after not having it for most of the week in the San Juans. Mostly running on this outing.
10-8-2011
Sat-AM: 1:01, 2600'
Green Mt. up and down front. First snow! 32:55 ascent mixing running and hiking and with traction issues through the final talus switchbacks. My shin still won't tolerate running on the steepest grades but does okay on steep downhills.
PM: 1:26, 2600'
Green Mt. up 3rd and down Ranger-Gregory. Was caught by darkness near the summit, so most of the descent was a hike (good for the shin) despite the bright moon.
10-9-2011
Sun-AM: 1:13, 2500'
Green Mt. up and down front. Not a lot of motivation this morning because I was worried about my shin, but by sticking to completely hiking (35min ascent) up and down, I definitely didn't do any damage.
Hours: 9h32 (~4hr of actual running)
Vert: 16,900'
Ugh. I am getting tired of not being able to run comfortably and worry-free. I have another massage planned for early this week, but I wish I had been able to get in sometime this past week--it really seemed to make a difference. I also have to be better about not getting over-excited once I'm able to do some pain-free running. There are still days where I can't believe I've been dealing with this same nuisance (shin tendonitis) for so long. When it snowed here in Boulder on Saturday morning and I was out on Green I remembered that I was on Green the last time it snowed (in May) and my shin was a concern then too. Ridiculous.
On another note, being down in the San Juans this week reaffirmed my conviction that Hardrock is the number one priority if the lottery gods shine on me favorably in a couple of month's time. The mountains there are simply spectacular.
 |
| Lizard Head (ridge of ascent on the left). |
 |
| The Roost back at the Cross Mt. Trailhead with Sheep Mt. in the clouds. |
 I'm ready for the time change to occur -- the sun needs to rise earlier.  |
| Sunshine Mt. |
 |
| Ophir Needles and Yellow Mt. |
 |
| First snow. |
 |
| Saturday morning. |
27 comments:
I went through an over 5 months long ordeal with Achilles tendonitis last year. Terribly frustrating and maybe similar to your experience. Tried to 'run it away' (a definitely bad approach), took some extended time off and started running on it slowly after it got better. Some days were better, some worse and it just seemed never ending and I was starting to think about silly things like surgery.
One day I woke up, stood up and it was gone.
Btw. I do not think a massage is helping with tendonitis. Am no expert but it did seem to make things worse in my case.
Amazing photos, as always. I'm following your trials on the road back to fitness as I am recovering from heel spur and achilles tendon surgery. 9 weeks post op, with another 3 or 4 until I'm allowed to run at all, never mind "train". I have been warned that 1 week too early could mean many weeks setback. Thank goodness for the cycle turbo trainer.
http://fromrecoverytobeyond.blogspot.com/
Dave (UK)
Despite the shin, looks like a fun week. Great pictures. Green on Saturday was one of the best runs I've had since I've been out here!
i follow your blog from a long time.
you are realy a hero,man.
i'm a ultra runner too, but i'm nothing than you...
today i run on italian mountains but i can see Boulder and Colorado are realy better.
i hope i can run and live in Boulder for a part of my life in future. i think can be one of the best place in the world!
good run Tony and good luck whit the shin.
Go vegan!
Paco.
always inspiring, even with the awful injury-
i need to find a place to live where i can move through terrain like this, absolutely beautiful. do you carry a camera with you or something?
i'm up to 75+ miles a week but have no idea what to do about eating! what do you eat when you go for hours on end?
love following your blog. love the pictures. inspires me to run even more.
Anton, Marian, et all,
I have been dealing with Achilles tendonitis in my weak left leg. My right is strong, but a misdiagnosed break in high school has caused many lingering issues in the left leg. I am with Marian. I tried a couple months of running through it and it was a bad idea. I am now over a month off of running. I went for my first hike a few days ago, and it seems to be getting better; however, I know I have a long way to go and it has already been almost four months of being down and out.
I am learning now to do the hard work, which may mean being agonizingly cautious, thoroughly rehabbing and looking to make any injured area stronger: otherwise, in my experience, it will haunt you!
Keep up the work, and I feel your pain. I am going crazy not being able to run our trails during my favorite time of the year. The NW is getting soggy in a good way, and the smell of autumn is like a carrot souffle dangling just out of reach for this twitchy hungry turtle.
But alas, patience!
Try ART and/or SASTM on that shin. You've probably got a touch of tendinosis, if you've truly had the same tendon issue since post-Rocky. If it was tendinitis, it would have cleared up while you were recovering from the broken leg.
Anton
I was enjoying a little snow atop green as well on Saturday morning, must have missed each other, perfect early fall day, it just felt good to run in brisk cool weather.
Question I have been meaning to ask you, have you modified your shorts to hold a water bottle in the back or do you just tuck it into the waste band. My empty bottle always gets stuck in my waste band but when full it always slips down my leg. Wondering if you have figured out a way to keep a partially full bottle in your waste band. cheers.
Austin - The key is having a drawstring in your shorts that has a slight bit of stretch/elasticity to it. Tie it tight. I can't carry a full UD bottle (20oz) in my waist-band. ~3/4 full on flats/uphills and 1/2 full on downhills.
Lawd those San Juans are gorgeous even in the fog. Thanks for sharing and stay patient. :)
Awesome photos, thanks for sharing. Hopefully you'll be fully recovered by the time 2012 race prep rolls around.
Also thanks for the barefoot inspiration, I started from scratch about 18 months ago...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-RP2FnKz6mY
David
Chicago Dog Runner
Green was a popular place on Saturday morning. I must have missed all of you out there. (But if you heard somebody singing "Knee Deep" by the Zac Brown Band, with Jimmy Buffett, that would be me)
Love your photo of Lizard Head! Very eerie at the top isn't it? Next time we will all go and climb it too. It was great to meet you with Rory, and I would love some shoe advice for a lovely cobbled staircase run on the Amalfi Coast. Sorry about the Lizard Head car ascent ... it was not so easy like running is for you. Melanie with the puffy knee
I met Scott a couple of days ago at the Brooks Pure Run Booth at Chicago Marathon. I ask him if he enjoyed the hike with you awhile back... And he said you were crazy fast hiker and you dropped him halfway into the hike... Sounded like good times
you should join strava.com it's free.
Anton as we move into the winter what gloves do you use for winter running? I usually use a light shell, but as I have got some major winter jaunts planned, around 40 miles on exposed ridgeline, I was wondering what you suggest.
Tony, what would you say (if you would say)is the bottom line with these injuries?
Is it as simple as?:
1. train too much, get hurt
2. train too little, don't realize your full potential
3. train just right, everything turns out right
Spencer - This is my favorite glove for most conditions. When it gets really cold, I use the NB Hatchback.
Barry - Ah, the big question. One I've been mulling for most of my 17 years of running, but especially the past nine months.
I think it IS pretty much exactly as simple as you laid it out, but that is certainly not easy to execute in reality. I'm generally a high volume runner. Over the past five years the peak volume that I hit while healthy has definitely gradually dropped (by design...I'm trying to learn from past mistakes).
The problem right now is that I've had this same exact issue (posterior tibialis/soleus) since mid-January of this year. It was interrupted for three months by a broken leg this summer (freak accident, non-overuse injury), but just hasn't gotten better for whatever reason(s). But it's been the same injury this entire time, not a string of injuries.
The reason it happened in the first place was adding speedwork to my training without a commensurate drop in overall volume. Pretty simple. Getting the tissue back to a place where it will once again tolerate a safe and sane ramping up of running quantity and intensity has been a much, much more complicated process that clearly hasn't been very effective yet. I've explored pretty much every option and am just trying to stay patient.
Totally oddball question for you: how much coffee do you drink and does it change with training volume?
Also, sweet pictures. I was down in the San Juans two weeks ago and really enjoyed it.
Ian - I've never developed an affinity for coffee. Love the smell, can barely stand the taste. I guess I get my caffeine via tea, often disgusting amounts of chai. Never noticed how my consumption varies (or not) wrt training volume.
What headlamp are you using for night/morning runs in the dark? I've got a Petzl Tika plus which works for roads but won't cut it on the trails, thanks.
Lockwood - Yeah, the Tikka just isn't quite enough power. My go-to workhorse headlamp for general training is the Petzl Myo XP. It rides well and provides 85 lumens for many hours.
However, in my opinion the industry standard for trail racing is the Petzl Myo RXP (the white one), which is 140 lumens. Of course, the trade-off here is that it only lasts for ~4hr or so if you're constantly blasting at that level. But usually, 85 lumens is enough for me and I reserve the RXP for races.
I think if you shave your head and go clean cut on the face, the running Gods will see your commitment and bless you with a faster recovery. It really works if you believe. No scientifical proof here, as none is needed, but the mind is one powerful beast and when we give up a coveted item, we are blessed.... You have to believe. And I mean Shick Quatro on the head as well. Good luck and what fun it is reading your entries. The Humboldt Smoker.
Screw that.
Keep the hair.
haha
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