To Race or Run Long

So, I tweaked my hammy by running Saturday. I should have taken Saturday off and treated Friday as a workout day (a la Wednesday workout/Thursday day off). By running on Saturday I didn't rest the hammy and it never got better. In the past, I would never taper/rest/adjust my running week for a mile race, but nowadays, I need to consider that. Is a Friday night mile more important than a 10 miler on Saturday? Will a Saturday night 5k (next weekend) be more important than a 15 mile long run on Sunday morning? I can only do one. I can't do both. Lest I take another 4-day hiatus from running.The chiro confirmed this sentiment on Tuesday while adjusting me. He didn't seem to think I was all that bad and advised that I foam rolled and do some light stretching. The headline was that all this would pass - a bump in the road. I asked how to avoid this and he replied that this was essentially "the new norm". He also confirmed how stronger I was with respect to the basic legs stretches/exercises we've been doing since January. "I've never seen your right leg so strong", I think is what he said. This confirms that I am "getting there" but I just need to be cautious on how I get there.

I've been leaving work at 10-11pm the last couple days. That, coupled with hellish temperatures, seem to distract me some from running at the moment. The good news, if one can find any, is that my hammy feels better today, but for cautionary reasons, I will take the day off and will run tomorrow (hopefully).

All that aside, the 4:27 was definitely a good mental boost, especially for a guy who saw the latter half of his 2010 and first half of 2011 seasons erased before his eyes. In fact, aside from the milestone days early this year when I first ran sans pain, that mile might be the best day I've had in 2011. Estimates and projections (based on statisticians pounding type writers and checking numbers while working late hours at the Fox Den) put me at sub-15:30 for 5k. If the weather cooperates (read - not 90+) I will aim for a 4:55-5:00s next weekend.

I will continue this aggressive approach. It is working, albeit some bumps in the road.