Back on the Road

Today was my first run after the hip injury. I waited a bit longer than I intended due to the flaming heat and oppressive humidity, but the time off paid off. I made it a short easy run, but it actually felt good. I got off to a slow start because my Garmin wasn't connecting, but I was impatient and started walking. It finally hooked up and I started running. The run had a terrific flow to it, and even though I went a bit faster than I should have it all felt great. Wish they all could feel that good!

Ouch!

Yesterday, I tweaked my back picking Alex up. While I could pretend this is just the result of picking up a toddler, I really have to admit that this is a running injury. My left hip has been bothering me off and on since I started running, and the injury is to my left gluteus medius.

When I looked up the gluteus medius this morning, the first site I found said this:

The gluteus medius should be considered in every running injury. So many athletes with running overuse injuries of the lower limb present with poor gluteus medius function that I have come to the view that the strength and function of this muscle is probably the most important active component in the achievement of a biomechanically efficient running technique. This is not so surprising when you consider that during running you are always either completely in the air or dynamically balanced on one leg.

Fortunately, it is just a muscle injury, and I have some exercises to do to help the muscle. However, I'm really bummed that I have to ease off the running a bit, just as I was looking forward to my new training program.