I haven't run in about eight years, and for some reason I decide to knock off about 1--1.5 miles to see if I could still do it. I lace up my 625 Asics, purchased not for running, but because they had a splash of OSU and Prophetstown Prophets orange, and take off.
The first unpleasant feeling that hit me was a little discomfort in my left knee. Then shortly after my left hamstring began to tug. It wasn't long before my left calf caught fire. All the while I'm waitin' for the "second wind" effect to occur. It never did.
Thankfully, I was running on flat ground and a fairly calm day. I ran through a nearby neighborhood and the only people I saw outside were the construction workers building the homes that are popping us all around us. Anyone with any sense was inside soaking up the air conditioning.
I made it home and bent over and began sucking up huge draughts of air. Our driveway is about 400 feet so that was my cooling off zone. The picture below was taken shortly after I walked into the house.
The only lingering reminder of my run was my left calf, but not so bad that it prevented me from riding the stationary bike later on that day, but it remained pretty tight throughout the rest of the day. The next day, my quads were aching and my calf still felt like it had a knot in it, but I continued to ride the stationary bike.
On Monday, I spent three hours on the riding lawnmower on what the papers predicted would be the hottest day of the year. My atomic clock/thermometer registered 99.5. Since, my legs felt recovered by then I wasn't gonna let a little heat stop me from running again. After all, we did it all the time at good ol' OSU.
So I take off on a slightly different course this time, but it is flat too, and the wind was only slightly stronger than Friday. The first cry from my body came from my left calf, followed shortly by a similar pain in my right calf. And again, the second wind never came.
I ran so much and so easily during the decade of the 80s, and I enjoyed doing what few people could do--run seven miles or more easily. But these last two runs were far from fun. I don't know if I'll continue running. Stay tuned.
