Test Run.

Daily Quote: "A recent literature review published in 'Sports Health' calls for a top-down, rather than ground-up, approach when it comes to identifying the source of running injuries. Reed Ferber, PhD., and colleagues looked at 283 studies that examined running-related injuries and concluded that the connections between weak hip stabilization muscles and running injuries ere far move conclusive than those of atypical foot pronation." --Mackenzie Lobby, Running Times Magazine, article "Tragically Hip. New Research suggests weak hips are behind injuries throughout the body." December 2009, pp 21-26.

The above quoted article has eight described hip exercises to improve my hip strength...how I wish this article was published earlier!! I'll be incorporating the hip strength exercises with my upper body weight circuit training tomorrow.

Today I'll be testing my left hip joint, I plan on running three easy miles, but if I have any sharp pain I'll cease running and walk home.

9:00 a.m. Out and back on HWY 95 Bike Trail. Sunny, 63 degrees, no wind. 3 miles. Time 29:49. Overall pace, 9:56 minute miles. Average heart rate: 141 bpm. Cardiac drift: 145 bpm. Shoes: Nike Air Structure Triax.

I'm ecstatic! No sharp hip pain, just a slight ache!! I can return to running, but slowly and cautiously. Tomorrow will be a crosstraining day of swimming and upper body weight lifting. My next day running will be on Thursday, another slow and easy three miler. Baby steps, baby steps.

My run felt easy and wasn't huffing and puffing, no doubt my crosstraining exercises have kept me somewhat aerobically fit.