First Run

Earlier this week Ron gave me the green light to go for a short run today. Short being a 1/2 mile at a 12 minute mile pace. So that would be VERY SHORT. I set my watch for seven minutes and figured I would just do a slow jog with Timmy. (Note that I was already pushing my luck with 7 minutes, not six!) The plan was go straight out and then walk home. I woke up feeling a little stiff this morning. This was probably a good thing, because it reminded me that I am supposed to stretch before running. Particularly with the hip flexor issue, I wanted to make sure that I took better care of myself getting back into running. I stretched for a bit, then leashed up the dog and left the house.
The iPod was dead and so I felt a little naked. However, considering that the iPod is loaded with fast-paced songs, it was probably a good thing that I ran without. As I started out, I would definitely feel the hip flexor stretching and pulling. Ron had said that if I felt any pain, I should stop immediately. On the same token, he also advised against running further if I felt great. Clearly he has begun to understand how the people in my family think! That being said, Timmy was fairly well-behaved and did not pull me at all. I think he was just as relieved to be running as I was!
I stopped as soon as the watch beeped and proceeded to complete a loop, walking the rest of the way home. I definitely can feel the hip flexor pulling, but I was able to walk without limping the rest of the way home. It is definitely a relief to be allowed to do even a bit of running. Hopefully, Ron will tell me tomorrow that I can run again this week. When I checked out my distance on mapmyrun.com, I discovered that I ran .71 miles. I guess that new gear I have been pondering (gps watch) is becoming more of a necessity every day.
I have to say that I am just relieved to be allowed to run again. Maybe I should ask about cycling!