Hiking In LA (Hollywood Sign)

(Note: all current and new posts from uptorun.blogspot.com can now be seen at runbuffet.com)

I've had a stress fracture for 2 months now, but it's finally starting to heal, and the podiatrist (who I met with and talked to for all of 10 minutes) said that I can start walking normally now. In fact, I might even be able to run by mid-April.

I started following his advice. Although my left foot felt pressure walking barefoot, and I had random pangs at random times when I was resting, I felt a lot better. This encouraged me to do some hiking during my trip to California this spring break.

I did some research and immediately felt compelled to do the hike to the Hollywood sign. Well, it wasn't really a hike - more of a tedious walk, but it was outdoors and some form of exercise. My sister and I arrived at the trailhead in Griffith Park lacking sunscreen and cell phone reception, but nevertheless excited for what was to come.

The hike began in the shade with trees and green things surrounding us. The lighting was nice, and there were hills and mountains surrounding us on all sides. Soon, we reached what was the rest of the hike - open sunlight and no shade. We started taking photos of the nice scenery. However, we realized that that was slowing us down and made a pact to significantly limit our photo-taking.

We continued to climb. I knew from the beginning that no sunscreen was a big no no and started to notice the effects not too long out of the shade. I decided to keep my arms inside my t-shirt in order to prevent them front getting sunburned. Only my hands were sticking out, and even though I looked like a deranged T-Rex holding 2 bananas and a bottle of water, I decided that this would be worth it in the long term.


The climb was continuous. However, at one point, the incline did start to ease off. There was horse poo and whatnot at various points in the path, but the view and the good workout was nice.

The trail was pretty easy to follow. Eventually, it turns into pavement at a 3-way intersection. We started to head towards the right (the supposed path to the top of Mt. Lee and the closest you can get to the letters), but my sister had some house-hunting to do, so we chose the left turn instead. I assumed that this way would be shorten. However, we would only reach a yellow gate a ways away from the Hollywood sign. The only upside would be that that is the best place to take direct photos of the front of the sign - that is, unless you disobey the yellow gate and continue. It's probably against the law, though.

We turned around and headed back down. I discovered that I did have a slight fear of heights (and that going down is less fun than going up), but we made it to the trail head aright, and we had a good hike. It took us 2 hours, 19 minutes, and 38 seconds, but we took a few stops for photos and for phone calls (near the top, the reception is better).

And so concluded my time getting to do a full hike in LA. Next time, when I have more time, I'll turn right and summit the mountain. Outdoors and athletics aside, I got to meet famous people, touch an Emmy, and went to a concert. It was a really nice trip.

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EDIT (04/27/2013)
I found some pictures!

Injured?

(Note: all current and new posts from uptorun.blogspot.com can now be seen at runbuffet.com)

I haven't run for over 3 weeks now. Why? I think I'm injured. No - I know I'm injured.

The longest break I've taken from running thus far was 5 weeks when I had another injury.

Last July, I was having a lot of good runs and setting a few PR's at some local races. Then, somehow, I got injured. My right calf felt "weak" whenever I ran on it. It felt like it was unable to support my body. I rested after a few days of being stubborn, but when I tried to go for a run a few weeks later, it wasn't my calves that had a problem - it was my knees. The "injury" seemed to move from my calves to my ankles (at one point) to my knees to my shins, basically every possible place on my lower legs except for part of my feet, maybe.

When I started cross country in August, though, the injuries all disappeared. Nothing hurt; everything worked. I had a nice freshman season and dropped my 5k PR from 25:03 (in June) to 22:38 (in October).

Then, things seemed to start falling apart after the marathon, I think. First of all, I was not adequately prepared for 26.2 miles. My mileage was mostly in the 30's, and I slacked on my long runs. My training plan was basically whatever we did in cross country - less aerobic than I was used to. Although I think the faster running actually improved my endurance and my overall running, I was still missing the long run factor.

So my training had prepared me for 5k's, not marathons, and I also didn't get proper rest. I did a 10k the week after, and before the month was over, I had already started training again. I always felt like I was injured in some way, shape, or form. I had to stop for a few weeks in December to avoid an actual injury.

In 2013, I bought some new zero-drop, 3mm height minimalist running shoes, and those helped a bit. I also focused more on my form. Unfortunately, it felt like my tactics backfired. Running with the new super-minimalist shoes felt a lot better, but transitioning so quickly from only somewhat-minimalist shoes put too much stress on my forefoot. Also, the more I focused on my form, the more choppy and un-natural it felt. I was also doing the Insanity workout program during January along with some light weight-training, so combined with running, I was doing quite a lot of exercise.

All that jumping, running, and walking I was doing in January resulted in what I assume is a ...

*Cue the music*

Stress fracture.

For a few days, I noticed that I had a bruise or something on the top of my left foot, but I couldn't see anything there. I suspected nothing. Then, one day - January 29, I did the Insanity workout for the day and went on my 3-miler. The problem? I had to practically run on the side of my foot. Whenever my foot hit the ground, I felt a bruise-like pain.

I went home, got some ice, and searched the internet for the answer to my ails. All the symptoms matched up. Never before had I ever had an injury in which the symptoms matched a specific injury. In fact, I'm not really sure what injuries I had before because I could never find their names. This one, however, was crystal clear. One of my metatarsals were fractured, I couldn't deny it.

I immediately stopped running and started walking with a limp. I got in the mindset of "Anna, you're injured. Now, you have to take care of your foot." I walked on the side of my foot, on the heel of my foot, and placed a little more weight on my right foot. I didn't want to fracture my right foot too, so I tried to alter my stride and place my weight on different places to add variety.

I iced and elevated my foot, but I have been slacking a lot on that. Right now, I can still feel a little bit of pressure around that area when I walk or do squats or whatever else. Stress fractures supposedly heal in at least 6-8 weeks, but I have outdoor track coming up in less than a week.

It's time to pour on the ice and do some headstands, because I'll do whatever it takes to heal this sucker.

I hope that I'll be able to handle track - fitness wise - considering how I haven't ran in so long. I notice that my fitness has already gone down and that I run out of breath more easily when climbing stairs or doing simple workouts. I'm less worried about that and more worried about my foot, though. If the supposed stress fracture isn't healed, well, let's just say that there is no way on Earth that I will be able to all that faster running on the side of my left foot.

What am I trying to say? Well, I guess I'm trying to say to not be a frog. Ever heard of the saying about a frog in a boiling pot? When a frog is put into a pot of normal-temperature water, and the water is slowly heated up until it's boiling, apparently it will die in the boiling water without even noticing it. All the running on concrete, my huge lack of vitamin D, and I guess, a little bit of overtraining all contributed to this injury. It'll heal, though, and I'll be back to normal. I just hope that one day, when I'm overtraining and forgetting to take my vitamins and slapping my poor forefeet on concrete, I'll read this post and remind myself to stop being brainless.

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By the way, I am not 100% sure that I have a stress fracture, but I am 99% sure!