Out of the frying pan and into the fire...

"It hurts up to a point and then it doesn't get any worse"
-Ann Trason

Truer words have never been spoken!  That's my mantra when I really start to hurt, which is pretty much all the time.  Between my leg and my shoulders I'm pretty much experiencing some degree of pain or discomfort.  You know what I find works?  Running!  It just loosens everything up.  Plus running makes you sore, but in a good way. 

So today I ran 6.11k in 38:42.  Not the greatest time, but considering the last half was uphill and I'm still running out the cobwebs, I'm pleased with myself.  I felt like utter shit when I started.  Sore and tired!  I somehow pushed through it and even conquered the Hater.  You'll remember him from my last post.

I did this run in my Flows, since I can wear socks with them.  The bottoms of my feet are soft and girly after a long winter, so my skin would protest if I wore VFFs without socks.  Yes, I have to buy expensive toe socks to wear with my crazy shoes.  Anyway, my Flows are nice and warm, but it was damp and my feet just felt clammy the whole time. 

My calves were feeling a little tight after having my feet in coffins all winter, but nothing cramped up or got too uncomfortable.  I did a round of stretches at the halfway point.  I marked my split at the usual halfway point (2.5k) and I think it was 15:00 something.  I made good time. 

Now, I want to address cross-training a little bit here.  When I trained for my half-marathon I didn't cross-train at all.  Unless you count volleyball once a week and the occasional rollerblade.  Now, I know you're supposed to cross-train and blah blah blah but I've just never felt like I had time.  "Those are hours I could be running!" I would tell myself.

This year I wanted to be different.  I bought a bike and have added cycling into my workouts.  The problem is I haven't cycled since college (two years ago) and am super rusty.  Here comes the issue.  Because of soreness from cross-training yesterday, I feel as though my running performance today suffered.  Is this just an inevitable double-edged sword?