Navigating the ‘Dead’ Miles   Wednesday, January 29, 2025

Wednesday, January 29. 2025

Frequent readers to the BLOG know my running history includes 36 FULL marathons and well over 100 Half Marathons.

Throughout my running career, I’ve become acquainted with the term: ‘Dead’ miles.

Miles 7-10 in Half Marathons and 16 – 20 in Full Marathons are occasionally labeled as ‘dead’ miles. Likely reason… these are the miles that are past the ‘halfway’ point… miles that obviously must be traversed to complete the event, yet there’s nothing notable about these miles except their number. 

Think about it… mile ‘8’ in a half marathon and mile 17 in a full… YAWN. Past the halfway point… not quite a 5K or 10K remaining… and in the case of the Half Marathon, not yet into double-digit miles… truly ‘Dead’ miles.

I’m coming to the realization that my Achille’s tendon repair/recovery ‘journey’ that was the starting point for this RupturedRunner.com BLOG also has its share of ‘dead’ miles… and I’m smack in the of middle of them.

While I’m not quite to the estimated ‘halfway’ point of my recovery journey, a lot of the major milestone events have already ‘happened’. From the surgery to the initial splint to the lower leg cast to the walking boot to the start of physical therapy to being released from the boot and able to drive… all these major recovery events have happened and thankfully happened in the past.

With weekly Physical Therapy visits and somewhat daily gym visits, I’m currently in a ‘get better & stronger’ mode. This arguably could be the most important time of all.

Prior to this post, my previous BLOG post was back on January 9^th… some 3 weeks ago. Reason for me not posting… there was really nothing ‘new’ to say.

In a way, I guess some could argue that’s a good thing. 

My current circled calendar dates include:

• March 13^th: Next Ortho-doctor visit
• Late March… Potential start in ‘Low G’ treadmill.
• October 26^th: Target Return Half Marathon race (Exactly 1 year after my Achilles Tendon ruptured.)

I guess what I’m trying to say is that during these ‘dead recovery/miles’, the frequency of my posts will likely be lowered. And I think this could be a good thing! (I.e. Nothing new = recovery on track.)

In the meantime, allow me to post the following photo I captured while in the post-race chute of the Houston half marathon just a few weeks ago while I was waiting for my wife to emerge from her successful race. 

While not written for me specifically, I hope this sign writer won’t mind if I claim this sign for me… 

Yes… “GO KEN” indeed!

Let’s talk! Email me at: RupturedRunner@gmail.com.