Recovery

Pushed my run today to just shy of 3.5 miles.  I felt pretty good for the most part, but always struggle with two aspects of any run...treadmill or outdoors:

During the first 1/2 to 3/4 miles, I'm wheezing like an asthmatic.  It takes me at least 1/2 mile to settle into a comfortable breathing cadence, but some days I'll struggle through the first 3/4 of a mile.  Back in my mountain biking days I would do a vigorous warmup before tackling the trails.  By slightly winding myself before the main event I found it easier to settle into a ride.  That strategy doesn't seem to work with running.  So, any suggestions on getting that particular hitch out of the first segment of my runs would be much appreciated.

The second area I struggle with is recovery, especially muscle wise and specifically my hamstrings.  My hamstrings are in extreme discomfort when I start a run, even if I stretch them out and warm up.  I had to stop for about a minute during today's run to stretch again (right at the 1 mile mark) and shake my legs out.  They didn't bother me again until about 3 hours after the run.  The pain is odd, in between a cramp and a pull.  Taking an ice cold bath after a run has really helped quite a bit, but they are aching right now.  Rest doesn't seem to make much of a difference either.  I'm thinking it could be a quad to hamstring muscle imbalance that will eventually work itself out.  However, like the warmup question, I'm looking for any tips on dealing with muscle pain during and after a run...

Running isn't the only thing I'm recovering from though.  Maddy had a slumber party last night and invited 5 of her friends over.  From 5pm until about midnight last night the house was filled with the shrieks and giggles of 9-10 year old girls...plus two 6 year olds (Jossy had a friend over too) and Katelyn.  That's a lot of girls.  They are all great kids, but at one point I had to take them all outside to burn some calories.  The cul-de-sac was overrun with girls on scooters, bikes, throwing frisbees, playing hide and go seek, and general mayhem.  The Better Half eventually got them to settle down around midnight, the last giggle from downstairs was heard around 12:30...we figure they were all asleep at 1am...and they were all up at 6am this morning.  I made pancakes for them while TBH helped get their stuff organized to eventually go home.  Maddy is a little worn out today and cranky, so she's hitting the hay early tonight...as am I! 

Time to take some melatonin and magnesium (night time leg cramps are the worse thing ever!) and call it a night...I'll have to catch Mad Men on the DVR tomorrow...!