Rookie Mistake?

So I sort of feel like an idiot.

I went to the clinic last night at the Running Spot and saw an orthopedic doctor. He made me walk back and forth like a gazillion times, stretched out my legs and asked "so how are you on stretching?" Whoops. My feeble answer of "uh, not too good" was answered with "I thought so." Turns out my "injury" is just really really tight muscles. So tight that he could feel muscle spasms in my calf (this was why I stopped running on Saturday). My pain is mostly because of not stretching but also because my knees are really really weird. By that, I mean, my knees turn inward when they should be facing forward. He said that this puts a lot more strain on my IT band every time I run. He gave me a bunch of stretches that I need to do twice a night. Oh and massage. Which of course, I am not going to object to.

I need to be vigilant about this so that I don't get hurt!

Maybe if I do this stretching I might be able to do things that normal people can do (like bend over and touch my toes). I honestly am tired of not being limber at all. I was always the girl in ballet who couldn't do half of the moves at the barre while my sister was little miss bendy. (Mind you, I never did anything about it...like stretch).

So this is good. And (for now) I don't have to mentally make plans for what I am going to do if I can't run the marathon - which makes me happy.

Injury Clinic

So, I booked a spot in the injury clinic, hoping that I will be able to get some answers about my injury. I hope I can still run. Last night I hit the gym for an elliptical workout, which I figured was okay since there is no impact on the elliptical (and that is what is aggravating my injury). It was sooooooo boring. I don't understand how people can work out on treadmills (and ellipticals) every night. And there are even TVs in the gym! I just can't do it. I think I need to be actually MOVING as I run. Plus, it is super annoying that my intensity level was so much more than when I run, but it took me 35 minutes to do 3 miles. Grrr.

Last night after the gym Bill and I drove down to our local high school to see if they have a track. They do! And it is open to residents of the neighborhood. Hurrah! I am just keeping all options open. Like, maybe I can do track for awhile but not road work. Or something. I don't know.

So I am trying not to be a Debbie Downer about the whole thing.

Out of Commission

So, I don’t know if I should have run Saturday or not. The thing is, I was feeling pain in my legs on Friday. So much so, that I had to ask my friends/husband during lunch ‘should I run tomorrow if my legs hurt like they do today?’…which is actually a sign to me that no, I should not run. I have been having a lot of pain in my shins and knees, right where the bone is. I have had issues with vitamin D deficiency before (which causes bone pain) so I was thinking that might be why.

So, against my better judgement, I went running on Saturday. I made it about a half of a mile when my lower leg started feeling really tight. So I stopped to stretch it out. Then I picked up running. It hurt more. I decided to make it across the bridge into Ohio before I stopped to stretch again. Now the pain was shooting up into my knee and right above my knee. I started walking. It felt better so I thought I could run again. Ran for about 2 minutes through really bad pain. Walked. Ran. Nope. More pain. Walked and felt fine.

This is when I ran into Coach Joe B and told him my predicament. His solution was to walk (since I felt okay when I walked) and then when I saw people turning back from the first group, to turn back as well. Also, I need to see someone from the clinic, which is on Saturday, at the latest. Pttt.

Walking sucks. Especially by yourself and especially on Eastern and especially when you want to run.

But I just called to get a referral for a sports medicine specialist. I really want to run this marathon and I KNOW that running injured is a bad idea but I can already tell that it is going to drive me absolutely crazy if I cannot run for more than like 2 days. I am already going nuts just thinking about it!

Oh, and the reason I think it was good that I went running? Because if I hadn't, I probably would have ignored the problem. Having a coach tell you to see someone about your problem actually makes you think that you should do it.

Last Night's Run

Last night was my last Tuesday with the group. It made me sad. I am so glad that there is another group starting right up after the marathon. Otherwise I would not know what to do. It is for the Hyde Park Blast which is a really fun 4.1 mile (i have no idea how they came up with the distance) race. My company, Landor is a huge sponsor and we design the shirts, so it is a lot of fun for me personally too.

ANYWAY, back to marathoning. I was not only sad because it was my last Tuesday run with the group, but also because of an email that Coach Joe sent out. He said that every year about 20% of the group do not make it to the marathon because of injury. He listed some of the injureds options and then left us with a quote from the Penguin:"The miracle was not that I finished. The miracle was that I had the courage to start." I just thought how sad I will be if I am one of those injured. It scared me into taking special care of myself.

Like, last night I went ahead and grabbed the 9-mile route before we left. (We had the option of 9 or 7.2). BUT after a few words about taking it easy and staying on the non-injured list, against my will, I did the 7.2.

I am looking forward to the 20 this weekend. We have the option of 18 or 20. I picked the 7.2 last night, so that I will be able to do the 20 Saturday. I am already psyching myself up!

Plan B

So when I woke up this morning to toss around, I realized as I moved my knee that there was a LOT of pain. However, I just chalked this up to morning pains, got dressed, got in my car and drove to CrossRoads to run my 17. I stretched a little by my car and headed out to the front entrance. No go. I was doing this little limp/hobble kind of run and I had these pains shooting in my knee. I was so angry with myself. I pulled my mobile out of my pocket and called my husband Bill. I explained everything and said "so I guess I shouldn't run my 17 today?" I don't know why I need confirmation on these things. I mean that is the whole reason I called him. I needed someone else to say "yes, you are making a good decision". I was bummed. So I drove on over to our Y and did the elliptical for 45 minutes. You should have seen me getting in and out of the car. I have to lift up under my knee and actually move my leg.

So plan B?
Good old RICE (Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation), with lots and lots of emphasis on ice. Something I should have been doing since the Mini-Marathon on Sunday. AND there's more hope. Our coaches mentioned that we could do a two or three week taper. Of course I opted for the three week taper. I think by default I will do the two week taper. That always worked for me in swimming...three weeks would have been way too long. That means next weekend will be my 17-18, pushing my 19-20 out two weeks, followed by two weeks of low mileage. My sports history has told me that yes, I do injure easily and quickly, but if I take care of it I also recover quickly.

I am also going to TRY and take it easy. I am also going to TRY and not beat myself up over this so that I can heal properly and be ready to go next weekend. As Bill reminded me on the phone, my goal is to be healthy at the starting line so that I can actually run the race.