Racing into Action

Yesterday I drove the family to Waynesboro for the Park to Park Half Marathon, the half that I had planned for my first ever until I was plagued with my overuse injury. When I realized my injury would not allow that to happen, I gave up on it, but Leah Marie decided to make it her first half marathon since she had been training for one anyway. All things considered, she rocked it. Wow! 13.1 miles run by a woman who just a few years ago had very little interest in running. She will likely compete in another half before attempting a full. Go her!

On the other side of the event, I took responsibility for the three Things, entertainment and transportation. Fortunately, as a "park to park" race, they got in a lot of quality playtime on either end of the travel time. We all had fun cheering Leah Marie on, especially cheering her across the finish line, as Things 1 & 2 raced across it with her.

Overall, it was a great experience. I loved watching Leah Marie succeed where she had never thought possible just a few years early. The only downside was my standing on the sidelines, not because I chose to do so for that particular race, but because an injury forced me into it. It almost hurt to watch so many people running and crossing the finish line, seeing a great sense of accomplishment wash over their faces. But where was my accomplishment? In shackles to an overuse injury that feels like it will ever be the bane of my existence.

Last night, I put my ankle through its first real test since I raced in the Mad Anthony Mud Run on 22 February. Southern Virginia University hosted the Knight Run, a 5k for the school and the community. Students, faculty, staff, and local residents participated in a hospital event. It really is one of the most fun races I have run because I know so many of the participants and volunteers. Following the race, the Multicultural Club put on a luau full of authentic foods and dances, including a fire dancers. Sadly, the boys didn't make to most of the dancing: they had a long day yesterday. As for the race, I had a plan: four minutes of running, one minute of walking, repeated until I finished. I also knew that I needed to be careful, force myself to rein it in as necessary. My first mile was 10:19, which is actually my fastest mile since I started running again a few weeks ago. From there I pushed hard to an approximate 8:40 second mile. I had hoped to finish the race in 35 minutes. In stead, I powered through and clocked a 29:45. Wow! The ankle? Sore, I mean it's still tender. The good news is that my foot never hurt, and still doesn't. And though there was and is some soreness, I still have felt no pain like unto that which forced me into recovery mode in the first place. I feel like I am on my way. Slow and steady, still, but here I come.

Slow and Steady?

Yesterday morning I strapped on a pair of barefoot running shoes for the first time in about two months, rode my bike up the highway into the mountains, locked it up, and hit the reservoir hollow trail, in the heart of the George Washington National Forest, which practically borders our own property. I intended to take the longest run in my recovery and slow build up to reach double-digit runs again. This would also be my first mountain trail run in over two months and the first barefoot-shoes run since 22 February. After I locked up my bike, I pressed start on my interval timer. The plan, three minutes of running, one minute of walking, 10 times. I worked hard to keep myself from overdoing it. In fact, multiple times I caught myself speeding up and forced myself to rein it in. Overall, I have to rate it a huge success. My inner ankle tendons are still clearly tender, but it didn't hurt to run, and here I am the next day without any ill side effects. Hope remains for my ultra-running career. At this point, I think I will start a regular running schedule with long runs on the weekends again.

Next Saturday, Leah Marie competes in her first half marathon. It is the one I was originally going to compete in, but it's her race now. Her only concern in finishing in time (there is a time limit), but I think she will do much better than she expects. That evening, Southern Virginia University hosts The Knight Run, a 5k that I will likely compete in, the first real test for my recovery. Things are looking up, and I am trying to remain optimistic about upcoming events, the 40 miler in September, but before that, I am looking at a 25k trail run on 1 June. That's a stretch, but if I can make it and succeed, pain free, there will be no doubt about building up to the 40 mile race.

In Medias Res

I can promise you one thing right now: exposition will come. My journey as a runner is well under way, but I start this blog by posting about my current struggle: what can only be an overuse injury. I started minimalist/barefoot running last year, and developed a bit of an overzealous nature thanks to some phenomenal reads (I'll do some book reviews in the near future). My desire to evolve into an ultra runner took a big hit a few months ago when I started to develop pain in my right foot/inner ankle, which I discovered, after some research, was likely an aggravation of the posterior tibialis tendon. I also learned that continued running on this weakened tendon and the muscles it attaches to could lead to a stress fracture. All this in combination with a freak accident (that leg fell through a water-meter cover that broke when I stepped on it during a run) forced me to shut it down. I didn't run at all for four weeks. It even hurt to walk. Now, the overuse injury was manageable. I was still putting out nearly 50 miles a week with long runs approaching 15 miles, but the ankle and foot would swell a little and feel tender to the touch. I followed those runs with arnica and ibuprofen, but I needed to stop to prevent further complications. After four weeks, it no longer hurt when I walked, and x-rays for a stress fracture had come back negative. In that four weeks I had been diligently rehabbing, exercising my foot and ankle with specific strengthening movements in order to prepare for my future running. I decided to start running, slowly. The tendon is still tender and hurts at times, especially when I try to stretch it, but I feel like my running has been relatively pain free. I am a far cry from where I was in terms of mileage, but hopefully I can build back up in time to make my goal race for the year, my first ultra distance, a 40-miler in September. For now, baby steps. I am going to try a 5k at the end of this month as long as my progress goes well. Some days I wonder whether that will happen. Well, stick around, if you like, to see whether I succeed in this journey. Hopefully, I will produce more exciting posts.