Day three of The Boot

So far wearing the boot on my injured leg has caused more emotional reaction than I'd expected. Having it on reminds me of the almost 4 months I wore it a couple years ago. And it feels silly. I walk around normally (well, almost normally) with it--no crutches, walker, cane or anything.

And I'm getting more insaner with every day that I don't run. Who would have thought I COULD get insaner :D.  More seriously I hadn't realized how much I was really relying on running to improve my mood and such.

At any rate I'm looking forward to getting back to the running, of course. I wanted to do 5 to 10 races this year and have only one under my belt so far.

MRI results later today

I'm a bit nervous to find out what's up but at least I will know what has to be done to get back to the running. I'm betting at the very least some time off the leg and new shoes are on the agenda. I've already been off since Sunday and it's bumming me out.

I've been looking at my handy Running Depot list of 2012 local races and I've found a couple I want to aim for in late July and August. Also there are a couple of 10Ks in October that I'm interested in doing but that's a level up from where I am at today in terms of length. But I know I can get to that in a reasonable amount of time if I can just get back on the path :)

Holy MRI, Batman!

I had to lie completely still for 45 minutes while they did the MRI on my leg yesterday afternoon. I can't even begin to tell you how hard it is to lie still. The thing I was on was hard and uncomfortable and I had to keep my toes pointed up. At one point my right leg was shaking like a leaf and it was all I could do not to just relax. The technician came in and taped my feet together so I could just relax, letting the feet counter balance each other. This morning my legs were sore, the small of my back is sore and I'm sleepy.

Of course, I'm always sleepy.

Tomorrow afternoon I go see the doctor again and get the results. I'm really ready to run again and it sounds like I won't be running for a while :(

Universe vs. my leg. Universe 1, Leg, 0

I saw the orthopedic surgeon that fixed up my ankle a couple years ago (Dr. Basran--absolutely fantastic) and he thinks I've got a stress fracture. I'm getting an MRI tomorrow afternoon to confirm it. If it is then I've got to take 4 weeks off running, wear a boot cast and mope around. We talked about how it happened and he agreed with my layman's theory that I need to try high post running shoes. He didn't tell me to get off the pavement though, which is a relief because that's really the only option I have currently unless I want to get on a treadmill. Ew. 

On the upside while he was inspecting the x-rays he looked at the ankle and said that it had healed perfectly. After I did some walking around for him he said that if anything the OTHER ankle is weaker, which is unexpected. Usually people baby the hurt ankle and keep it weaker and do funny things to the healthy ankle due to overcompensation. So that was good news.

Maybe I'll lift weights for a while until I can run again. /cry

More pain--no running

Really bummed out. I've got an early appointment tomorrow with the doctor that repaired my ankle a couple years ago. I'm hoping he just says "get different shoes" or "it's all in your head". I'm afraid he'll say "stress fracture--six weeks no running".

Good and Bad -- post NC runs

My first run back from NC was pretty wonderful. I didn't push myself too hard and managed to hit an above average pace and finished strong. During the first mile my leg hurt again but once I settled into a rhythm it eased up. After the run I iced it and it felt reasonable.

Yesterday afternoon I tried to do intervals and it didn't work out. The first mile was solid but it was extra hot out (for this area--90+ degrees) and it took a lot out of me. After a quick cool down I started the second mile and about halfway through had to stop. I was carrying my new water bottle on my hip rig and was relatively hydrated but the heat was making me feel slightly dizzy. Better safe than sorry. It was deeply disappointing to not finish what I'd intended to do though.

Also, my leg hurt during the entire run and despite icing it, I've still got nagging pain down there. I'm going to pause my running and go see my doctor. I don't mind running through the pain but I want to make sure I'm not making some injury worse. I don't look forward to not running for any length of time though. I'm in a pretty good groove and hate the idea of having to kick start again once the leg feels better.

We'll see.

Here are the links to the two runs:

First 5K after NC
Failed intervals

Final NC runs

Running in NC ended up being a lot more challenging than I'd expected. Despite relatively reasonable temperatures, the humidity really took it out of me. I had a hard time pushing to 3 miles at paces I manage at home and as a result when I tried to head to 4 or 5 miles I was totally drained and couldn't manage it. I hate not meeting a goal so it was a little depressing. I put it in perspective by approaching it with the attitude that they were "maintenance" runs. Just staying in the habit and making sure I got some exercise. I imaging that the mere fact that I was wiped out means I got good workouts, but I've become so goal driven and used to my rate of improvement that it was disappointing anyway.

Here are the links to my last runs there:

NC second run
NC final run

I managed a good run my first day back and it was gratifying to get back in my groove.  I haven't uploaded it from my Garmin yet so the link will follow later.

I do have some pain in my lower left leg just above the ankle and on the inside of my leg. It hurts during the first mile of my run but then settles down, and hurts in a throbbing nagging manner the rest of the day but feels solid again the next morning. I've decided to go see a doctor and make sure it's nothing evil. I'm nervous about the possible need to back off the running while it heals up, but I'm more nervous that I'm going to have to find a way to get off the hard running paths I'm using with are asphalt of varying degrees of soft/hardness.

Wilmington, N.C.

I ran 3 miles today. The weather here is different than I'm used to but because they are having unusually mild weather, the different kind of snuck up on me. It's humid, overcast and relatively cool with a slight breeze. At first it seemed ideal but the humidity kind of got to me. I ended up doing the three miles at a 11:05 pace which is probably about 15 off what I'd normally average back in Illinois. The run was relatively flat with a grade that the Garmin claimed that I didn't really notice. Maybe that contributed to the pain. When I finished I was completely shot. I'm riding the endorphins still and I've got that feeling of accomplishment so despite the pain it was a good run. I'm going to start out a bit mellower tomorrow and maybe try to tack on some more miles. We'll see.

Here's the Garmin report: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/185677391