Wednesday, December 4, 2013

Getting back on the proverbial horse!

It's hard to believe that it's been almost 8 weeks since the Chicago Marathon. Even harder to believe I've run *maybe* 6 times since then. Training for, and running, two marathons really did a number on my  body, and I had to take quite a bit of time off to recover. Actually, I was mentally ready for a break as well. I had devoted week after week since early June to training for first the Fox Valley Marathon and then the Chicago Marathon, and I.was.done.

After a visit to a sports med ortho about 5 weeks ago, I was diagnosed with Hamstring Syndrome. Basically, I have a pain in the ass. I started physical therapy right after that appointment, and Jessica (my PT) has kicked my butt for the last 4+ weeks. She said I also have an issue with my piriformis and my IT band, plus my left hip is just a slight bit higher than my right hip. I'm doing a lot of stretching and strength exercises, and 10 days ago I got the clearance to start running again.

I've been taking it pretty easy with my runs - keeping them under 2 miles, except for the Fox and the Turkey 4 miler on Thanksgiving Day. I've done that race for the last two years, and hated the idea of missing it this year. It actually went pretty well, considering that this was the furthest I had run in over 5 weeks. I was just 1 minute slower than last year, so I'll take that as a victory!

Since I haven't been running with my great friends, I've tried to keep up with the group. I've been blessed with meeting so many great people, and we have a blast together no matter what we're doing. There have been a few of us on the injured list, so at least I'm in good company.

Now I'm ready to get back out there. Doing the Fox and the Turkey made me realize how much running is a part of me. Originally I loved running because of the physical benefits I got from it...now I love running because of the wonderful relationships I've made through all of this.

1 comment:

  1. <3 <3 <3 You are such an inspiration (ok, and slight pain in the ass, JK) to me...I love you dearly and count my lucky stars for all my awesome running friends...even when we're stuck in the cripple corner from time to time!

    ReplyDelete