Injured

The day after running the Good Life Fitness Half I woke up and it hurt to bear weight on my right heel. It was a very localized almost line of pain along the outside of my foot under my ankle.   Felt exactly like the injury I had back in June. I didnt think too much about it because last time it went away in a couple days. I iced, elevated and took ibprofuen, but this time it was different. I tried after 4 days to get out for a run but could only manage if I ran on tippy toe on that foot, so I had to end that run after a couple miles (yes...I still ran 2+ miles on a foot I couldnt fully bear weight on, so I know I didnt help my cause!). 

As much as it killed me I told myself to rest it until the pain completely disappeared. I hadnt gone more than 5 days without running in years. But I told myself it would be good to give my body a little break and maybe fix up those achey spots. 

Day 8 I woke up with no pain. I was so excited to get out and run. I decided to do a 5 mile out and back route. The first two miles were great. It was pouring rain but I couldnt help but smile, I was just happy to be running again. Then at the half way point I could feel my heel start to get sore and by mile 3 I was right back to where I started. Limping, couldnt bear weight on the heel and had to tip-toe run back to the office. I was pretty devastated. I got back to work took some ibprofen and iced it. Then oddly enough the pain went away. I had assumed I was going to be hobbling around for days again but I got home and was able to walk normally and couldnt feel any tender spots. So the next day I decided to give it another shot...

      

I decided this time at least I would do it on the treadmill so if I got sore again I could just stop and I wouldnt be stuck far away somewhere trying to get back. So I started my run feeling good and at right about 2 miles again it kicked back in. This time I shut it down quickly and by the time I got back to work the pain was pretty much gone. That afternoon I looked up physiotherapists in town and found a woman who specializes in running injuries. I made the earliest appt. I could get. I also booked in with a registered massage therapist who does sports massages. I am not a patient person, I dont like to rest and I just wanted to be fixed as soon as possible. Running makes me happy. I have a busy job and 2 little kids, running is what helps me de-stress, it makes me less anxious, I sleep so much better and the world is a brighter place. There is a reason I'm so passionate about it...it has literally changed my life! 

The RMT was great. He confirmed what my frantic googling had led me to believe which was that it was a tendon issue. He said I very obviously had a dominate leg as he could tell my left hamstring was much stronger than my right. He was wondering if running the race and pushing it so hard my right leg might not have been able to "keep up" with the left and I stressed my right Peroneal tendon cause my foot and calf were having to over compensate. He worked on my legs a bit and then gave me some hamstring exercises to help develop both sides more equally.

The physical therapist I also found to be super knowledgeable.  She did an initial assessment of my gait and balance and flexibility. She did an ultrasound to rule out a stress fracture and thankfully that was negative. Those are about a 4-6week recovery and can cause a lot of issues. She also confirmed it was inflammation of the tendon.  She could feel some swelling and actually said you could physically feel the heat coming from the injured location. She did an IMS treatment which was interesting. I have never had acupuncture or anything like that so this was new to me. The needles going in didnt hurt much but then she wiggled them around. It makes the muscle contract and can make your toes twitch. She only did 6 needles and the last one was close to a nerve and made me jump. It sent a lightening bolt down my shin and through my toes. Not very pleasant! 

She very apprehensively told me at the end of the appt. that I couldnt run for a week. I had expected it though and had already mentally prepared myself for the news. I just want this fixed properly and was willing to do whatever. She gave me the ok to swim, walk or bike but not much else. 

I went to the gym a few times, swam a couple times but it was a battle. I just dont have the same enthusiasm for any of those. I'm such an all or nothing person. If I cant run I just want to sit on the couch and self-medicate with chips...

I went back the following week feeling optimistic. No pain at all. Not even if I flex my foot outwards which previously had made it twinge. She had me do a bunch of flexing exercises and did another round of IMS. She felt around the ankle and said it was no longer hot and the swelling had gone down. Then she broke my heart and banned me from running for another week. I wasnt expecting that...I had even packed my running gear for that afternoon. She said she thought I was just below the pain threshold and that I might run once or twice and be ok but that I could very easily push myself back over the edge and end up right back where I started...sigh...another week. Cue up the mental pep talks and dramatic texts to friends and family with phrases like "wallowing in despair" lol

I remembered just as I was about to leave that I was signed up for a race with my daughter on the weekend. I told her it was only 3k, my daughter does a run/walk and we had already bought cat costumes :) 

I think she knew I would be running the race regardless of what she said so she begrudgingly ok'd me to do a walk/run as an experiment to see how my foot held up. 

So I was being really good...until Friday... then I had a stressful drs appt and needed to burn off some anxious energy. I decided to go to the gym but instead of driving I ran there...it was just under a mile each way...it felt so good :) Saturday I did the race with T and we ended up doing the full 5k, but she walked a decent amount of it so I never really hit that 2 mile running barrier that was giving me issues before.  

My next appt is Tuesday morning, but I've already decided to run at lunch tomorrow. I need to. Fingers crossed it goes well and then I will do my best to listen to what the PT has to say about how quickly to reintroduce running. Did I mention tomorrow starts my 10 week training plan for my next 10k... :)   

Race Day Re-Cap: Good Life Fitness Half-Marathon

The GoodLife Fitness Victoria run is my favorite race of the year. I've run it 4 times now (3 as the half and one time the full). Its a big race selling out at 13,000 people (between the kids race, 8k, half and full marathon). It runs through downtown Victoria and the atmosphere is great. Its on Thanksgiving weekend and often ends up being a big family event with lots of relatives coming down. My goal time was 1:35 and my PR from last year was 1:39:49. I wasnt sure if trying to take another 5 mins off was too lofty. Especially when it seems impossible to make those kind of pace times during training.  But, I trained hard for this one, with more dedication than I ever had and was also going into the race about 8lbs lighter so I was cautiously optimistic that I could shave at least a few mins off my time. 

Similar to the year before we drove down in a torrential windy down-pour! The kind of conditions that would make race day absolutely terrible! But when we woke up the next morning the rain had cleared. The race starts at 7:30 so I was up at 5 to have my usual pre-race breakfast of bagel with PB and banana. The hotel we stay at was about a km from the start line so we made our way out around 6:45. It was colder than previous years and only about 5 degrees out.  I didnt have anyone to hold my gear so I had to check it early. Which meant I was freezing my ass off in my shorts and tank top waiting for the sun to come up and the race to start. 

(my uncle and I at the start line)

In retrospect I think should have warmed up a bit more due to the cold weather. I barely ran at all and just did a few loosening exercises. I lined up by the 1:30 marker and waited for the gun to go off. I forgot with this race how bad people are about not starting at the right spot based on their anticipated pace. So the first mile you are dodging people who started right at the front and were walking...so frustrating! I had Runmeter set up to yell at me if I went slower than 7:13min/mile (the pace I needed to come in just under 1:35).  The first mile with all the bottle neck had me in at 7:23 and I got a bit freaked out. But once people spread out a bit I settled into a nice pace.

(bonus...they have lots of on-course photographers)

The course is classified as "rolling hills" which is kinda nice because you get some downhills but the uphill portions arent too steep or too long. 

Every mile Runmeter announces my average pace and every time I finished a mile it would tell me I was exactly at 7:13. So I was pleased I was holding on to my pace but I knew I had zero wiggle room. When I got out to Dallas Road you run along the water for a while. I found a small group of runners who were going my pace and we all huddled together to draft off each other. I felt a little awkward as they all knew each other and I wasnt sure on drafting "etiquette" lol. I tucked in behind this big guy and was practically tripping over his ankles. Every once in a while he looked down at me and I was trying to decide if this was a "get off my tail" kinda look or not. But then we came to a short hill and my legs got tired and I started to fall back. He turned around and said "oh no you dont...you got this, stay with me, its a short hill, you can tough it out". It was all I needed to power up the hill with them. 

I packed 2 running gels and ate most of the non-caffeinated one at 7km and then all of the second caffeinated one around 14km. I remember actually feeling hungry at this point and thinking uh-oh that's not a good sign. So maybe next year I need to eat breakfast a little later? Around 10k my drafting buddy decided to pull away from the pack and I had to decide whether to stick with him or stay with the rest of the little group. I decided to go for it and shouted at him if it was ok if I ran with him (considering I had been a little leech for the last 5k or so already!). He said no problem and shouted out the occasional encouragement...I love race day camaraderie :)  

Around mile 11 my left knee started to get really tight. This is also a gradual uphill section and was my slowest mile at 7:39. But I kept telling myself I just needed to make it to the top of the hill and then it is all downhill to the finish line. There was a lot of mental pep talks going on at this point. When I hit mile 12 my average pace was still exactly on 7:13 and all of a sudden my legs felt completely done. I started to panic because this was not "hey I'm tired and I need to slow down," but all of a sudden I felt like I had to stop or my legs were just going to give out. I could feel my heart start pounding and I thought could I actually run 12miles on pace and then fall apart in the last mile? Am I going to be one of those people that just collapses and tries to crawl to the finish line? 

I slowed down a bit and just tried to regulate my breathing and put one foot in front of the other. I made it through that last mile at 7:21. Once I saw the "1km to go" marker I calmed down. My knee was really hurting by now and I could tell that I was favoring my other leg. I got close enough to the timer and started smiling cause I knew I was going to hit 1:35. 

(last 10m!)

I crossed the line and the announcer actually had my previous PR time on hand and announced to the crowd that I had just completed a new PR so that was kinda cool. 

 

(big smiles with my medal!)

My official time was 1:35:49 taking 4 mins off last years time :) I am really happy with that. I busted my butt and am proud of my results. Interestingly enough my Runmeter app says overall I ran 13.27 miles at an average of exactly 7:13. Technically I made my pace but I guess I weaved around a lot! I need to factor that extra distance in next time!

I placed 8th out of 224 women in my age group and 45th overall...woohoo! My running buddy also blew his time out of the water and I was so excited for him. We trained so hard and this was his first one. It was my uncles second half and he managed to take 13 minutes off his last time so everyone had reason to celebrate.  Not only that I got an email from Father-in-Law the next day that I made the Nanaimo newspaper as one of the city's fastest runners. Better believe I printed that one out and put it on the wall :) Good race, good times, cant wait to do it again next year. 

But they come in so many pretty colors :)

Some girls collect purses and high heels...I collect running gear! I have zero sense of control when I get into the running store. Shoes I can somewhat justify as I tend to wear them longer than I should anyway based on the mileage I do.  Half the time the heels are totally busted out by the time I get new ones! But I was going through my closet recently and realized it was time to cull a few ratty pairs out of the mix :)

Here's the problem...FrontRunners has a great little kids play area. So I often go there with my youngest and then she wants to play a while...so what else am I supposed to do but go try things on :) I attempt to rationalize my purchases by the fact that I run 6-7 days a week and I do not want to be doing laundry every other day just to have clean running gear...so really I'm saving our hydro bill...right? In my opinion a trip to the running store where I spend less than $200 is a win!

(I went to buy running gels...oops)

Also Amazon and Facebook conspire against me. They totally have me pegged. All my suggested posts are running related items. So I lay in bed at night and scan Facebook and I get these items popping up that "every runner must have"...click on that I'm on Amazon which has my credit card linked and my shipping address on hand. All it takes it 30 seconds and I've got things like these cool little shoe tags showing up at my door :) 

 (PS. I love these and they make me smile every time I look down)

Lastly, running slogan shirts... I want them all. I think this one will be next whenever I think I can justify another purchase or after a few too many ciders ;) 

Blogging re-start

So I got back from vacation this summer and stopped blogging. I'm not sure why, just with a busy life it was an easy one to let slide. But I'm going to try and keep it up again. I enjoy writing and I really appreciate being able to read back on my training plans, where I was at before each race and the different race re-caps. So here goes...again...

Summary of July to October: I ran...a lot...I really busted my ass training for the Good Life Fitness Half-Marathon and the goal of 1hr 35mins. I tried to follow Matt Fitzgerald's plan as much as possible and topped out at running 90-100km/week. Sometimes I over did it...I ran the entire month of August without taking a rest day...oops! But if anything it just made me love running even more...if that's even possible! 

Every weekend I did a long run which was usually around 20k...but once a month I did an extra long run between 25-30k. Usually around Westwood Lake. 

One day though I bailed hard on the trails...My foot caught a root and I had no ability to catch myself before hitting the dirt. Embarrassingly enough it was on mile 1...I wasnt even tired, just not paying attention and I dont lift my feet very high when I run (I tend to trip a lot). 

I ended up with scratches all the way down the left side of my body form shoulder to ankle. Bloody palms and elbow and a purple toe. I had intended to do 5 laps of Westwood that day (30k) and I was too stubborn to go home after falling. I continued on even though my toe was throbbing and I was covered in dirt and blood...all those poor Sunday strollers were probably a little freaked out by the hot mess I was...lol. Lap 4 I was crossing one of the bridges and one plank sticks up about 10cm and I kicked that and went down again. I figured 24km was enough and I needed to take my beat down body back home! So I bailed on the last lap. 

I tried to always focus on maintaining a calorie deficit of no more than 300-500 calories. With running so much this meant I was often eating around 2000-2200 calories. My weight came down to 132 pretty easily and then plateau'd there for a bit. When it started getting closer to the race I decided to really get more serious about it. The next two weeks it dropped but so slowly I was getting so frustrated and running out of time! 

 

(dropping 0.2 a week...grrr)

On the plus side my bodyfat came down from 23 to 20.5 and was dropping steadily which was nice to see!

My goal was to make 129 before the Good Life Fitness Race. I dont do any calorie reduction on race week so I knew I had to hit that number on the Monday before the race. I really wanted to make that goal and I can be pretty determined at times :) So the weekend before the race I was a saint. No alcohol and no treats. On Saturday I was 130.4 so I knew I had a chance. I woke up Monday morning and stood on the scale and peered down with one eye. 129.8...fuck yeah...I did it on the last possible day and only barely made it but I didnt care I will take it!! I felt pumped to have made my goal and it was worth the sacrifices :)

I have to admit though that this weight lasted for all of 20 mins...lol. I got to work and there were birthday donuts on the table and I had no willpower to say no! I dont even like donuts that much...lol. But my body was just freaking out "feed me all the foods!!!" :)