A general frustration with life ramped up a few days ago due to a variety of little things including work, school, traffic, and an apartment that looks like it survived a series of tornadoes. When I feel overwhelmed in general, I don't do too well with clutter, it makes me feel physically and mentally claustrophobic; but that's another issue for another time (and maybe a health professional).
The moral of the story is: I hit a serious limit today. I have been increasing my mileage on the "long" weekend run, and today was supposed to be 8 miles. Attempt #1 ended in failure when I drove around the same area for 30 minutes and failed to find what is likely one of the largest parks in the city. Defeated, and really annoyed with myself for not bringing a map or having a smart phone or something, I turned around and went home. I fit some productivity in when I was now available to join Casey and help some friends move. I would run at another park that I would actually be able to find later in the day.
I understand that I had been physically active earlier in the day, so maybe carrying boxes up stairs shouldn't be followed by running 8 miles... but I only made it 3. At about a mile and a half, my IT band started hurting more than usual. Shortly thereafter, I rolled my ankle on a piece of branch shrapnel left from what is an apparent effort to deforest the entire park. What really concerned me is that I rolled my ankle, but the only pain I felt was pretty sharp and on the side of my knee. At this point I resolved to get myself to mile 3, where I would
After being asked a slew of questions and performing several tricks while standing on one leg, I heard the words that I never wanted to hear, but many runners end up having to face: "You're over-training."
Running guru told me that it seems my IT issues revolve around a weak knee, and unfortunately, I haven't allowed for enough time to get from my previous running status (or lack thereof) to a half-marathon distance. So, we chat for a little longer about stretches, exercises and products that will help build knee strength and manage pain and damage until then. I end up leaving this store and another with a variety of sporting goods that I hoped to never spend money on. How is running so expensive?! All this time, I thought you just needed feet and a developed sense of masochism.
On the way home, I realized that you can create a realistic training schedule and have the will to do it, but at a certain point, your body might set a limit that your brain can't accept. During the drive, I become totally frustrated with myself, thinking about the 2 weeks in December I spent not running or doing exercises that would keep my knees strong. I don't know what my training schedule will be like from here on out, or how many miles I'll accomplish on my birthday, which I took off to run 10 miles (I had my heart set on that one). But I will do my best and try not to hurt myself in the process.
I came home and did what any sweaty, exhausted & defeated person would do: took a shower and had a cry. Apparently I had time for the shower, but not the cry. As I was starting to contemplate getting out, my soothing hot water predictably turned cold (yet another story for another time), as if to tell me, "Hey! Pity party's over. Let's get to being productive." And I will do that - just as soon as my bottle of wine and box of Cheez-Its have been attended to.
I want to push myself, but I also recognize that I need to listen to my body since avoiding serious injury > running lots of miles. I will end (the longest blog ever... sorry about that) with this final thought from a hysterical book about marathon training that my cousin gave me for Christmas:
"I set out to train for a marathon because I knew there was no physical reason why I shouldn't be able to do it. Sure, it wasn't going to be easy to go from the recliner to running miles at a time. But lying on the grass, wondering if my heart was going to explode, I was able to muster a smile - I knew I had just pushed myself past my perceived limits, limits I had long ago accepted only because I wasn't motivated enough to try to do more. Although you'll be amazed at the limits you'll exceed, it's also important to distinguish between real limits and those that just seem real because your legs feel like they've turned to Jell-O. There's actually a very thin line between imaginary limits and real limits, and it's important not to cross over that line and into the intensive care unit."
- The Non-Runner's Marathon Guide for Women by Dawn Dais
No comments:
Post a Comment