Rebound

Once again, it's been a while since my last post, partially because the beginning of this month came with a few disappointments and setbacks. Near the end of July I had a major PR, completing 8 miles at an average of 9:30 each. I felt unstoppable, like I was ready to attack the last couple months of training before my half marathon. 

The next morning, I was scheduled to shift from 5-mile mornings to 6-milers. I mapped a new route and set out. About two miles in, the battery in my GPS watch died. Frustrated, I noted the time on my ipod and pushed on, knowing I could do the math later. Then I started to feel a familiar twinge creeping back into my left knee, a feeling I had blissfully avoided for months. I reluctantly made a mental note to dig my knee brace out of the closet when I got home. Coming down a big hill about halfway through the run, I was tired, frustrated, and dragging my feet a bit. My toe caught in a crack in the sidewalk, and I fell. No, not just fell--I flew. I took an epic, slip-and-slide-style dive, and totally scraped up my hands, right hip, and my already throbbing left knee. In the adrenaline of the moment, I jumped back up and kept running--I still had three miles to go and walking would mean I would probably be late for work. Every part of me hurt, and I had to keep blotting my bleeding hands on my t-shirt. I was positive that, upon returning home, I would find a gaping hole in my knee, shin covered in blood. I was almost disappointed to find that, though it smarted quite a bit, I had a scrape just bigger than the size of a quarter, and a matching one on my hipbone. I bandaged up and took the next day off, but figured I'd be back in no time. Unfortunately, the giant bruise that formed around my kneecap and lingered for a week spoke otherwise. A couple days later, I left the house to try a run, but couldn't even make it to the end of my street because of the sharp pain in my knee. I was officially injured. 

The disappointment continued, as I'd been planning a Thursday-to-Tuesday escape to Washington DC, where my days would be spent jogging around the city while my hosts were at work. Not only was it about 100 degrees every day, but I was having considerable trouble walking down stairs - no running allowed. Worst of all, I was struggling with something I think all injured athletes have a hard time with: how can you balance the need for your body to rest with the importance of sticking to a training schedule?

I ended up taking over two weeks off, and my first week back I started with significantly shorter distances to make sure my knee was up to it. It was almost worse than building my endurance the first time around--I purposely left my watch at home, but I still felt slow, easily winded, discouraged. Even on the days that I felt good, I had to remind myself to take it easy on my knees. It took a lot of patience and restraint, but I have finally worked my way back up to my regular schedule, and I've just completed my second full week of training since The Fall.

I may no longer feel truly unstoppable, but I now have a healthy appreciation for what I put my body through and am much better about listening to its complaints. However, as I finished an 11-miler this afternoon, I could really feel that the effort I put into my training schedule 6 days a week is paying off. I honestly feel like I will be completely capable of completing this half-marathon in September without my boyfriend needing to come peel me off the sidewalk when I'm done, which is something I wouldn't have believed until just a few months ago. 

I'm on the rebound, and I'm excited to see what comes next.