In case you missed it, I’ve been having knee pain on my right leg from running since the 2005 Portland Marathon. Essentially what seemed to be chronic IT Band Syndrome, made worse by rest or running or really anything. I also get hip pain on the right side also from running, biking, and most especially _walking_. I’ve seen as many as _five_ physical therapists throughout the years, whose basic “treatment” was to do clamshells and run slower, neither of which did anything. And despite me telling the next one that these exercises did nothing, they still gave them to me.
tldr
training stuff
Annnnd now I’m sick
1 day in and I’ve got a cold. Awesome. ?
Let the training begin!
Hi guys, it’s been a while.
After Coeur d’Alene 70.3 last June, I began ramping up again for the full in August… and then decided to bag it and sign up for Arizona full instead, which is in November. So I went on a long break from training.
Honestly it was a necessity for my knees and hips, which had gotten quite angry. I took almost three weeks completely off from running, and came back refreshed. While I still cannot run pain-free, I’m optimistic if I slow my runs way down, I can get through the race. I won’t be winning any awards, but I think I’ll survive without having to walk 26.2 miles.
So actual training begins now. Which means a complete shut down from me for the next couple of months; I’ll be saying no to everything and just sleeping, eating, training and working. And lots and lots of foam rolling.
The Upgrade Ceiling: When you hit the top and crash
A long time ago, in a far away land, I used to race cyclocross competitively–aka, I trained for it and actually tried to do well. After being yelled at for being a sandbagger on multiple occasions while racing in the B category, I upgraded to A’s, which meant not only was I racing with the best amateurs, I also raced with any pros who showed up. As anyone who has gone from B to A knows, it’s a huge leap. You can’t fumble through the race relying on either technical skills or fitness alone. You have to have both.
Change of Plans…
After my last very whiny post, I tried to get my shit back together and get focused. And then I looked at the Ironman website to find the exact dates for IM Arizona in November, as I was thinking about flying down there to spectate and support friends. And then I saw the “register” button, still active. Huh? It sold out 2 days after opening way back last November. Why would _that_ be there? So of course I clicked it.
Excedrin should probably sponsor me
I thought as I got stronger with running that my knee and hip pain would subside. For a little while, there was a glimmer of hope that this would be true. But it became abundantly clear over the past two weekends, that this is not the case.