Ever since the painful 17-miler of three weeks ago I’ve been dreading today’s scheduled 20-miler. Wednesday’s two miles on the treadmill left me limping. While much better, my tendonitis has not yet healed. The bone spurs are a permanent part of my anatomy unless I have them surgically removed. And so when I awoke on Thursday and felt pain the moment my feet hit the floor, I knew. There’s no way I’m doing a marathon in March.
I’ve been training for this thing since September 17. While a lot of my mileage of late has been completed courtesy of the elliptical trainer, I haven’t missed one workout. Not one. Driving to the gym Thursday morning I felt a since of relief for finally making a decision I’ve known for weeks needed to be made. But I also felt nauseous. Once at the gym I saw my running friend/coach/mentor Lynn and I told her the news. She was going to the event with me to give me support, and run the half marathon. Her response: “Good call.” She reminded me that I wasn’t quitting. I was sidelined by injuries in both feet. Those are two different scenarios.
My workout on Thursday consisted of about 10 miles on a new bike simulator. It was actually fun and it kept me off my feet. I chose to sleep in yesterday. I needed some time to mentally adjust to not training for a big event.
I feel sort of lost without having the March marathon on my schedule but I know I made the right decision. I’m registered for a New Year’s Day 5k on Tuesday. I’ll show up for that and run/walk according to how I feel.
I’m going to talk to my podiatrist about whether or not it’s advisable to have the bone spurs removed. If he thinks I should, I’d like to schedule that for as soon as possible. I’d rather recuperate in the winter than in the spring. While I’m already registered for a half marathon in April that I may not be able to do, I’ll not spend another dime on endurance events until I’m completely healed. It’s just time to be smart about this.
I’m leaving for the gym in a few minutes. I’ll hop back on the bike and then do some weight training. I’ve enjoyed my two-day pity party, but now it’s over. It’s time to move on…or rather, move forward.
What about you? Have you ever been sidelined by injuries? How did you handle the disappointment?
482gr8 