Well here we go again!!,…..As far as running is concerned, I am definitely not thrilled to be back in that similar place of uncertainty that I was in when writing my last blog. In fact, I didn’t even get a chance to write about the “comeback” that I was in the midst of making after the last injury, before….”POP”!!!,.. slammed again with an injury that truly came out of NOWHERE!!!??Back in June, I ruptured my Plantar Fascia and after 3 months of some serious rehab and intense cross training, I started running again in September. Due to the routine of various types of Road Biking workouts that I had put in, I felt strong, and my first runs felt almost like I hadn’t missed a step!! Ok, Well….maybe one or two???:)… But still, my body was responding,…. and the first few land runs both in Charlotte and around the foliage infused mountains of Blowing rock, were feeling good. Pete has always been VERY cautiously smart when returning athletes from injury, so the comeback to running HARD paces again was methodical and slooooowwwww!!…I did a lot of training on the Alter G (treadmill that takes weight off of you) and my first month of land running had NO HARD or INTENSE workouts whatsoever. As difficult as it was to hold back, I listened to Pete’s orders… And it was starting to pay off. As many runners know when beginning to make a “comeback” after a long layoff, it really is a great feeling when you start to get in the “zone” again. YOU know. Its like your running one day and you say “Hey, I feel pretty good?”, and your easy pace becomes faster and your runs become unconsciously longer. Things just start to click.
Anyhow, as happy as I was to be taking steps to move forward and have no foot pain, who knows what compensations, if any, that I was making from my former injury?? Looking back, the only thing I did notice in November was that anytime I got up from sitting long or being in a squat type position my knee would lock up and then click after extending. I didn’t think anything of it because I didn’t feel anything when walking or running. So whatever was going on in there, had not hindered a step. Workouts kept getting better and after some really fun local races in Charlotte that were used as workout efforts, Pete felt I was fit enough to have a descent performance in the very prestigious Manchester Road race in Connecticut. And honestly, so did I. So I went, not knowing that the “paperclip” in my meniscus, was only one more bend away from “popping”!!
ANNNNDD……. Yeah..I could get into the details of when and how the knee “POP” of no return happened, and I could explain all that had happened in my personal life the 2 weeks before. But unfortunately, some things are just too long and deep to jot down, …in a running blog anyway! So even though it may be a disservice to what my close friends and I ACTUALLY had to battle through, I won’t say much about that part. But I will talk about what I have come to learn in so many ways over my career. It is something I preach to my clients as well. Sometimes when things aren’t going well or are extremely stressful in the mental, emotional sides of life, tension builds up, and it just doesn’t matter how good things look Physically on the “outside”. The mind TRULY is the body, and at some point, the WHOLE person needs to be at their best to achieve maximum results. Sure, I had apparently had some damage to this knee for awhile, but it’s almost like my body knew that the time to finally “POP” was a time that had been very challenging for me personally. And so even though it was a totally unexpected phenomenon with very few warnings, the results of the MRI came back as a Large Displaced Bucket Tear of the Meniscus. And that meant arthroscopy.
So…here I am again. It seems like rock bottom in so many ways. But in moving forward over the last couple weeks, I’m trying to take one day at a time and plug forward in every possible way I can. I am thankful to have just had a successful surgery this past weekend in Richmond, VA, by none other than Dr. Marion Herring, a Zap fitness “go to” for years now. And actually it turned out to be like a really fun mini vacation for my great friend Kelly Fillnow and myself. Between our crazy road trip adventure, and Dr. Marion Herring and his family hosting us as their guests, …I told everyone that I just might have to tear the other knee so we can come back again!
Anyhow, there is no doubt that I am in the best hands between the expertise of Dr. Herring, the support of Zap Fitness, and the rehab I will be receiving from Carolina Sports Clinic here in Charlotte. But of course, with this being my second major injury in a year, there are many things to ponder in running and in life. As far as running is concerned, YES, this is another setback to my goals, and YES, we don’t know exactly why or how it happened. And YES, there are many logistics that I have no clue how will workout just yet. Where will I live the next few months? When can I return to running again? Will there be enough time to continue forward with some of the 2015 plan marked out with Zap? And as far as my life and MANY other people’s lives who struggle with PTSD or come from a similar background to mine; Will people like us ever get on a life pattern where we are 100% mentally healthy without any Post Traumatic episodes or issues? That may be a topic that deserves another blog. However, for now, I do believe that it can continue to get better. And so I continue to try.
I posted this pic. on FB the other day and I meant it…..
Life goes on and I truly believe that you have to control what you can and move forward in one way or another. In my case, wether that means in my Coaching, in pursuing my Physiology Degree, in continuing to plug forward as an Elite Runner…. or in deciding to be a Domesticated Baker:)..I don’t know 100% for sure yet???
But I will move on in some endeavor with purpose. And I have no doubt that God will lead every step of the way.
