A Few More Days...

..until my surgery, that is. On Friday morning I will be going under the knife and am a bit nervous about the whole thing. It's not that big a deal really, given that it will be done under local anaesthetic, but still... I do hope that this helps in the long term as it will continue to keep me on the sidelines for some time yet.

In other news my right knee continues to hurt. It's been over a month (and that includes a DNS at the Toronto Waterfront Half Marathon that is depressing to say the least) since I've stopped running, but this damned tendinitis lingers on. I've been to the physio and to many massage therapy sessions, and I'd like to say things have improved, but it's more of the one step forward, one step back variety. I'm still optimistic that this will eventually clear up and I plan on getting back to running towards the end of October.

That DNS was a pain in the ass though. Arrrgghhhh!!!

And oh yeah, while rebuilding my laptop I seem to have created an unwanted issue with the network adapter. Wireless still works, but no dice on the Ethernet port. It's been a pain to get this thing working, and no solution seems possible short of performing the whole reinstall process again and hoping that this time I happen upon the magic sequence of installing the multitude of drivers that may solve this issue. Why are laptops such a pain!

Alright... Time for Another Update

Seeing as I am not running I figured now's the time to do something I've been thinking about doing for about a year or two. I have decided to get some "minor" surgery (if there is such a thing) done on my right leg to clear up circulation issues that I've had for years. Though I've been told that these have nothing to do with my ankle injury, I am not convinced. It seems that the original injury was also the start of these issues, so how can they NOT be related?

Anyway, I have no idea if this will help with the ankle (which, mercifully, has not been a major issue for quite some time), but it needs to get done finally. It will also mean that I will be off the road for a few weeks afterwards, which will add up to almost two months of no running for me. By then the knees should be fully recovered and I can, hopefully, begin to slowly work my way towards building a good base over the course of the Fall and Winter months. Not that much has gone according to plan, but I am keeping my fingers crossed that, come next June, I will have an awesome base and will have been running somewhere in the 40-60km per week range for several months. Then, when I start training for my first marathon, my body will be better prepared for the effort.

It's still a bummer that I can't run, but I am looking and thinking long term. I also have to keep rollerblading, start doing some strength exercises for the legs, and get my membership at the UofT pool renewed so I can start swimming again. I have to keep my weight in check since I've gained 5lbs in the past 2-3 weeks (yikes!). Lots to think about...

I think the hardest thing about this surgery is that I am not allowed to drink ANY coffee for 24 hours prior to the procedure. Nuts!

Update

Since I haven't been running, I haven't been blogging. The knee(s) (mostly the right one at this point) have forced me to take a major step backwards. Posting on this blog makes it more difficult to not be running, and so that explains why I've dropped out for a while. I am not running yet, though I have seen my physio and have a plan to get back to normal. It may take some time and I am not very hopeful of running the half-marathon later this month (big bummer, that's for sure). My current state of mind can be summarized with the word, "Whatever..."

I have started rollerblading a bit more, and even bladed to work this morning. I hope that this works out the right muscles to get my knee back in form, but I still feel pain below the patella when walking up and down stairs, and definitely when squatting down (as I have to do whilst tying one of my boys' shoelaces and such). I'm also doing more core strength stuff, as well as a bit more upper body weights. I hope to get to leg strengthening exercises once the knee heals because I really think that general weakness in the legs is a large part of the problem. Can't remember the last time I did any sort of lunge, for instance.

I do find it amazing that I've been running with knee tendinitis since February though! What an idiot...

Anyway, I have no idea when I will be running again. Until then I suspect the neglect of this space will continue. What's the point of keeping a running blog journal type thing when there's no running going on?!

It Begins

The weekend recap for me looks like this: no running, lots of kids baseball games, and lingering tightness in the knee. I gave myself Sunday off to let this knee settle down. It hasn't, though it is not really that bad. I'm just a little concerned about starting marathon training with ANY pain at all, but I have to start soon. In fact, with tomorrow being June 1st and all, that sounds like the perfect time to get back into running. I will have to put some serious thought into the running plan for the next seventeen weeks and get any sort of time goal out of my head - after all, the main purpose of the marathon for me is to finish and walk away afterwards with a smile.

That being said, here are some pics from the 5K. I look in pain, but at least somewhat happy in the post-race photo:







And just for fun here's a photo of Owen crossing the finish of the Kids Marathon (red hat with yellow bull horns):

MIA

I've been taking a sort-of "forced" week off from all exercise, other than biking to work, and so have not had anything to write about that's remotely running related. Alone with one kid for the week while Monica is out of town with the other means that I can't go out for any runs for that would mean leaving the wee one at home alone. So, this is OK. I've been saying that I would take at least a week off after my last race and that is exactly what I am doing. Starting this Sunday I will begin training for my first marathon, which is both a scary and exciting prospect. I wonder how my body, especially my foot, will hold up in the face of way more mileage? Will I be able to keep my speed in check so that I can increase mileage without incurring further injury? I will have to ramp up conservatively, though time is not on my side. 17 weeks and counting...

A Quick Update

It's been a great Christmas in our house and everyone had a great time, especially the kids. They were, once again, spoiled beyond all sense and reason, but given that we and their extended family love them so much it is no longer a surprise. Things are going fairly well for us right now and we can afford to let them have a few things that maybe we won't be able to afford in more lean years.

I haven't done any push ups or chin ups this week and have written off the attempt at the century for the moment. Next week I will redo Week 6 again and then (hopefully) be ready to get 100 in a row the following week. The foot is still hurting a little, but I know that if I stay off of it for a while longer it will completely heal. It certainly isn't as bad as it was before, and I continue to wait for that elusive pain-free state before contemplating running again. Starting in January we'll be cross-country skiing every Saturday, with the boys taking lessons and us off on some much needed cross training. It should be a blast, and with it being low or no impact, the workout will pay off in the long run cardio wise.

Not sure when I'll get back on the computer (and the only reason I have it on right now is because I had to call the hot water tank people to get a new rental unit installed since the one we own is starting to leak), but I wish everyone a safe and happy New Year!