Get your mind out of the gutters!!!
Friday I felt a bit of a “twinge” in my left knee. No biggie. Probably time to rotate in a fresh pair of shoes (I need to do a shoe post. I have 4 pairs of Brooks Defyance’s. 2 new pairs and 2 pairs with around 300 miles on them. Plus a sweet pair of Launch’s. They’re beautiful!) Saturday, I forgot that I wanted to throw on a new pair and had a bit of knee pain. It went away as I ran. I thought nothing of it. (Note: This is the knee that I injured in Peru. It’s always a bit fussy now.)
Yesterday, due to a client using my parking spot I parked a block or 2 from the office. I had to walk to and from my car wearing my flip flops. (I wear NICE flip flops with arch support, btw.) As I was walking back to my car that evening my left leg felt “off”. As the evening continued a “sensation” would radiate every minute or so if I was walking. A really odd sensation. Inside the leg just above the knee and more in the leg. Not a pain at all.
This morning, I decided to wear my new shoes and give running a shot. I felt ok, so why not? Once I started running, the “sensation” started up. Every couple of minutes or so, it would radiate through my leg. Since I wasn’t in “pain” I continued my run. As I started running up the Las Olas bridge, my right butt cheek started hurting.
Y’all know what that means? My piriformis/sciatica pain is back!!! It affects my body differently each time. I’m thinking that’s what the “sensation” is in my left leg, too. It feels “nervy”.
Now, overall this is not a big deal. I can generally run through it despite it not being comfortable.A visit or 2 to the chiro, some stretching and strengthening (which I should have been doing all along!) and I am good to go.
However, for the first time it dawned on me that I might need to . . .DEFER New York.
I have ZERO room to take time off right now. Even if I nail every single run from here to the marathon I’m going to be going in horribly under trained.
I’ve got to be honest with you and myself…I’m kind of a Type A girl and I don’t like half-assing things (that I care about). I wanted to go into marathon training running 35-40 miles a week and then grind out 16 hard weeks of training. I wanted to go to New York and RACE the marathon. Not just survive it.
Things did NOT go as planned. I had the dead leg/vitamin issue. Then heat issues. Then just flat-out motivation issues on the long run. Running at 4:30 in the morning and seeing homeless penis is depressing. Now this? I’m not sure if it’s a warning or what, but I don’t want to half ass one of my dream marathons. (I have a dream marathon list. Don’t you?)
IF I decide to defer I will feel like a loser. A quitter. Just thinking about it makes me want to cry. Finishing the race, but being injured and feeling bitter about running would make me feel bad, too. DNFing would make me feel worse. Way worse.
Despite whatever is going on with my leg, I feel healthy. 26.2 miles healthy? No. Get out there and rip my half marathon and shorter distance PR’s a new asshole healthy? Uhhhh….yeah. For sure.
So, do I pull the plug on NY 2010 and defer to next year? Train like a little beast go into the heat of summer in great shape and grind out my training like I wanted to? Shoot for my sub 4:00? In the heat. Do I pick a spring marathon to make up for it? Seattle? New Jersey? Do I really need to run a marathon? Maybe I’m a half girl.
People, I don’t know. I do know that I don’t want to “run/walk” a marathon. I don’t want to gut out 26.2 miles. I respect both my body and the distance too much.
I’ll make a decision this weekend. If I can’t get in a decent long run – pain free – then it’s off. I’ll be sad, but ok. (Though I just bought cute gloves and a hat to wear in New York.)
In the meantime, I’ve got to get my leg/butt feeling better. (Oddly my shoulder is bothering me too. Did I sleep in an odd position or something? Who knows?)
Have you ever had to defer a race? Did it work out for the better? I get the feeling that ALL runners do this at some point.
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I’ve officially decided to bag Boston for this year. It kills me a bit, but it’s the right choice given the circumstances of too much $$$ to spend/travel considerations, etc.
Sounds like it might be rough to grind out the training with this nervy sciatica deal in combination with the pressure you would put on yourself to perform to your expectations with not as much base as you wanted.
On the other hand… if you’re feeling pumped about New York for THIS year… who knows? You might surprise yourself. That’s the thing about marathons. Sometimes people go in feeling undertrained and still have a great experience.
That said, deferring the race doesn’t brand you with a quitter label. Ain’t no shame in waiting until you feel like you can give it your all.