After the CapeAbilities 5K in May I felt unstoppable. I had gone from not running at all to running a fairly good time in a 5K within 6 weeks. I wasn’t fooling myself about stepping up in race distances, but I was much more comfortable in my running skin. That being said, two events combined to give me my first taste of setbacks that come with running.
The first event was after having several drinks one night I decided to sign up for the St. Peter’s Fiesta 5K held in Gloucester, Mass. near the end of June. That was not really a big deal since I was already itching to run another race after my first. Plus I love Gloucester, it has been my favorite place to visit since I began doing travel writing in January 2010.
The second event was what really caused a problem. As of the First of June my longest run had been 10 miles. That had come after gradually working up to it like I had read was the wisest way to train. That was all well and good but then I discovered that June 1st was National Running Day. It is in my nature to be a little overzealous and I was on that day.
I mounted one of the treadmills at the gym in the back row with the intention of doing a 10 mile run. Then I got a message from my friend Emily that she was not feeling well and was not going to be able to come and run on that day. Well, seeing that she was my running mentor and the reason I even attempted my first real mile I decided to dedicate my National Running Day to her. What did that mean? It meant running a Half Marathon distance, 13.1 miles. Remember, I had only done 10 miles once, and was now planning on doing 13.1. Yeah, nothing could go wrong, right?
I knew I was running a long distance when I actually had to reset the treadmill at one point since it only went up to 99 minutes. My legs were growing tired but I felt I needed to run the full distance since I told Emily I would. I pushed past my 10 mile high and kept going. Finally after 2 hours and 12 minutes I completed 13.1 miles and proudly turned off the treadmill and sent Emily a message telling her what I had done.
One thing became apparent right away, struggling through the last few miles had taken its toll. My muscles were so tight and sore, my only thought was to get home and get some ice and heat on them and see how they felt in the morning.
Within a few days of my 13.1 I developed soreness in my left Achilles tendon and a sharp pain just below my right kneecap where patellar tendon connected to the tibia. I found out later it’s called ‘jumpers knee.’ Remember I had signed up for a second race which was rapidly approaching. When I admitted to Emily that I had become injured by running a half marathon distance to show off for her she was not too thrilled.
I was disappointed in my injuries but determined not to give up since I had already become so passionate about running after only 3 months. What happened next were various trips to the store to buy ibuprofen, an ankle brace which would cover my Achilles as well, and a knee brace. I would put on a sock, the ankle brace, and another sock on my left foot to keep the Achilles secure and minimize the pain. I knew any damage to that particular spot was doom for a runner.
I tried my best to combine rest with shorter runs but it was not working. Working in the restaurant business did not make resting feasible no matter how much I tried. I was also afraid to do any sort of stretching especially in the Achilles. The ‘jumper’s knee’ pain was on the outside of the bone and one day I figured out it was from landing wrong as I ran. Walking with my feet pointed straight ahead was virtually painless. However, once I took a step with my right foot facing outward slightly it became unbearable. Even if 1 out of every 100 foot strikes happened with my landing in that fashion it still ended up being hundreds of times during an 8-10 mile run. No wonder I got injured, I was not paying attention to my stride. It reminded me just how far I still had to go.
I was in constant pain in both areas and was wondering if my race in Gloucester might be the last one. I began to wonder if running was not meant to be. I began to think of my own worries before I began running. There was the worry about my left knee which I had hurt when living in Las Vegas in 2000. While moving a 20 foot tall ladder in the back stockroom of a Target store the ladder closed up and slid toward me the bottom rung took out both of my knees. I had periodically suffered through tendonitis in my left knee afterwards and always had believed that it was only a matter of time before one wrong step did me in while running.
I decided I would run the St. Peter’s Fiesta 5K as if it was my last and go from there. My right knee and left Achilles would be hurting but I would not dream of quitting. I hated the idea of wasting money. So I would go and give it my best shot.
What were some of your first injuries? How did they affect you mentally as well as physically? Did any of you suffer similar injuries to me? How long did they take to get better? Did any of them become worse?
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