Ready to Run?

The last time I wrote, we were training for a half-marathon in Arlington. Yes, I thought this was crazy and, yes, I don't enjoy running but, I tried my hardest, that's for sure! The training process was definitely not my favorite but, I made it ALMOST to the end. Yes, you read that correctly, ALMOST.

Jeff and I did our long runs on Sunday afternoons and we made it up to 9.5 miles. After and, for the most part during, each long run, my right ankle would be in so much pain and for the next two days, it would hurt to put any pressure on it. This made for interesting Monday mornings when I would have to put my 3" heels on to wear to work. I would nonchalantly tell Jeff but, neither of us thought much of it. I mean, I had never really ran more than a mile or two before this training so, I just assumed this is what it feels like to torture yourself and run miles...

Two weeks before the race, we were on the first mile of a 10.5 mile run and every step I took, shot a shooting pain thru my foot. I told Jeff that I was going to walk for a minute and then would catch up to him. I continued to walk and every time I would begin to run again, the pain would come back. So, I lost it, completely lost it. At this point, Jeff had stopped running and was walking beside me not knowing what to do. He didn't realize the type of pain I had been in and was shocked I had even made it that far. (Let's face it, I was shocked I made it past 3 miles in training... ha!) So, we continued to walk and he continued to encourage me like he always does by telling me that I'm not a quitter and I didn't have to run the half to prove anything to anyone, I had proved to him and myself that I could do it. According to him, he had no doubt that I could do it. It was very encouraging but still one of the most disappointing afternoons. In my mind, I was still running the race whether it hurt or not. I hadn't trained that long for

We made it back to our house and called his step-sister, she is an orthopedic surgeon, and we went to her house to have her check out my ankle. She immediately said, first things first, no running or strenuous exercise on this for at least two weeks... I looked at her and said, the race is in exactly  two weeks. She said, Morgan, if I were you, I wouldn't run. She told me I couldn't wear heels for at least two weeks and, I had to take 800 mg of ibuprofen, 3x a day. I did all this, tried to run the next Sunday and it just wasn't working for me. Ashley told me that I have tendinitis in the main tendon on my right foot. She said it was very strained and needed rest or it was just going to get much worse. I was so disappointed.

I am proud to say that I made it 9.5 miles, I am proud that I ALMOST stuck with it until the end but, I am most proud of Jeff for running in the half two weeks later by himself. It would have been so hard for me to motivate  myself if I had been in his position. He was my rock during all the training and pushed me when he had more faith in myself than I did!

Coming to a post near you, very soon, Jeff completes the half!!!