We, runners are crazy............

We runners are crazy………….

It has been a while, to be exactly, 3 weeks since my last run. I have been fighting an ankle injury which is preventing me from running and it’s driving me nuts. It’s a repetition of 2007 all over again.

That year I get injured after running Boston marathon (a muscle on the right hip) which I totally ignored and continued to run the remaining of the year and racing the Chicago Marathon, Chicago Distance Classics half marathon. Ignoring the injury was not very smart; training and running yet another full marathon was even worse. I guess, I am just totally obsessed with running or else? Plain crazy. I just ignored one of the most important rules for runners: to listen to our bodies and its sign of “time out”.

Even though I knew I was injured I made plans for 2008 which consisted in running Chicago Marathon , Marine Corps and two half marathon. Ignoring the fact that I was injured did not help and made thing only worse.

Than 2008 came along and I thought “well, if I stop running for a couple of weeks I will fine”. Not really. That was not the case; it was a little too late. My injury now was so bad to the point that even the easiest exercise such as walking on the treadmill was painful. That’s when I realized the extension of that injury and that I had no other choice other than to seek medical help and pronto.

First thing was to find a good physical therapist; one that specializes on treating runners. One was recommended to me by other fellow runners.

On my first visit and after a few tests, doctor told me there was no guarantee that I would be able to start training (3 months away) for the spring marathon or that I would be able or should run a full marathon at all. His suggestions were take a year off the roads to fully recover or wait until the end of treatment to see how the treatment progressed. Let me tell you: I did not like to hear that. One year without running? No races at all? Boy that was not good!

Have treated so many runners in the past, my doctor was used to his patient demands to return to run not matter what. I am not the exception to the rules. I told him “do whatever you can but put me back into the paths before my training begin”. He than replied that it was the same request of all his former patients and he would tell me the same thing he said to others: If I followed his instructions and did what he asked me to I probably would be able to run a half marathon that Spring I would just have to wait and see how treatment progressed.

After a month into treatment doc allowed me to start running 2-4 miles 3 times a week I did just that and was very excited to see that I was getting better. I had high hopes to be totally recovered by the time the training begins.

2 months after I started treatment I was ready to go. I felt confident and so did my doctor that I would be able to carry on with my plans to run both marathons. When training begun I was ready.

Did I learn the lesson that you must take time off to full recover from an Injury? Yes. This is something that most of us runners tend to forget. If you are not healthy enough you will not be able run a good race and worse your injury even further or risking getting injured for life.

2008 is now almost gone and I had 2 full marathon and 2 half’s completed. After the last race, and as usual, I start making plans for the following year. The plan was to take a few weeks off from running two races consecutive and than start running again just ‘maintenance mileage” until January 2009 when I start yet another training for a full marathon in April.

Everything was going as planned until I had an accident while running a 5 mile course sometime last month. During falling that day I injured my right ankle and here I am once again not being able to just go out and run.

I guess this is one of these things in life that you cannot prevent but deal with it.

Happy Holidays my fellow runners!