Heads or Tails?

Which way are things going go? Heads or tails? Is my season fundamentally over now or am I going to pull my arse out of this fire like I have so many other times in the past? Will the structure around my knee or whatever is bugging me heal itself while I continue training or will I have to stop altogether, rest, and re-plan the next year or two of running? I just can't tell at this point. Seems to be fifty/fifty and it could easily go either way.

This past weekend was jacked up and really there isn't a better way to describe it. I walked for over two hours in the screeching wind Saturday afternoon then on Sunday I walked three hours all around the neighborhood all afternoon. Work effectively tethered me to the house on Sunday so I could never be more than five minutes so from my desk really. The weather was nice on Sunday and Roxy walked with me some... Annie and Roxy walked with me part of it, and even Melissa did a couple of loops with me. The company and the weather on Sunday made it an easier three hours than if I was just walking around by myself and I was grateful for both.

It wasn't the worst way to spend the Sunday afternoon but I would have much rather been doing a long run, actually running.

At this point I am starting to feel some stress about the injury and if it will get better and rehab itself in a timely manner. Seriously, it feels as if I am on the razors edge here. One to two more weeks like this and I can pretty much kiss Leadville good bye for this year. Or, or, it could go the other way... one to two more slower weeks and I am back on the program.

The best scenario is (and has been for the past two weeks) that I wake up tomorrow morning and I am as good as new, start training again in earnest and run my scheduled races leading up to Leadville and finish it.

A more realistic but yet optimistic option is that I continue to slowly get better, train through this, still hit my major races but don't plan on doing so well, and push it all the way until August 22.

The other options, I'd really rather not think about at this point.

My coach and I had a long talk on Monday. I think we both decided to try to treat this as transitional week and see what my knee/leg can do. Don't get crazy, and DON'T over do it. Personally I am of the mind that now is the time to try to work the leg and work through the injury, train with it and move forward. It is a binary question... am I ready or not, yes or no? The option of another 100 miler next February was thrown into the equation and I have to be honest, it didn't gather any traction as a positive motivator at all, quite the contrary. Let me put it this way... I do not want to run this other race, EVER. That fact alone has served as a bonfire under my butt to make me sorta force it this week. I don't want to push out to next February what I really want to get done this August.

So I've been working out this week in earnest. Monday I ran/walked for 35 minutes or so... two minutes running, one minute walking and that went okay. Tuesday I rode to the incline, ran 1/2 the way up then ran down the trail with minimal knee issues, then rode back home. Today I did a convoluted four mile run which I broke up into three different parts. The overall story is this, my leg hurts when I run but not too bad. If I stop running and start waking there is no pain at all. The discomfort does not linger but of course I don't know how far I could really push it if I had to but I don't think it is time for that test yet. Also this week I am reincorporating my normal lifting routine along with the commitment to focus on it as well as the running. I don't want to lose any strength but really at this point I need to lift more I think for my head more so than anything. Do some extra so I don't feel like such a Schmoe, especially if I have to back of on the running some more.

That about covers it. Tomorrow, Thursday another light run and I have another appointment on Friday with the Sports Massage Therapist, aka "The Queen of Pain," and that I am thinking will help things move forward some.

Right now I will say that I am glad that I didn't give up my slot in the San Juan Solstice in June when we figured out my new race schedule. No matter what happens, I know that if worse comes to worse, I can run that one. :)