How Glad Am I Not To Be Wearing The Boot in The Blizzard?

Very.

20" of snow at my house, so far. Still snowing through the day.

In running news, I did manage to complete 4/10 mile (4 laps at the indoor track) on Tuesday night. No pain, no tenderness. Progress. Though I am thinking I won't be doing the running club group run scheduled for Saturday morning. Unless at least 10" of snow can melt by then...

The Boot Gets The Boot

Well running friends....my AWOL time is nearing its end. It has been 3 weeks and 3 days since I fractured my metatarsal and was confined to The Boot. Per the doctor's instructions, I have behaved, worn the boot, and let my foot heal to the best of my ability. It is no longer tender, nor in pain...I can walk without a limp. I spent the weekend around the house sans boot, and still all felt fine.

I have been swimming and lifting weights in my forced running sabbatical. On Saturday, I tried my old yoga class to see how the foot held up. All was well. Sunday I did a test lap on the track after my weight/core session...and, well, one lap was all I managed. The foot felt a little weak (to be expected) yet not exactly painful. It was somewhat tender afterward, so I decided I will give it another week before trying running again. Also, I believe that my 10-month old shoes with 700+ miles on them may have been somewhat of a causal factor in the fracture in the first place. On my test lap, I was very, very aware of what my footstrike was doing; I felt a distinct oddness/hollowness in the forefoot of my right shoe; just in the area where my stress fracture occurred. Why didn't I notice that before I broke my foot?!

Anyway, who doesn't love a reason to buy a new pair of running shoes?! Perhpaps in pink this time, rather than blue?! Asics 2140's here I come...

Broken Foot Benefit #22

Warning: this post is not about running. Males may want to disregard at this point...

I am in Austin for work this week. One thing I was really looking forward to doing while here, is going for some good runs on the lovely local trail system. Since that ain't happening, I guess I will have to focus on work instead...booo. Or try the lap pool at the schwanky hotel spa. Ooh, and the steamroom, definitely the steamroom.

Anyway, while frantically gathering all my crap to pack last night, I came across one surprise benefit to having a broken foot. Typically, it takes quite a bit of strategic planning to pack for a work trip, especially when there are also "casual" activities on the agenda. I am forced to choose shoes that do at least double-duty. I am forced to choose outfits that correspond to those that certain pairs of shoes. But NOT this time! Fancy heel that only goes with one dress? Bring it! Clarks Wallabee? Why not! Black flat? Toss it in! Comfy mid-heel? In you go!

Because I only have to pack ONE shoe (the left one), I was able to include twice the shoeage! And I could choose my preferred outfits, not just the ones that would go easily with my shoe. Also, I did not have to pack 3 running outfits...so that lightened the load. Unfortunately, I am not sure the presence of the perfect shoe on the left foot can overcome the distraction of the hideous black boot on the right. Sigh.

Denver Marathon Gets The Boot

Well, boys and girls, despite all your well-wishes and my fervent hopes (bordering on anti-fracture prayer obsession), I am indeed today in a boot. Stress fracture on second metatarsal bone. 3-4 weeks of no running and limited walking. Spectator status for the Denver Marathon on the 18th.

Luckily, I am well past the crying phase and have moved into the, "hey, my foot doesn't hurt as much with this big bad-ass boot on," and my persepctive has shifted.

Good things about my broken foot:

- The bone I broke heals relatively quickly and generally without complications or future issues

- No high heels for a month

- Boot is black--as opposed to the electric blue one I had when I broke my ankle and had surgery on it in high school--and therefore matches all of my clothing

- No surgery

- No crutches

- Getting sympathy votes
- More time to read
- Running timeslot(s) can become daily meditation timeslots (more on that later)

- Driving the electric carts at Target

- Good reason to finally try swimming again

- Less laundry, without running clothes to wash

Bad things about my broken foot:

- No running for a month

- No Denver Marathon, which means no extra-special Mile-High Experience medal

- Snow season is approaching--like, tomorrow--in Colorado

- Though black, boot is still ugly

- Driving a stickshift? Not so easy

- No running for a month

So, as you can see, the list of good things is actually longer than the list of bad things. Yes, I am really disappointed I don't get to do the race in a couple weeks (I really wanted that extra medal, dammit). My one big goal for 2009 was to run a marathon. Finally, after so many years of running, I committed myself to prepare for it and do it. I stuck with it, through ups and downs, intervals and lsd runs, and I was this close to making it....then, BOOM: failed.

And then yesterday I was thinking and it occured to me that I had run two half marathons this summer. A half, plus a half equals....a whole marathon. So, technically, I did achieve my goal of running a marathon this year; just not the way I had imagined or planned to do it. But life rarely gives you just what you are expecting; and that doesn't make the accomplishments any less valid or the ride any less fun. So, though disappointed, I am now actually kind of ok with the whole situation. Course, I may feel differently when the painkillers have worn off.

Not Exactly a Marathon Taper

Turns out back, is really more like "back" since I because I haven't been running, I haven't been blogging. Why haven't I been running, when here I sit, less than three small weeks away from the Denver Marathon? Well, let me tell you:

Now, while I generally do welcome any and all prescribed
breaks from house/kid duties, this is not exactly the directive you want to
get from your doctor, three weeks out from your (first, for which you
have been training for months) marathon.

While I do still feel pretty much like roadkill, I am hating not being able to run¹. Quite honestly, I would be inclinced to ignore the good doc's advice and run anyway, if I thought myself capable of actually completing a decent run without going into respiratory distress. And so the very worst part of the last few days (aside from the crabby repurcussions on my poor family, of course) is that I am physically unable to run, despite the beautiful weather and the strong desire to do so. So, sadly, my new goal for the marathon has simply become to finish it come hell or high water. I don't care how long it takes, because at this point I will be glad to be running again by then. It really sucks to spend months doggedly training for something, a singular goal, only to have it slip through your fingers, just out of reach....sigh.

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¹-My last run was last Thursday, a 5-miler. The weather was good and I actually felt ok at the time, except that I felt like I was having a hard time breathing, which was odd. I thought maybe it was just the incredible shrinking sports bra I had worn that day corseting my ribcage. About 4 miles in, I started feeling better and settling into my groove, so I figured I must have just needed a longer warm up for reasons unbeknownst to me (yeah, like perhaps because of the fact that my body was trying to fight of The Consumption). I was feeling good enough that I would have kept going beyond 5 miles, had I had more time. ANYWAY, I proceeded from there to the gym, had a good work out, still felt fine. Woke up Friday with a cough and a little achey, but still sort-of fine. Well, by Friday night, I was wishing I might actually die, rather than continue to feel the way I did then (extreme body aches, bad cough, high fever, exhaustion). The good news is that it isn't H1N1 or even the flu at all...the bad news is it's some other respiratory virus (on top of the sinus infection I was already on antibiotics for) that has lasted muuuuuccchhhh longer and made me feel waaaaaaayyyyy worse than the flu. Suh-weet.