And then there was one...
First, Dave gets a stress fracture, prematurely ending his cross-country season and, as it is now, preventing him from running either the marathon or the half marathon in November.
Then, Ted's knee begins to bother him. He wore a knee strap, which didn't seem to help, and as of lately, has worn a knee brace, which seems to help a bit more on shorter distances. The symptoms? Knee pain when he hits distances of 12 miles or more. Stiffness after that, thus preventing him from finishing long distances. Sunday he had to gimp through the last 5 miles of our 18 mile run, while I ran ahead and got the car to come back and pick him up.
After that run, he promised to go to the doctor and have it checked out. Today was the appointment.
Verdict?
A torn meniscus, and next step is to schedule an MRI. The doctor said do not aggravate it, meaning no long runs. Ted said he will keep running shorter distances...anywhere from 5-10 miles is fine. He said he's doing it, if it means he has to walk the last 10 miles--the doctor said she couldn't say at this point a definite "yes" or "no" as to if he should run it. He said unless they tell him his leg is going to fall off, he's running it.
He confided in me last night he thinks this will be his last marathon, regardless of what happens. I didn't say anything--I plan to keep running them. He said he feels like he's more of a half marathon kind of guy...he doesn't like the time commitment for training and I think while he doesn't mind the distances, he isn't as dedicated to marathons as he is to the mid-distance runs we do.
So that's what we know now. I'm not sure how I feel--I was so excited to run the entire thing together. The main thing is this is teaching me the respect you need for these runs, and these distances. It isn't something to mess around with--I should be stretching more before I go out. I need to stretch more when I come back. I need to take weight training more seriously. And I need to listen to aches and pains more and take the recovery time as serious as the running time.
posted by Maggie Mae @ 6:24 AM
4 Comments:
How disappointing for you & your guys. Best of luck to Ted. He sounds determined to run the marathon. If he can't do all 26.2, maybe he could run the last 5-10 miles with you.
I'm planning on watching the marathon. I'll be happy to cheer you on!
Stay healthy. Keep up the good work. Your training is almost over---then it's time for the marathon taper.
That's a bummer, though Philly's still a bit away... perhaps a longer than expected taper, but I could see him pulling through it ok, particularly if he's stubborn enough to, which it sounds like he is.
But yup - those long runs do command a lot of respect, don't they?
Sorry to hear about your running buddies. I hear you on the stretching thing. Why do we all fight it so? That reminds me, I am going to stretch before bed :)
So sorry about your guys' injuries and leaving you to solo your marathon. Don't beat yourself up too much about the stretching. Most of us can do better. I'm not a sales guy, but have you ever used "the stick"? I think it really helps loosen the muscles. Keep up the good running!
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