I am a klutz. Please, allow me to clarify. I am a HUGE klutz. Not a day goes by where I do not damage my body in some way, shape, or form. Not all klutziness results in major damage, in fact, it rarely does. But I often look at my arms, legs, feet, fingers, or any other body part and ask "huh, where did THAT bruise come from?"
And this week has been no different. Well, maybe different in the fact that my klutziness has been taken to an even higher level. It all started with taking my bike into transition Saturday morning. As I was rolling Cedric through the grass, a stick (a rather large and pointy stick) got caught in my pedals, and I, of course, didn't realize this. This caused a bruise and scratch on the top of my left foot. Not exactly something that I prefer to happen before a "race," but I also knew that it wasn't major enough to cause problems. And it didn't.
Fortunately for my mental well being, I had already went into the weekend as this was just training. But in the back of my head, I really wanted to do well, and at the very least, finish. I didn't. It's not something I'm completely ready to talk about, but long story short, I had to listen to my body, and make the decision that the race on November 20, 2011 was much more important that last weekend. Due to a combination of many insignificant factors, that combined create a significant problem, I had a huge problem. That problem being my knees. And the pain that they were in. They have been getting achy and sore recently, which for most of the time, I wrote off to the fact that I am training for an Ironman, and the general battery that your body goes through. I can't say that anymore. So, for the first time since I've been an athlete, I now have an appointment tomorrow with a Sports Medicine Dr. Growing up, I never imagined that I would have to visit a Sports Medicine Dr, but here I am. And I keep remembering a comment Ed made one of the first times I met him, "It's not *if* you get hurt, it's *when*."
After I got back to the park on Saturday, I noticed I had a nice, purple bruise on the knuckle of my ring finger on my left hand. No clue where it came from. But it's mostly gone away now.
Ice. Pain killers. Repeat.
Let's skip ahead to Tuesday evening. I had to stay late at work for a conference call that left me and a co-worker feeling like we had just went through a war. It was crazy, I was dazed. I was walking out of the metro station, across a brick sidewalk, and caught my toe on a loose brick, and down I went. Landing on the knee that has been in the most pain. I actually find this to be a little fortunate, because it was not, now, both of my knees that were in quite a bit of pain. I hobbled home, refused to cry about it, and then was most upset that it ruined the lovely pedicure I had given myself.
Ice. Pain killers. Repeat.
As I hobbled around my office the next day, my co-workers all showed a great deal of concern for why I was walking around like a 90 year old woman. I explained. Assured them that I was fine. And kept hobbling around. At one point, within minutes of one another, I hit the sore, swollen knee on the underneath side of my desk twice, causing me to whimper and my neighbors to ask if I was ok.
Also, at some point, I realized that I had also scraped the top of my right foot in the fall (matching feet now) and that the dark spot on the back of my left knee was NOT actually residual grease from my bike cleaning, it was, in fact, a bruise as well. Again, no clue where it came from.
Think I've been through enough this week? You would be wrong. As I was making my lunch this morning, I got the bowl of rice I had made out of the microwave. And promptly dropped it. Shattering the bowl, and sending glass shrapnel all over floor. I was barefoot. And now bleeding (but fortunately, not that much).
Ice. Pain Killers. Bandaid. Repeat.
Yes, I do realize that I should be wearing bubble wrap body armor.
I had been doing quite a good job of feeling sorry for myself, and also being incredibly scared about what the issue with my knees actually is. I'm 99% certain it's tendonitis. But I'm not a Dr, so I'm still getting them checked out. But if that is the problem, it is fixable. Comparatively easily. It's not easy for me to just sit still, and it's even more difficult for me to admit that I'm hurt or sick. Combine the 2, and I've been a peach to be around all week. Even though it's recovery week, and I'm hurt, and I had every legitimate reasons to sit on my couch and do nothing, last night, I HAD to do something. So I put on my cycling clothes, and went for an easy spin. My knees were a little sore, but not actually that bad. I made sure to stretch well afterward, and I felt much better afterward. And if anything, I actually think spinning helped my knees. I'm actually able to walk around like a normal human being today.
Still icing. Still taking pain killers. Still repeating.
With Ironman Arizona quickly approaching, I'm starting to get very nervous. I'm nervous about the race, I'm nervous about what my body is going through, and whether or not I'll actually be able to do this, and I'm starting to think past November 20. The 2 weekends before had been amazing highs that I had been relishing in. I had truly enjoyed the 20 mile bike ride over the last recovery weekend, and started to actually realize that riding my bike could be fun. And then finishing my 110 mile bike ride, and running for 2:45 was such a rush, and I was finally starting to feel confident with my preparation. Then it all came crashing down. I think what I've been through in the past 3 weeks is a clear definition of the highs and lows that are often natural with this sport. Some days are truly amazing, and some days, you get your ass handed to you in a sling. You hope for the best, be prepared for the worst, and no matter what, you keep moving forward.
One of the things that I love most about the sport of triathlon is that you don't ever have to look very hard to find amazing stories of inspiration. Today, one story has been a focus more than anything else. It is the story of Chrisse Wellington winning her 4th world championship last weekend. And what a story it is. I won't be able to do it justice, so please read the full story here. Or better yet, visit her blog.
Reading about her injuries, combined with the amazing performance she was able to produce to win Saturday's race, makes my bumps and bruises seem insignificant. But it also gives me an incredible amount of respect, not just for Chrissie and her amazing performance, but also for our minds and bodies. It makes me think that come race day, no matter what obstacle I come across, I will be able to push past it, survive, and finish. In the mean time, I will prepare my body in the best way that I possibly can. Getting plenty of sleep, following Drs orders (whatever they may give me tomorrow) do the training that I can, keep reminding myself to trust the training, and to picture myself crossing the finish line, looking strong and confident on November 20.
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