Hooray!

My appointment at the ortho today couldn't have went any better!  She said she doesn't see a stress fracture and the tendon doesn't have any tears.  She did say there was noticeable inflammation but she doesn't feel like running will cause any further damage.  My official diagnosis is peroneal tendonitis.  Thanks Dr. Google for leading me in the right direction.

Obviously the more I run, the longer its going to take to heal.   But, I am cleared to run!  She did tell me that I should take it easy.  She advised to listen to my body and not push too hard in St Louis.  That means that I will most definitely not PR, but I am okay with that - I am  just thankful that I won't have to walk the whole distance!

I have a 5k this weekend, I am going to try to treat it like a training run.  I say try, because I often have a problem with pushing too hard when I race.  I am really excited to run it because its at the college that I attended and its a memorial 5k for a former student who was a year behind me.  I think it will be even harder for me to hold back because looking at past results, I could take 1st in my age group if I ran my normal 5k race time.  I know its just an award, but who doesn't want to win something? lol

I do have to go get fitted for anti-supination orthodics next week.  The doctor believes it will  help prevent flair ups of this in the future.  The injury is a result of over-stressing the peroneal tendon.  Part of it is the running I have been doing, but part of it is that I naturally supinate - ALOT and it puts a huge stress on that tendon.  Here's hoping that the orthodics help!

Thanks for everyone's well wishes as I dealt with this minor/temporary set back.  Of course since I was cleared to run today I had to go out for a run tonight!  I went out this evening after my hubby got home from work and ran 3.1 glorious miles.  It felt so fantastic to get back out there.  I wore my fancy new garmin - I still don't know much about how it works, but it says I ran 3.1 miles in 27:52 (a 8:59 per mile pace).

Reader Poll:  If you were in my shoes, what would you do in regards to my half on the 23rd?  I obviously know I won't be PRing, but what would your race strategy be?

Could use some encouragement!

I started running in January.. and thankfully things have gone relatively smoothly.  I broke my toe in April/May on the pool deck just weeks before my first 10k - but other than that I have been injury free.  Not even a blister.  I was counting myself lucky.  I figured that given the digestive problems running creates for me I deserved that lack of  injuries.  Apparently, karma caught up to me...apparently my kryptonite is high heeled boots!

You read that right - high heeled boots.  Not the half marathon - not the months of training, no... the high heeled boots.  And, actually I guess thats not totally true, it was probably a combination of things, but I am blaming the boots.  Hubby and I went to a Cirque du Soleil show here in town the day after the half.  I figured we don't get to go out for date night often, so what better way to celebrate than with dressing up?  That meant the high heeled boots had to come out of the closet - and honestly I felt FINE, why shouldn't I wear them?  Somehow though, between the combination of training, running the half, and then dressing up in these super fun boots, I managed to screw up my foot/ankle.  There was no specific instant where I injured it, it was just that sort of pain you wake up with. At first I thought the pain would just go away, you know - the type of pain that is there one day and gone the next?  Yeah, not so much.  So, I went to my PCP where I was diagnosed with plantar fascitis - UM, hello... NO WAY!  Either way I took my diagnosis and scooted out the door because it was clear he was convinced thats what it was.   I did some googling and decided that I thought I had some sort of tendonitis and gave myself a treatment plan of rest, ice, and ibuprofen!

Fast forward to today - after a weekend full of walking at Kings Island and the Cincinnati Zoo and running 6 miles I could barely get out of bed this morning.  My foot was swollen (this was a first) and slightly discolored...

Sort of hard to see, but my left foot is swollen near the ankle

After talking to my mom and emailing with "L" over at "My Story...Chapter 2" I decided that I should get it looked at again.  I called my insurance company and several ortho places here and town and got in today (talk about lucky - but that's where my luck would end).   So after x-rays and an exam I was given the diagnosis that it is most likely peroneal tendonitis.  I was told they could do an MRI to rule out a stress fracture but her treatment was going to be the same regardless, but once I told her that I was determined to do St Louis she ordered an MRI to make sure I don't injure myself further.  Of course, they can't get me in until next Monday for an MRI due to pre-certification required by my insurance - ugh!  I should know more by next Tuesday - but in the mean time I am going stir crazy.  I am  DYING to run - I have really come to love running.  It's killing me to sit here and not be able to run.  I will be swimming in the mean time to try to somehow keep my fitness for my half in 3 weeks.  But, thats about all I can do - I am stuck sporting this "pretty little thing" until who knows when (they didn't tell me how long I have to keep this darn thing on?) 

Struggling to be positive about it.  I could take lessons from "J" in my half marathon class - he was sporting one of these up until a month before the half and yet he never once let it get him down.  Unfortunately, I am failing at that big time!  

In the mean time I am debating getting rid of my "sexy boots" to prevent this type of injury in the future.  I am also looking forward to next Tuesday when I have my follow up and can get the Prednisone therapy that she said should speed recovery.

Reader Poll:  Anyone have any tips on how to stay in shape for a half when you can't run?  Also, how do you transition from being a runner to possibly having to walk (slowly) a half?