The Boot

Kara posed the following question after my Muffin Man post:
Is all this torture you tell us about your body going through worth the running you do????

Fair question! First off, despite the fact that I've generally been beaten, battered, and bruised during the course of this blog (coincidence?!?), I have been blessed to be a relatively injury free runner. My body has proven it's relatively capable of taking the abuse of sane amounts of running (reference the first five years or so of my "running career"). Equally proven however, is that my body tolerates an injury, once it comes on, about as well as a fart is tolerated in church. My right Achilles problem from last year is, in my opinion, the root cause of the problems in my left leg this year; one leg compensates, then it goes haywire. So my trick is to get healthy, take care of myself, and thus hopefully maintain that level of health.

But I still haven't answered the question have I, is it worth it? Yes, it is worth the pain. Running has allowed me to see the world, form and solidify friendships, and have some truly kick-ass experiences! Now, one might say that I could have had all of that with other hobbies, and simply put, that's a true statement. However, that ship has sailed, as I'm firmly entrenched in this addictive sport.

I don't want to downplay the value I get from the sport though, from the pure act of running; even that, without the above side benefits, is worth the pain. Runs where everything goes right are easy; runs where you're a little banged up, the weather is a little off, or the crowd uncooperative, those are the ones that often provide the most challenge and some memorable reward. Running a sub 25 minute 5k at the Lookin' Good race a couple weekends back wasn't particularly noteworthy, as it's something I've done several times before. However, running it after four weeks off, with virtually no running/training, made the accomplishment something I'm proud of. So by that logic, the pain/injury actually makes me enjoy the sport more ....

....Good lord this is a twisted sport! The pain makes it better!?!? I need a new hobby! So the logic gets a bit twisted, but it all boils down to the fact that when you run, it's an internal battle. I'm never going to win a race, but I can set a goal and strive to beat it. That goal is going to move based on my health, the weather, the distance, etc., but there's always a good race to be had, even if it's a painful one that I have to finish very slowly.

That's really what gets you hooked. Unlike basketball, where the other team can just blow, your goal, normally a distance/time combination, isn't going to let up. Time isn't going to slow down, the course isn't going to get shorter; if you set a challenging goal and beat it, you've accomplishment something killer, even if you didn't finish first in the race.

But enough philosophy, that's not what this blog is about. This blog is about my injuries!

Today I went to see my doctor, who sent me to a podiatrist, who x-rayed my foot (fourth x-ray of that foot in five weeks, geez!) and declared I have not broken any bones (whew!). She did ask me though, whether I wanted to heal in one week or four ... one please! To get there, she wrapped my foot up and put it in a walking boot. No crutches (score) and no showers (stinky), so there's pluses and minuses, but it seems my prognosis is for a reasonable recovery. I've probably put some small tears in my ligaments, but nothing that won't heal with time.

So no exercise for a week. Therefore, no injuries (let's hope!) for a week. Hummm, what will I write about?