And Then It Happened (Injury Bug)

Happy Monday everyone.  Well not really a happy Monday for me.  The ugly injury bug bit me hard on Friday.  Let me just preface the story with the fact that I am a big baby when I am hurt.

Friday was a normal easy run day.  It was scheduled to be 8 miles at an easy pace.  Well as soon as I hit the road to start my run, I felt a slight pain in my left calf.  I ignored it thinking that I was just still tight and that the pain would go away.   And mostly it was just a dull throb for the first 3 miles.  Then it started to flex its control.

It felt like a cramp.  So I just did what you normally do when you have a cramp while running.  Run it quickly while still moving.  Well it didn't work.  So I decided that I would take it easy for a couple of blocks.  Well this still didn't help.  In fact it started hurting more.

Now on the verge of panic, I tell myself to just continue slowly.  Not racing so time is not important.  So I finish the run.  By now my calf is screaming bloody murder.  It hurts like crazy.  So I decide to R-I-C-E it.  I immediately get everything together.  I get an ice pack and  ace bandage.  I wrap it and sit there with it elevated for the rest of the afternoon.

It still feels a little tight but I know that I have a 45 mile ride on Saturday.  I caution myself against getting upset.  I say the worst thing that could happen is that I would just have to cancel the weekend workouts.  Well the ride went really well.  No issues.  So now I am thinking that maybe the pain will go away once I start running.  Sunday I had a 16 mile run scheduled.  So again my plan was to just take it easy and go as far as I could.  Well I didn't get very far.  I started to run and the pain immediately returned.

So I went back inside and decided to just take the day off.  Well its Monday now and there is still pain there.  I am not very happy with it but what can you do.  I just have to face the reality of age.  I am not going heal as quickly as before and I just have to accept that.

I have to trust that I have built a solid base and I will be ok.  Tomorrow is a 7 mile run.  I am going to start it on the treadmill and see how it goes.