Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Defeated by my IT band

For the past 3 months I have been training for a 1/2 marathon
Diligent with my runs throughout the week, and the long runs
And I completed a 10 mile race a few weeks ago at a better pace than ever before

Needless to say I felt as if I was ready for this race
I was excited

Saturday was the Capital City 1/2 marathon
it was a perfect day!
50 degrees in the morning, a slight breeze
every runners dream to set out to complete a long run

Well it all started out well
Started in my corral w/ Justin. [We joked around that we know know what a cow feels like prior to the slaughter house.. ]
Our group was called and we were off
I was in my groove, set my own pace, even through the grueling up hill initial 2.5 miles
I passed my mom and dad at mile marker 3
They asked where Justin was and I jokingly said behind me
And then right before I was about to see my grandparents at mile marker 5
My knee started throbbing on the outside, and Justin passed me

I pushed through the 5 mile marker because I told myself my grandparents didn't come out here to see me walk, they came out here to cheer me on for a RUN!
I passed them, and pushed to the next bathroom stop
[I realized that there was such thing as over hydrating and I NEEDED to stop!]
I waited for at least 10 minutes to use one of the 2 restrooms that they had at the 5.5 marker
[ummm hello, you have 12,000 people running a race, and you only have 2 porta johns during the race but you have 987386 at the start?! definitely was not happy about that!]
When I went to run again, my leg/knee had completely tightened up

My friends passed me and I told them that my knee hurt and Ashley told me it was my IT band [Iliotibial band] and it wasn't going to get any better
Great! I didn't train to quit.. I told myself I would power walk until I saw the next medic station

The next medic station wasn't until about the 7 mile marker
I was excited to see someone from the medical field
I asked the guy from the Red Cross, if there were any stretches I could do to help my pain
his response
"Not that I know of, are you used to running this much?"
[In my head I wanted to say, Yes, dip shit , sir, I didn't just wake up this morning and decide that it was nice out and I wanted to run 13.1 miles for the hell of it]
I responded "Yes" I'm sure he could tell I was annoyed
He then said, "well I really don't know what to tell you, but I can give you ice"
[Seriousy dude, you want to give me ice, do you not know i'm at mile marker 7 and I've got to get to 13.1, no thanks!]
I said, no thanks, gave him an evil look and proceeded to walk

I tried to push myself every now and then to run through intersections or when I thought maybe I could push through the pain
But it just wasn't going to happen

I watched the pace setters run by me. It was heart breaking to watch the 2 hr 30 min time run by me, that was ideally what I wanted to run the entire thing in
then the 2 hr 45 min sign

By this time, I knew how close I was to the end, there was a part of me that wanted to cut off the race track and head to the hospital that I work at to see if there were any physical therapist available that could help me [anything had to be better than mr. american red cross]
I decided to just push through it and finish, i didn't come out here to quit, even if i had to walk through the finish line

So i continued to walk, I walked about 8 miles
Not how I anticipated on finishing/completing the race

I finally finished the race, and found justin waiting for me
He did SO well, and I was so excited for him, but all I could do was cry
I was in so much pain from my leg, and I felt defeated, all I wanted to do was run the entire race, beat last years time, and prove to myself that i CAN complete an entire 1/2 marathon
but my body proved me wrong
I'm glad that I didn't give up and that i pushed through it, however, I felt defeated

People would ask me how the race went, and I said, well Justin did really well, and I got hurt, and left it at that
I just wanted to tell people that I ran it in under 2 hrs 30 minutes, but that wasn't the case

Yesterday in the office, my co-worker looked up my time, and when he told me that I finished in 2 hrs 52 min, I was pretty much shocked! Only because it was 4 minutes faster than last year [and last year I ran MUCH more of the race].

I feel slightly okay with the face that I had to walk the race, only because I did do what I set out to do initially - beat last years time!

I've learned a lot during this race, mainly I have to listen to my body, and know when to push it and when back off... no one knows your body like you do! Know whats best for you!

So now I'm working on stretches and rolling my IT band, and taking a week or two off before I get back into training for my next 1/2 in August! There are many more races to be run and I can't wait to get back out there and prove to myself that I am able to do this!!

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18 comments:

Kenj said...

Awe, poor girl. I wish the best for you. I hope you feel better soon!

Lindsay said...

Hang in there girly! I give you an A+ for effort :)

Melissa said...

I had serious issues with my IT band during the Country Music Half Marathon last weekend! It was awful...my goal was 2 hours and 45 minutes, and instead I did 3 hours...kinda sad, but like you, I refuse to be upset about it...why? Because my last half was 3 hours 16 minutes! Good luck on the rehab!

Kelly said...

Awww, sorry about your poor knee!! :-( Like you said, there is no way to know that this would have happened-- and you tried your best!! HOW cool is it that you beat your time though? Awesome progress. Rest, listen to your body, and then start it back up-- Can't wait for that August race, to read how you just kicked it's butt! ;-)

Aly @ Analyze This said...

OUCH!!! I love that the so-called "medic" had NO advice for you! What a dipshit!!!

Make sure you rest your leg and limit yourself. Don't overdo it and have it become a permanent injury where you can't run anymore!!!

Unknown said...

I don't think that you were defeated. A defeat would have a DNF listed next to your name. You finished and did something that I'm scared to do. You rock for determination!! Just make sure that you stretch and ice that knee!!

I'm proud of you and your hobbling 13.1! Just sayin'.

R said...

Be proud of yourself. You finished! That's more than a lot of people can say.

Unknown said...

aw that's sad to hear! Good for you for pushing through to finish it out! Take it easy and take care of you.
I got injured about 2 weeks before running my first half...I could barely walk without limping but I am stubborn lol and pushed through. I took about a month off after and have been feeling awesome every since.
You'll recover -- no worries! keep your head up!

congratulations on beating you previous time!

Just Brandi said...

awww. I'm sorry it didn't go as you planned Lindsey.
But you FINISHED, and better than last year, so that's definitely something to be proud of.

And there's always the next half you can rock it at!

Keep up the good work girl!

Alphabet Soup Momma said...

Sorry you are having problems with your IT band.

You are such an inspiration and that is so awesome that you still finished with a better time than last time!

Crazy Shenanigans-JMO said...

I'm sorry it started hurting you and you weren't able to finish it within your time frame that you wanted. BUT you rocked it and finished anyways and that's what really matters! You finished!

Jenn @ West Sac Honey said...

Good job girl! You could have bailed out but your didn't! But you did a great job and to finish even faster than last year is a huge accomplishment especially after being in so much pain!

That's awesome! I've always wanted to run a 1/2!

Sara said...

I am so sorry to hear you are hurting! Have you seen a sports doc? You should! There are things you can do to strengthen the IT band and decrease the pain. If you need one, I can recommend a good one that my sister and I and half my pace team see! I saw you at the Medic at Mile 7 and you did not look happy....I told my Dad at the Finish I was hoping you were okay.

We cheered for you on the way in, but I'm not sure if you heard us! We were there, though!

I must say, girl, you look FABULOUS! I am so proud of you and all you have accomplished. I am thinking about also running the Columbus full so that would be awesome if do too.

Oh, and before I forget, your time is REALLY impressive to me - CONGRATS and take care of your knee!!

Anna & Kirby said...

I know it's hard... but be proud! You couldn't change what was going on and you did the best you could considering the circumstances. That's something to hold your head up high for! You inspire me :)

the nichols' family said...

Love your blog! Saw it through Kirby and Anna. I'm currently training for a half marathon right now! It's encouraging to read about your experience, even though it was painful... you finished and never gave up!!

Brittany said...

You finished. That is an accomplishment right there! Be careful with your knee. Can you get a knee brace for it? I have had 3 knee surgeries and they say running is not good for your knees...I obviously don't listen because I've had 3 surgeries and continue to "run". Good luck! Use ice and heat!

emily said...

sorry it didn't turn out how you wanted, but the fact that you entered and finished without giving up is amazing! :)

Holly said...

Wow, I'm sorry you got hurt, that sucks. :(