Ok, so 2014 did not start out exactly the way I’d planned. I had been having some shin splints on and off for the past few months. I kind of ignored them and tried to manage them by wearing compression socks and icing after each run. The discomfort really didn’t last long so I kind of blew it off. Big mistake!!
In came the freezing, icy ridiculously cold January in Washington. I was running regularly 3x/week with my Moms Run This Town Group (more on that later) for a number of months so the weather wasn’t going to stop me. Besides, I had numerous spring races planned. Most important of all, the Rock n Roll USA Half marathon on March 15th was quickly approaching. I am so excited about this race as I am the Race Ambassador for the DC race. I’ve spend the last 4 months marketing and promoting the race in DC and persuaded almost 100 of my MRTT friends to sign up and run with me.
In early January, the shin splints started to get a little worse but I pretty much ignored them and kept on running-smart huh? For some reason I signed up to do a 20k January 19th at Carderock , Maryland. Our group went out the weekend before for a practice long run. We had lots of rain and snow that week and the trail was very soft and muddy. The moment we started running on that surface, I really felt my shins. Nothing was stopping me though so I banged out 10 miles. My calves were very sore all week long but the race was coming up so I was determined to do it.
The next weekend, I headed out to meet the rest of my group for the race. The mud had dried and we now had the Polar Vortex to deal with. I trudged through the 12.5 mile race with single digit wind chills. I was feeling pretty bad ass after that one. My shins were really screaming.
On my next scheduled run, I taped them up and donned my compression socks and headed out. This time, my left shin hurt throughout my whole run which had never happened before. It hurt even if I just gently touched it the rest of the day.
The next morning, I reported this to my personal trainer, Brian (more on him later) who insisted I get an x-ray and see an Ortho. I was pretty sure it was nothing but I agreed. I had an xray and an MRI that day. Well the next morning, I found out that I hade a STRESS FRACTURE!
After the initial shock and lots of tears, I was told that I would be banned from running for 4-6 weeks. WHAT?????
And let the panic begin….
Have you ever been sidelined by an injury? How did you deal with it?
