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I’m chuckling at the last entry in my personal journal which was many weeks ago. “Runner’s Knee” is the main topic and we are now sitting here several months, countless hours of grueling training, and one completed 70.3 backyard half iron man later. Wow! What a journey it has been on all levels; the last year, the last decade, my whole life! This mind keeps reiterating the same mantra over and over again, “there is so much here too unpack, I don’t even know where to begin.”
I guess some of the blanks can be filled in based off what I wrote in my journal. The proverbial “runner’s knee” is no more. An injury I incurred in my very early twenties while carrying a box of china and was instructed not to drop at all costs. And, of course I tripped and being the “at all costs” warrior that I am, I allowed both these knees to land heavy on the hard gritty pavement in order to keep the box of precious goods from breaking.
Even my brother who delegated the initial order looked at me and said, “are you okay…?” And, of course my young tough warrior persona replied, “yeah, sure I’m fine.” But, the knees felt differently and in less that 24 hours I had two egg sized bumps on both of kneecaps, the right one as always slightly worse than the left. The knees healed, but forever afterward had this weird creaking noise when I worked the knee joint. I recall asking a couple of doctors about it, and they diagnosed it as a misaligned knee cap. Apparently, it’s a common injury among athletes. Wall Sits were prescribed back then for PT, but I did not bother because at the time my only athletic claim to fame was how often I could bend my elbow to drain the bottom of a vodka bottle, ha! However, the incident with the China was not the only time I fell on these poor knees due to my athletic prowess with the vodka bottle.
Fast forward a couple of decades to 2023 and when the volume increased on the 70.3 build, that runner’s knee and all those drunken stumbles I took in college came back to bite me. I increased the volume too quickly and was not conditioned enough to dive into 7-9 mile runs coming out of the off season. The load was too much for my quads to handle, which put further stress on already compromised knee caps and before you know it, I came off a training run barely able to bend my right knee.
After a quick appointment with Dr. Google, the diagnosis was evident, but not without the comforting words written by plenty of PT bloggers stating it was a common injury for both vetted and newbie runners and can be addressed successfully with rehab exercises which thankfully were provided online as well. I did the rehab exercised religiously for several weeks and now I have a brand new knee! Well, not brand new, but I can honestly say the knee is now more stable than it has been in over 20 years.
I wish that were the case for the tendonitis in the left ankle bone, which was chronic and unrelenting. But, to be fair the injury for that one was incurred in a bike accident when I was in third grade and ended up with a hairline fracture in the ankle joint, which subsequently left me with tendonitis in the left foot. It rarely acts up outside of running, but when miles on foot hit the 25-35 mile/week during the build, it wasn’t quiet about it’s displeasure. Liberty CBD lotion was a god send! Not to mention, one of the pro’s of MS and the lack of sensation I deal with from the waist down ensured that “Numbness” would inevitably win out over pain when this body’s core temperature increased.
It was also around the “runner’s knee” part of the 70.3 training, I decided to help decrease the load on the quads and create a caloric deficit to allow this body to lean out. The 128 mile indoor century cycle left me at about 128 lbs, which wasn’t horrible but for every extra pound it means four more pounds of pressure on the knees. I can remember feeling the difference just taking off three pounds, but was able to lean out at least 7 lbs before actually doing the 70.3. And, I must confess out of all the weight ranges I’ve been at now 121-123 is my favorite. I like the look, the feel, the level of leaness in contrast to muscle and fat. It’s a nice look, but it feels strong and healthy too. So, we’ll see what happens, but I’m going to try and maintain within this range.
The first workout since last Saturday’s 70.3 happened yesterday. About 1.5 hours of strength and weights, and a 40 minute cycle session. I had pulled strength and weights out of my training regimen about 4 weeks before the 70.3 and 2 weeks before taper as most training plans and the iron man website recommended. So, it’s safe to say after the first day back, I’m feeling it. These muscles have some catching up to do. But, I am so thankful I kept strength training in twice a week for 75% of the training. It did indeed take the notion of “the grind” to a whole new level, but when the volume started to reduce and the taper began, the progress was undeniable and I know this body is the healthiest and strongest it’s been my entire life!
Even the IT band issues which have been chronic since the MS diagnosis in 2017 have tamed down dramatically. It still acts up, but after religiously incorporating IT band stretches into my roll sessions during the build, it’s not even close to being as debilitating as it was and I find myself drawn to morning roll and stretch sessions, even though technically I don’t have to do it daily anymore.
I guess the long and short of this is that at 49 years of age, I actually feel healthier and more mobile than I have felt my whole life. These legs zip up the stairs, this body twists and bends on a dime, these arms can stretch, flex, pull, and hold things in the past they might at one time have dropped. And, my endurance? Holy Hannah! It’s unbelievable and leaves me smiling often.
Isn’t it funny how things can pop up in our lives that we initially perceive as obstacles that will hinder our progress or keep us from reaching a goal. But, upon reflection, dealing with them ends up being the best thing that could have ever happened?
My favorite Monk Nick always says, “you can’t connect the dots looking forward, you can only connect them looking back.” It’s one of my favorite quotes by him and I confess when challenges arise now, I see them in a completely different light. I don’t take it as personally. Perhaps, it’s not there to thwart me. In fact, maybe there’s a golden nugget curriculum I can take from it that will make the results I want to manifest that much sweeter or at the very least open up possibilities for creative workarounds and adaptations I might never have thought to employ. Anyhow, just some thoughts to ponder for the day.
I hope this finds every one healthy and well, until next time :-)
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