Riverboat Series Day 5, Winnsboro LA (Citivan Park) - April 15, 2014

This is part 4 of a 5 part series about the 5 half marathons in 5 consecutive days in 5 states trip that I recently took which was hosted by Mainly Marathons.

Part 1, and Kentucky, can be found here.
Part 2, and Tennessee, can be found here. 
Part 3, and Arkansas, can be found here.
Part 4, and Mississippi, can be found here. 

Finally getting to this last post has me feeling mixed emotions. Great sadness to be putting this who experience behind me, and happiness to have once again spent a week with such amazing people who I am honored to call "friends" for a lifetime. And happiness to actually be finished writing about this.... for some reason, writing about series like these fill me with dread. I mean, I am usually one who writing comes naturally to... yet these posts leave me feeling like I will never be able to say everything that I need to say, and feeling kind of like a failure for not doing these experiences justice. I don't even know if that makes any sense. I think I might just be rambling.

Anyway, Day 5 brought us to Winnsboro Louisiana to the Citivan Park, and the searching that I have done about this park has brought little info. Essentially it is a smaller municipal park in Winnsboro Louisiana, but the modesty of the size really didn't mean much. This course was spectacular, running along a beautiful little creek, the sweeping trees and Spanish moss provided a great deal of cover and there was never a want for anything interesting to look at.

I actually thoroughly enjoyed this course, though the day got off to a rocky start. The night before had been once again plagued by no sleep on my part as my roommates were tossing and turning all night and in order to be as alert as possible the following day, I had skipped my sleeping medications (so as not to be drug-hungover during the race). We had been having some tension between ourselves and the night before I had seriously considered skipping day 5 of the race series altogether, and jumping on the next flight home from Shreveport, LA, in order to alleviate those tensions. In the end, I am happy that I didn't leave the trip early, but on the other hand, the emotional stress combined with the overall lack of sleep from the trip, and the exertion of already having completed 4 back to back half marathons was getting to me.

Getting dressed that morning, I managed to put a huge hole in the pants that I put on. Seriously, could this day start any better?

By the time we got to Citivan Park, I was spent. The lack of sleep and stress was really getting to me, though I had been avoiding the sleeping medications to stave off the drug-hangover, I was so exhausted I felt like I was sleepwalking, I felt fat from having torn my pants trying to put them on that morning, I just wanted to go to bed. Then, in getting ready to leave the car, I managed to forget things in my bag requiring a return trip to the car 3 times. And then when the race finally started, one of my fellow runners leaned over to me and told me that we had left the dome light on inside the car meaning that I would have to return to it during the middle of the race, lest the battery die.

NOT how I wanted to start my day.

After returning to the car again, I jumped back onto the course and started trudging along. I was still somewhat chilled from our foray in rain 2 days prior, so I felt myself snuggling into my jacket for warmth as I got my body moving. I wanted desperately to do well on this final day, but I soon realized I was having problems with my right calf. It seemed that I had a charley horse in my right calf that wouldn't subside. I took longer steps, I took shorter steps. I stopped to stretch, and felt good, but then I would take another couple steps and the pain would return.

Other runners might say that this was my "least friendly" of days, and they are undoubtedly right. I would briefly encourage other participants when we would pass one another, I would give smiles, but my mind wasn't there. I knew the only way I would make the distance would be to disappear deep within my own thoughts, so as not to think about the pain. As long as I didn't think about the pain, I knew I could just keep putting one foot in front of the other and meet my distance goal.

Forward momentum doing the work here. I was so out of it.

I found a song on my ipod that had a really good beat, and I put it on... on repeat. And I kept going. One foot in front of another. left, right, left, right.

It finally started to warm up, so I started to strip some layers off. And then I started to get too warm. but stopping to take off more clothes might make me stop altogether. So I just dealt with the heat and continued to put one foot in front of the other.

I don't even remember how many laps we had to take to collect the required number of rubber bands. I just knew I had to collect some, and when I had collected enough, I was done. The only goal was to keep putting one foot in front of the other.

And that I did. And I was so caught up in just getting it done, that somewhere along the line, I realized that I was no longer walking (as I had intended to do for the duration). Somewhere along the line, the forward momentum just took over and I found myself with more spring in my step. I was somewhere between walking and jogging, and maybe a little forward falling in there too. My music was turned up loud. I no longer felt as if I was in control of the movement in my legs. I was just sort of along for the ride. I saw friends finishing the race, and trying to get my attention to say goodbye, but I couldn't slow down. The end was in sight and I was going to get there...

And I did. My finish time was still less than stellar,  but it was the fastest I had finished a race in any of this 5 in 5 day series. 3:53:36. and that includes the trek back to the car to turn the dome light off.

I was finally able to sit down with some friends, have a couple of drinks. strip down the last outer layer of clothes and bask in the sun (resulting in another sunburn for this pasty white girl).

In retrospect, I'm happy I did this trip, but at the time, I was exhausted. I can only imagine what Parvaneh Moayedi was feeling.

Parvaneh in yellow here.

For those not in the know, between November 11, 2012 and November 10, 2013 Dear Parvaneh  ran the most marathons in a year, topping out at 168. I knew of Parvaneh from meeting her at the Center of the Nation series last fall, but what I didn't know was that when I saw her during the Riverboat series, she would be well on her way to beating her own personal record, and the Guiness Record that she had set last year. She was able to include all of these races in her new record (still pending verification) of 258 marathons in a year. I am so impressed and excited for her. Congrats Dear Parvaneh!


*Disclaimer: Nearly none of the photos that you will see in the posts about this trip are mine. I chose to not bring my camera with me during the races and instead rely on other people. To the people who have contributed photos to help tell this story, I am thankful.

Riverboat Series Day 4, Leroy Percy State Park (MS) - April 15, 2014

This is part 4 of a 5 part series about the 5 half marathons in 5 consecutive days in 5 states trip that I recently took which was hosted by Mainly Marathons.

Part 1, and Kentucky, can be found here.
Part 2, and Tennessee, can be found here. 
Part 3, and Arkansas, can be found here.

By Day 4, this trip was really getting to me.... Not only Do we constantly move from place to place, never really getting to unpack and let ourselves catch our breath, but sharing hotel rooms with non-family who have different habits can really take its toll. Further, being constantly on the go, using up ridiculous amounts of energy on the race courses and not eating right can really have an affect on someone. And lets not forget that I am such a light sleeper that finding respite from REM sleep was a failure every night.

But once again, on Day 4, we were up bright eyed and bristly tailed... this time with the destination of Leroy Percy Park in Hollandale, MS.  According to the state park website, Leroy Percy is the oldest of Mississippi's state parks, and is characterized by artesian springs, cypress trees and ancient oaks dripping with Spanish moss. Leroy Percy is the only state park featuring a wildlife preserve. The seasonal pursuit of deer, squirrel, turkey, duck and dove beckons to hunters in search of an unspoiled hunting area away from the crowd. Leroy Percy is also known for its alligator population - visitors can safely observe the scaly reptiles from two observation towers over their hot artesian water home.

Our race course was a short loop through the campground areas, but it did  take us by one of the observation towers above the artesian springs... which I was not inclined to be climbing as my legs felt like they were buried in setting cement. The cypress and oaks were beautiful with their draped Spanish moss, but I've been to areas in the south before... it didn't feel like anything I hadn't seen before. I hate to admit it, but this course really left very little impression on me.

I was tired. I was cold (the actual temperature was blustery and there was a windchill, but I still hadn't felt like I had warmed up from the previous day's half marathon swim). I just wanted to do my half marathon and get it over with. Just to check the box.

Seth, Brina and I have talked about check boxes before. Brina and I are both members of Half Fanatics, while Seth is a double agent with Half Fanatics and Marathon Maniacs. Brina is also a member of the 50 State club (which I actually plan to join). Since joining these clubs (which we all seem to really enjoy being a part of), we have noticed that sometimes it feels like we are off to challenge ourselves to the next big accomplishment. Its always about doing something more and more impressive. Why run a half marathon if you can run a half marathon every weekend? Why run in a few states when you can run in THEM ALL??? With that kind of mentality, its easy to see how sometimes the race can morph from doing the race because we really want to and we really enjoy it, to doing the race just to check off the box saying that we did it.

For me, the Mississippi race was a check box kind of event. I walked it with my dear friend Mildred, and we chatted, and it was good. I really don't have much more to say about it than that. I checked the box.

My finish time reflected as much. 4:30:10.

My slowest race during this series.

Sometimes we just have to check the box.

And then I checked the box next to 25 half marathon's completed.

And then I checked the box next to a celebratory shot of Fireball.

To be continued...


*Disclaimer: Nearly none of the photos that you will see in the posts about this trip are mine. I chose to not bring my camera with me during the races and instead rely on other people. To the people who have contributed photos to help tell this story, I am thankful.

Riverboat Series Day 3, Lake Chicot State Park (AR) - April 14, 2014

This is part 3 of a 5 part series about the 5 half marathons in 5 consecutive days in 5 states trip that I recently took which was hosted by Mainly Marathons.

Part 1, and Kentucky, can be found here.
Part 2, and Tennessee, can be found here.

Though each of the days from this series blended together, creating such havoc with my memory and ability to break it down into days, each day had one significant thing that also made it stand out. Day 1 was that horrid hill. Day 2 can be summed up by the word green.

Day 3 can only be described as wet. Wet. Wet. Sopping wet. To the core wet. Feels like swimming wet. And then some more wetness.

Day 3 brought us to Arkansas, to the Lake Chicot State Park in Lake Village, Arkansas. That morning, we woke bright eyed and bushy tailed (albeit we were all exhausted so a bit prickley), got ready, and went to the hotel lobby to see if we could partake in the complimentary continenntal breakfast before it was officially available to guests. Other participants in the series had the same idea, and as we scoped the food and gobbled it down, we saw the news which was calling for severe thunder and lightening storms, and sporatic tornado warnings. It was already rainy and wet outside in the parking lot, but we piled into the car anyway, thinking that if it got bad, we could always choose to skip the event, or perhaps Clint (the race director) would call it due to inclement weather.

Lake Chicot State park is a gorgeous place (or it would be had the weather been nicer) that according to the Arkansas State Park's website sits on Arkansas's largest natural lake, [which] is a scenic setting in the Mississippi Flyway for fishing, boating, and birdwatching. This 20-mile long oxbox lake was once part of the main channel of the Mississippi River. Cut off from the river centuries ago, the lake is the nation's largest, natural oxbow remnant. Outdoor enthusiasts have so many recreational choices at this oasis in the Delta. Included in the programs offered by the park interpreters at Lake Chicot State Park are party barge excursions on the lake.

Unfortunately, because this is an enormous park, there are multiple entrances for the various activities that they offer. Our GPS wasn't so great at finding the location, and we wound up driving through what we believe was a large private farm and their cow pastures... I think we woke a bunch of cows up too, but with the lightening going off all around them... they were probably awake anyway.

We finally got to our destination and learned that everyone had difficulties with people being sent through main streets, random pastures, to closed or no-longer-in-service access roads, and areas that had clearly ONLY been appropriate for vehicles when there wasn't any flooding. (fast forward 12 hours and we heard the news telling us to beware of flash flooding, so that gives an idea of the kind of weather we were facing, but I digress).

We got to the start line, and everyone had their rain gear on... except me. Living in South Florida, I find that the rain is actually more refreshing than a nuisance... particularly when running or walking for exercise... it really shouldn't surprise anyone that I don't even own a raincoat. And a poncho? I should have had one of those... but because I love the rain, I didn't think that I would actually need one. What I had forgotten is that in places other than South Florida, the rain is not only wet, but it is accompanied by a raw cold. Yikes. I quickly found a trashbag and tore some holes into it for my arms and head. Good enough for government work.

Though the park was enormous, the course itself was short. It was just over a mile out and back, meaning that we had to collect either 8 or 9 rubberbands plus do one extra lap for the half marathon distance... These short courses can get monotonous after awhile and having limited visibility because of the storm didn't make it any better. About 4 miles into the race, I stopped at the car to strip off my ipod and my garmin timer... lest they be ruined in the rain. Clint told us that because the storm had stirred up, we could stop in our cars or take cover in the shelters, pausing our timers and have that time subtracted from our finish time if we wanted to. My thought was that unless it was lightening out, I couldn't see any reason to stop. We kept going.

I found myself remembering a moment years ago when I was caught in torrential downpours in La Vega, Dominican Republic. We had been shopping for supplies for the dental clinic, and the skies opened up on us and we couldn't find anywhere to take shelter so my friends Becky, Steve and I kicked off our extra layers of clothing and our shoes and we joined a bunch of school children who were frolicking in the runoff from the roofs. We danced, we laughed, we giggled, we threw water at each other, and what could have been a miserable afternoon turned into something that years later still brings a smile to my face.


It was remembering that afternoon in the Dominican Republic that really transformed this race. The roads were flooding in places as the storm drains couldn't keep up. We were soaked to the core, and going through calf high water in places was enough to really ruin a person's mood. In a split second I realized that feeling miserable was only going to make things worse and adopted a fake it till you make it attitude.

I jumped into the very next puddle that I saw. It was halfway up my calves and the water went everywhere!

And then I jumped into the next, and the next, and the next. And when people started laughing, I started kicking water around like a 3 year old in a puddle instead of a 30 something year old. And I was having the time of my life. I even randomly hugged another guy who was going the opposite direction... just because he looked like a soggy cat. And then I splashed some more.

And when we got to our final lap, and collected our rubber bands, I was ready for that last lap, and I was prepared to make the biggest splashes yet! It was going to be epic.

But not 20 yards into the final lap, my walking partner re-counted her bands and we realized there was a discrepancy. She had one more than I did. I must have lost a rubber band when I stripped a layer off at the car!

We turned around and hauled our butts back to the finishline to report our times. I was having so much fun, I was prepared to do an extra few laps! But alas, it was over.

I had a finish time of 4:11:30, 11 seconds faster than day 2, but who cares? It was 4+ hours of playing in the rain... I'd have blisters for weeks and I wouldn't be able to get warm for the next 3 days, but it was worth it!

To be continued...


*Disclaimer: Nearly none of the photos that you will see in the posts about this trip are mine. I chose to not bring my camera with me during the races and instead rely on other people. To the people who have contributed photos to help tell this story, I am thankful.

Riverboat Series Day 2, Meeman-Shelby State Park (TN) - April 13, 2014

This is part 2 of a 5 part series about the 5 half marathons in 5 consecutive days in 5 states trip that I recently took which was hosted by Mainly Marathons.

Part 1, and Kentucky, can be found here.

Like I mentioned in my last post about this trip, the days seemingly blended together. To me, the parks we were running in seemed fairly indistinguishable from the next, and other than the course on day one in Kentucky, they seemed fairly unremarkable. No worries though, because the reason that I do these series is less about seeing interesting places and more about spending time with interesting people.

Day 2's course was plotted through the Meeman-Shelby State Park. According to the Tennesee Parks Website, "Meeman-Shelby Forest State Park is a 13,476-acre hardwood bottomland area bordering the mighty Mississippi River 13 miles north of Memphis featuring mature Bald Cypress and Tupelo swamp. Most of the facilities are on top of the majestic Chickasaw Bluffs that rise from the bottomlands and are covered with large oaks, American beech, hickory and sweet gum. There are 10 state Champion Trees and two National Champion Trees as well as endangered and protected plants. Deer, turkey, otter, beaver, foxes and bobcats are plentiful throughout the forest. Over 200 species of songbirds, waterfowl, shorebirds and birds of prey, including the American Bald Eagle can be seen; the area is a favorite for bird-watchers."

We only got to see a small area of the park, as this was a 6+1 lap course, but what we saw on that course left an impression on me. I think that if I had to choose one word to describe this race, it would be Green. The course started in the parking lot near a picnic area, and we quickly found ourselves trekking through what felt like a living and breathing canopy of greenery. I had never seen colors quite like this and it felt like it was comforting in ways that I am not sure I could even put into words. This was by FAR, my favorite course of the Riverboat Series.

I know I've mentioned it before, but when I first registered for this series, I had hoped that I would be able to run all 5 races and in some way redeem myself from what I perceived as poor performance during the Center of the Nation Series back in September, but with my injuries never quite healing on schedule and then feeling residual weakness, I knew this wasn't going to happen for me during this series. Day 1 in Kentucky didn't help. My right hip really took a beating during the first day, and I was still scared of reinjury to my right heel and ankle... I had gotten a massage the day before which helped me tremendously, but I was definitely afraid of pushing myself. Through the help of some pharmaceutical intervention, I was able to cut the pain a bit, but I felt myself holding back. Though I was walking the course, I wanted more than anything to run, finish and do well, but even finishing at a walk meant getting out of my own head and letting myself go a bit. And in letting go, I kept finding myself getting distracted by the sheer beauty around me. I guess there are worse things to be distracted by...

You know that scene in Twilight where Bella and Edward are getting married and it this surreal forest wedding and they are blanketed by the most amazing foliage? That's the only thing that I can really equate this course to. Of course it wasn't really like this, and of course there were no glittering quasi-vampires or bad actresses, but still, this is what it felt like to me. And it made me happy. And it made me linger on the course.... taking each and every moment in, enjoying the simple fact that I was alive to experience this.

And then there were the butterflies. The only wildlife that I saw out there were the surreal moments where I was surrounded by the most beautiful groupings of butterflies that I ever saw. Butterflies are very special to me (did you know that the Monarch's DNA actually changes when it transforms from caterpillar to butterfly, something that I had always wished that I could do when I left my family of birth for my family of rearing), so this was a really neat experience in and of itself.

I don't have that much more to say about this race or the course, other than to say that I enjoyed each and every moment of it. My times reflected the constant lollygagging and self-reflection that I stopped for... and normally slower times would have bothered me... but looking back. I almost wished that I had taken MORE time on this course.

Finish time: 4:11:41

My time had me coming in last place for the half marathoners that day, qualifying me to receive the infamous gator bait (last place finisher) award. The award is on the sill above my desk, and every time I glance up, I am reminded of what a surreal experience this was. Thank you to Clint and the folks at Mainly Marathons for bringing me to this magical location.

To be continued...




*Disclaimer: Nearly none of the photos that you will see in the posts about this trip are mine. I chose to not bring my camera with me during the races and instead rely on other people. To the people who have contributed photos to help tell this story, I am thankful.

Riverboat Series Day 1, Columbus Belmont State Park (KY) - April 12, 2014

I've now been home from my last big runcation for almost a week, and once again, I am staring at a blank screen trying to think of how to write these blog posts in such a way as to do this fabulous experience justice. This is the first post of 5 regarding the Mainly Marathons Riverboat Series which took us through 5 states in 5 consecutive days (KY, TN, AR, MS, LA). For some reason, the days of the race are seemingly blending together... something which significantly compounds the problem of writing about this experience.

I struggle about writing for a number of other reasons, but mostly because of the other runners and the amazing volunteers. From what I truly learned on this trip, they are all amazing people with awesomely inspirational stories. Some people present had over 1000 full marathons under their belts, some folks were out there doing their first half marathons, some were celebrating milestones, some were just plugging away putting one foot in front of the other (like me). But each had a story. And each of them was absolutely amazing.

I was in awe (once again) of what I was seeing happening, even within myself. I've been through a lot this year. Getting injured in the early part of 2013 really played a lot into it. Yes, last year I was able to still participate in many half marathons including my 6 halfs in 6 days fiasco which included Center of the Nation Series (also by Mainly Marathons), but I also spent the greater part of the year in and out of the orthopedic surgeon's office, in various medieval torture devices for my foot, and searching for answers about how best to not only allow me to have a future at running, but ensure that I could walk in the years to come.

When I signed up to participate in the Riverboat series, I had high hopes that my foot would be back on the mend, and that I would be able to run all 5 races at my normal pace... but that just wasn't in the cards. A month ago, I realized that the months upon months in a boot had left my ankle weak and at an even greater risk of rolling (causing more damage). I accepted these limitations and went into this series knowing that I would be walking, and really getting my money's worth in terms of time on the course.

Which brings me to Kentucky, at the Columbus Belmont State Park. This gorgeous park, overlooking the Mississippi River (which I had never seen before) is a 160 acre park with chain and anchor used during the Civil War to bar the Mississippi River and separate the Union from the Confederacy. The course was a figure 8 with upper and lower loops. The upper loop, brought us up a steep hill (ridiculously steep) overlooking the Mississippi (and the spectacular view), past the anchor and chain, then around an antebellum home built in 1850 that once served as a Confederate hospital. From there, we traveled even further up a hill, and around a campground area, returning to the start, to wind through the second part of the course.

As if the hills in the first part of the course weren't hard enough, the second portion proved to be even more difficult as they brought us off the roadway and through the trails. To get there, we had to climb an almost vertical 4 foot area, then into the trails. It had rained heavily the night before, so the trail area proved to be slippery and muddy. When not working hard to avoid the mud, we had to be extremely careful of exposed roots (multiple people reported twisted ankles), and wildlife (SNAKES!).



When we emerged from the trails, we returned back to the start, collected our first rubber bands and repeated until we had earned the required number of rubber bands signifying that we had finished our distances.

I have to admit that this was by far my favorite course because the views were spectacular, this was also the hardest course I have probably done in my entire life. I went into this with an agreement with the Husbeast that if I was experiencing any pain, I wouldn't let my pride get the best of me and I would listen to my body knowing when to call it quits. I just didn't realize that I would be faced with that dilemma during the very first race. Being careful to protect my bad foot, to not roll my ankles on the trails, or slip in the mud was taking its toll on my body. By the 4th lap, I was having some significant pain in my right hip. Thankfully there was no pain in the foot or ankle, but every time that I attempted to bear weight on the right leg, the top of my femur would scream. It felt as if the head of the bone was going to shatter off, and brought tears to my eyes.

For the entire 5th lap, I found myself weighing the options. After a much needed pep-talk from Brina, I forged forward and finished the event. And looking back, I am happy that I did.

I finished in 4:29:28.



I was a little slower than I had expected, but all things considered (walking, pain, course difficulty), I'm still proud of my time.

After collecting my medal I treated myself to a massage from a fellow runner who was doing 30 minutes for $30 to raise money for charity. Without this massage, I am not sure that I would have been able to continue on to day 2. I was just that spent.

To be continued...




*Disclaimer: Nearly none of the photos that you will see in the posts about this trip are mine. I chose to not bring my camera with me during the races and instead rely on other people. To the people who have contributed photos to help tell this story, I am thankful.

Phoenix rising

In exactly one month, I will be at Columbus-Belmont State Park in Kentucky, attempting the first half marathon in another 5 half marathons in 5 states, and 5 consecutive days series. Yikes.

When we first started planning this trip, I had come off of the infamous 6 in 6 in 6 race series in the great plains... I was nursing a very badly damaged heel and ankle... I was a bit down on myself for under-performing... and I was looking to do this 5x5x5 as a way to redeem myself.

Looking back on the past 6 months, I still have that desire to redeem myself and run all 5 in the Riverboat series (bringing us through Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, and Louisiana), but I also know more about my body and my injury than I did back then. Looking back, I am once again thinking I may have bitten off more than I can chew with this new series.

In the middle of February, after finishing the Disney Glass Slipper Challenge (a 10k followed by a half marathon the next day), I had a regularly scheduled followup with my podiatrist/foot surgeon, and I learned that the inflammation had reared its ugly head again. I was hobbling around for about a week, and then I was told that for any longer distances (even walking) I should be wearing my boot again. The Dr. told me that I could walk with the boot on for the 13.1 Miami Beach half marathon, and I did. I thought I would be swept the entire time, I had some serious pain coming in through the inside of my bad ankle, and I started to have some IT band issues with that same leg... probably from hefting my weight and the extra weight of the boot for over 13 miles, combined with a limp.

So now I sit, exactly one month out of what should be me going out there and proving something to myself, and not really sure what kind of training I will be able to complete before hand.

I was supposed to do a half this coming Saturday but I've already cancelled. I've got a few more weeks to really baby myself, but I've also got to get that training in to prepare for this trip. 2 weeks from Sat, I have another half (that I fully plan to participate in)... but it looks like I'll be spending a lot of time at the gym the next few weeks trying to pretend on the elliptical machines.

Its time to get down to business.

I definitely don't want to do it in a boot.

From the ashes, this phoenix needs to rise.

Foot Update, and a Secret About Pennies

Just a quick update one where I am at with my foot... because it seems that everyone keeps asking me what the verdict is. 

I'm still seeing the orthopedic for the ongoing heel pain. I am not wearing my boot anymore because over time it started to bother my knee and my back... but I am still trying to limit my steps. I've been taking it easy since the Ft. Lauderdale 13.1 race... it wasn't hurting so much during the race, but I think that 3 miles back to the car really did a number on me. I was in severe pain by the time Seth and I got to our post race lunch... but the margaritas helped take the edge off.

Anyway, the swelling came back. Thankfully not with a vengeance like putting a marshmallow in a microwave... but still bad enough I couldn't put a shoe on comfortably for a few days... And with swelling and pain, I know that I must take a few extra days of rest. Thankfully, I have a few weeks between races, so I have that luxury.

And in the meantime, it was a good time to see the orthopedic again... specifically to ask about cortisone shots. Which it turns out, he didn't want to do. He said that because the majority of the swelling is from the sheath of a tendon and not the tendon itself, the cortisone would be hit or miss. A best case scenario with the cortisone would be 4 weeks off my feet completely for little result. But the likelihood of that would be slim... and we know I don't take well to forced rest.

The more likely outcome of shots could be disaster. As he explained, literature shows that people who have cortisone for sheath issues in the heel wind up having exacerbated issues long term and it can lead to breakdown in the sheath. 

So what now? The only real prescription is rest. But he knows that wont work for me either... remember that running is my one real way to relax myself these days... and it is better for me to relax my brain than relax my foot in the long term.

He continued with meloxicam daily, he re-prescribed a painkilling and anti-inflammatory cream (I've had it before and I REALLY like the idea of this because it is basically reason for me to get foot massages from Scrubby twice a day), and stressed the need for rest days. Knowing that I have a marathon goal (and another goal which you need to keep reading to find out about), he said do my long training runs during the weekend as scheduled but be very careful about the surfaces I am on... NO SAND and try to avoid anything other than asphalt. Apparently I am on doctors orders to also limit my mileage mid week (but I can bike to keep up my cardio). He also said I should wear my Hoka One One shoes on long runs (excuse to get another pair? I think so). I am not allowed to drive long distances (because the spot you rest your heel is where I have the problems), I may need to continue to wear my boot at the stadium, and I shouldn't go above 20 miles in my marathon training. Essentially the remedy is rest, rest, and more rest.

I'll be bringing the pennies!

And I'm ok with that. What I wasn't ok with was the idea that he had to palpate my whole heel area to find exactly where the problems are. And since doing that, the swelling has gone back up and the pain has increased exponentially.

And with all that being said, and knowing where I am going to be headed now in terms of recovery... I want to announce that I will not be adding any more races to my race schedule for the rest of the season so that I have plenty of time to recover from the races that I already have planned from now until March... I am going to need that time to recover...

Because this morning, I dropped my registration in the mail for the Riverboat Series by Mainly Marathons... In which I will be attempting another 5 half marathons in 5 states in 5 days. And yes, I will be bringing plenty of pennies.