Life update!

Sometimes I don’t want to train. Or eat healthy foods. Sometimes I’m just in a funk.

Let’s back up.

I’ve been training for the Rock ‘N Roll half marathon in Nashville, just four weeks away now, and was pleased with how my speed has increased and my endurance has held since 70.3 training. I was completing speed intervals on the treadmill each week, running the hills around my house, and taking my long runs back at our beautiful lake trail. All was going great—until I felt stiffness and pain in my right leg, at the bottom of my knee where the calf meets the joint. I brushed it off, pushed through to finish the workout, and gave myself an extra day of rest. Three days later I went out on my long run- 7 miles on the schedule- and pulled up in pain at mile 3. Oh, and this was on an out and back trail, so I had to turn around and hobble the 3 miles back to the car. The pain settled in my knee for a few days, then the bottom of my hamstring. I took all activity except some open water swimming off for a week. Then I raced- and my knee twinged at mile 2 of the run but it held. I should have been so stoked to know that the fitness held, if not improved with rest, but we all know how that race ended up… Not exactly the way I wanted to start my season.

The initial injury was almost three weeks ago. In that time I’ve swim three times, run once, did a strength workout, and raced a sprint triathlon. There’s also been a few yoga videos worked in there, but for someone who works out 6 times a week, often twice per day, I feel like a crazy person. Inertia has taken over- a body at rest stays at rest. My knee feels fine now, but for some reason I just can’t get the motivation up to get back out there and do the work. Not to say that I haven’t been busy. I’ve been painting our bedroom and our home’s exterior, I’ve been working, I’ve been setting up my office. But I haven’t been training. And I’ve been GRUMPY.

Unfortunately, I don’t have a lot of tips for getting out of a funk to share. I’ve started keeping a food diary to see how my food choices are affecting my sleep and my mood. I’m taking some playtime with a theme park visit and overnight stay. I’m going to cheer on the racers at Ironman Oceanside and try to get some mojo back through inspiration. I’m definitely a bit nervous about the half marathon, but I know that even if I have to walk it I can get it done.

As spring kicks off, I can feel I’m in need of a reset. New motivation, new goals, a new training approach perhaps. The energy is shifting. Stay tuned.