About Two Weeks to Go!!

I haven’t blogged for a long time; I have been busy getting back into the groove of getting up and going to work every day (I had become accustomed to being home while on my six-week medical leave). I am also working on another writing project, and spring is our busiest time of the year because of Addison’s activities.

After not being able to run for six weeks after surgery, I have been running again for about four weeks. When I was sitting home recovering, and Gary and my friends were training to run the Derby Festival Marathon on April 30, I began to contemplate running the half marathon while they run the full. Afterall, why stand around waiting for them to finish when I could be out running too? I would only have six weeks to train, but I figured that even if I had to walk some, just finishing 13.1 miles three months after surgery would be quite an accomplishment. Of course, at the time I was considering this, I was still having some major pain and had absolutely no energy. I really did not know what to expect, but I knew that I wanted to know if it was a possibility. I met with my ‘running gyno’ to discuss my options. My primary surgeon was a female doctor, but the doctor who assisted her was a male, and more importantly, a runner. Because he is knowledgeable about training, I met with him before making my decision. I was four weeks post-op when I met with him.

The ‘running gyno’ was completely supportive of my running the half. He explained that I would be slower (it isn’t like I break any speed records anyway), and that there was a chance I would have to walk. He suggested that I really work on the elliptical, and continue to do yoga and walk. I had already begun to exercise two weeks after surgery, so I felt pretty good about stepping it up a notch. At the six week mark, I got the go ahead to begin running again. As soon as I returned from my appointment, I laced up my dust-covered Asics and headed out.

Since that point I have worked my way up to running nine miles. I feel that I am back to where I was before surgery; my energy has returned and I am pain-free. Well, I have those running pains like a sore back and achy legs, but no post-op pains to speak of. Last weekend, it suddenly turned ridiculously hot and humid, and I had planned to run ten miles. Wow. It was miserable. Had it been July, and my body had been gradually adapting to the insane humidity, it would have just been another summer run. Saturday, it was absolute hell. I could hardly breathe, and by the time I reached six miles, my water was gone and my stomach was churning. You know that feeling when your throat begins to constrict and you just know you are going to puke? That is how I felt as I was attempting to continue to run down Tell Street. I was trying to figure out just where I could puke that would not be obvious to passersby. Fortunately (for everyone), I chose to walk for a bit, and that feeling passed. I was determined to finish ten miles that day, which I did, but I had to walk two of those ten miles. I did not care. When I learned that the Evansville Marathon was canceled the next day due to extreme temperatures that would be dangerous for the runners, I didn’t feel quite so wimpy.

The Derby Mini is just over two weeks away. I have written before about the ‘good Joyce’ that sits on one shoulder, and the ‘rotten Joyce’ that sits on the other. The ‘good Joyce’ runs regularly without complaint, tries to use common sense, drinks plenty of water, and avoids junk food; the ‘rotten Joyce’ sits on the couch, is obsessive compulsive about things that don’t really matter, drinks Diet Mountain Dew by the liter, and can justify eating a candy bar or Nutty bar at any time. They have been sparring over this mini marathon. ‘Good Joyce’ knows that she is not in the best of shape, and that just finishing this mini is an accomplishment in itself. She knows to just follow the training plan, and let whatever happens be acceptable. The ‘rotten Joyce’? She’s been looking at last year’s times. She keeps thinking about how she could manage to beat her time from the Evansville Half Marathon in October (the one she trained for for months and had not had surgery prior to running). She does not want to walk. Not one bit. The question is will common sense win out on April 30? I just can’t answer that tonight. One example of a time when ‘rotten Joyce’ won the battle was a 10K (6.2 miles) that I ran last summer. It was July. It is very hot and humid in this area in July. I wanted to have a decent time in that particular race, so rather than get water during the run, I took great pleasure in passing the people who were smart enough to slow down and get water. Fortunately, I did maintain a good pace, and I did not dehydrate.

I am really excited about running this race. I do hope it goes well for all of us who will be running that day. I look forward to lining up with 15,000 other runners (although I do tend to panic in crowded situations, so I could possibly hyperventilate – or cry), and I look forward to crossing that finish line two hours and twelve minutes later. Okay, maybe two hours and thirty minutes later. Just as much as I look forward to my crossing the finish line, I cannot wait to cheer for Gary, Kim, Tony, and Jennifer as they complete their marathon! 26.2 miles. If I weren’t recovering from major surgery, I am sure that I would be running the full with my husband and friends. Ha! Ha! That is a complete lie. Although I am super proud of them and their dedication, I have no desire to run that far. Ever. But I can say that the only reason I am just running the mini is that I didn’t have enough time to train for the full.

Get up and get moving!

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