Is it Wednesday Yet?

My feet and achilles tendons are so frozen that I can't feel them.  Twice today I have have submerged them --- for twenty minutes at a time --- in an ice bath.  Despite that, I am in a great mood and actually feel like I am on the road to recovery.  I can't start running again until later this week, but I spent 60 minutes on the Cybex Arc Trainer ( http://www.cybexintl.com/products/cardio/750%20A/intro.aspx )today.  I didn't do it at the level I would have before I hurt myself, but it still felt good to sweat.  I followed that with 1,000 sit ups.  Five hundred "typical" crunches and five hundred oblique crunches.  Tomorrow night I start back with Liberdy.

Kind of funny that I can start running again while I am in Chicago for work this week.  I am going to try to run the actual Shamrock Shuffle route while I am there.  Next Sunday I signed up for a 5k in New Orleans to get me running outside.

My doctor, who we have established is a runner, said that if I was in the market for shoes that I should think about trying the Adidas adiSTAR Ride 3 ( http://www.shopadidas.com/product/index.jsp?productId=4477648&cp=2039726.2039728.2020250&cid=U44214&shopGroup=R ).  I did my research, and it seems they might be a good fit for me.  To go along with the whole "starting anew" mentality when I can start running again on Wednesday, I ordered a pair (unfortunately, Varsity Sports doesn't carry Adidas).  They will be here by Tuesday so I will be able to try them out in Chicago.  Anyone out there ever run in Adidas shoes before?

As ironic as this might sound, the NCAA Basketball tournament has given me a new sense of life in terms of my running.  In reality, four teams that very few people thought had a chance have made it to the Final Four next weekend.  If you can tell me that you honestly picked either Butler and/or VCU as a Final Four team then I will be shocked and amazed.  No one saw it coming.  They aren't teams you would expect to be there because they don't necessarily fit the mold or what the you imagine when you imagine a basketball team going to the Final Four.  (OK, I am still a bit pissed at Butler for beating my beloved Badgers, but let's face it, the Badgers didn't come to play last week.) 

I'm starting to think of myself along the lines of Butler and VCU.  Both of those teams believed that they could do it despite what everyone told them.  It didn't matter that every sports writer in America told them they weren't good enough or didn't look like an elite basketball team.  They believed in themselves and what they were capable of.  OK, I get it.  I don't look like a runner (yet).  I am slower than most runner.  My achilles tendons are shorter than most peoples.  Who cares?  I don't.

When I was in high school there was a Nike add.  I don't remember all of it, but in essence it was about someone telling you that you would never be able to do something and then you proved them wrong by doing it.  The add ended with the words, "they will tell you no, and you will tell them yes."  On Wednesday my running starts anew.  People may tell me no, but I will tell them yes. 

Until Wednesday in Chicago.

Who Is That Person In The Photo?

I'm in a tremendous amount of pain today.  I have a very high pain threshold, so for me to say that means something.  It is a pain that I haven't felt before --- on the outer part of my left arch.  I took an ice bath as soon as the pain started, and followed with more ice.  I got the appropriate medical care today.  These type of pain are going to become more common as I increase my mileage, and I am going to have to make the decision if I can get through them.  Part of me is saying that if I felt this much pain after 5.5 miles, how am I going to handle 13.1 (much less 26.2).  The other part of me is saying that I can't quit because pain is temporary but pride is forever, and I know how much pride I will feel after accomplishing these goals.

I got a surprise package at the office today, one that made me smile in light of how crappy I felt.  It was filled with Badger gear, specifically a Beat Michigan button.  I immediately took pictures and put them on Facebook, especially in light of how much crap I have been getting from my Wisconsin friends.

My friends started to comment on Facebook, and when I got a chance I looked at the comments.  In the course of looking at the comments, I came across another photo in my Mobile Uploads Folder.  The photo hit me like a ton of bricks, especially when I realized that it was taken exactly one year ago today on St. Patrick's Day 2010.

I no longer know that woman in the middle.  Even though there was a smile on my face, I wasn't happy.  It was that picture, more than any other, that has made me realize how far I have come.  It is that picture that gives me motivation to continue, even though I am in a lot of pain.  It is because of that picture, and the person I see in that picture, that I won't allow myself to ever go backwards in this journey.

OK, so I am working through some injuries.  I'm a bit down because my friends are starting to run a lot faster than I am, and right now I can't do that.  My endurance ability is there, but I am hurt and I don't want to permanently hurt myself.  I can't let my ego get me down despite how competitive I am.  The important thing is finishing the race (i.e. finishing what I have started); it is personal and it has to be done at my own pace.  I can't worry about what anyone else is doing or how fast they may be doing it.

Today I really learned that looking back and taking stock of how far you have come can get you where you want to be in the future.  Last year on St. Patrick's Day I had Guinness; I pretended to be happy and consumed a lot of alcohol to mask what I was really feeling.  This year on St. Patrick's Day I will have water; I am actually happy and it shows through in everything that I do, whether I am feeling pain or not.

Happy St. Patrick's Day, and Go Badgers!!!!