Dr Awesome watched me run so he could check my gait and immediately saw that my left knee was being pulled inward. This would account for the pain on the outside of my knee. (In retrospect, it makes perfect sense - I now remember my knees rubbing together when I ran last week.) He worked on that leg, un-gummed the right knee, and gave me a refresher on the stretches I need to do daily and during my runs. I left his office feeling very optimistic.
So optimistic, in fact, that I plunked down $200 for the 24-week David Glover training plan. The deed is done: I will officially begin training for Ironman Texas on December 2nd.
Let us pause to rejoice that The Plan Decision has been made.
Fast forward to that evening, when I hopped on the trainer for an easy 30 minute spin. I had more pain in my left knee than I've ever had during a ride. I was scared. Did I just waste my money on a training plan that I won't be able to do because my knee is screwed up for life?
Luckily, I have a level-headed husband and good friends who have experience with injury and recovery. They talked me down. They reminded me that my over-use injury didn't occur in one day, and it wouldn't be fixed in one day. That's why we go for a series of treatments, not just one-and-done.
The next day, I noticed a very strange feeling in my knees: upon rising from or sitting down in a chair, my knees didn't hurt. I hadn't even realized they were hurting so much until they weren't hurting any more. It's funny the things you get used to and accept as normal.
Today I ran about four and half miles and had no knee pain at all. My legs felt nice and loose. I stopped every 10 minutes during my run to stretch, as prescribed by Dr Awesome. Tomorrow I'll hop on the bike and see what happens.
And no matter what, I won't freak out.*
*I reserve the right to freak out.
