THE Rest Week - 5/18-5/23

Post Tacoma City Marathon report - June 1, 2013

Life can turn on a dime. One day you're healthy, and then you're injured . Then 3 months later, you're healthy and run a marathon too soon, run another one too soon again and then suddenly, you're injured again. Thankfully this time, it's a short-lived bout with knee pain.

The week following the marathon, I ran short and easy-paced runs but noticed right away a bruised feeling under my left patella aka kneecap. It hurt every step but not enough in the beginning to make me stop. I then noticed a few days later that it hurt when kneeling as I was on the floor folding laundry. Don't get sidetracked on the minor issue of how little I actually complete the last step in doing the laundry. Kneeling nearly brought tears to my eyes. Of course I kept poking and prodding the pain in an effort to solidify the fact that it did hurt.

May 17th, 12 days after TCM, I finally called it quits for my daily run, something I should have done a week earlier. The pain was getting worse and my running thoughts consisted of words such as: Ow! No! Ow! Shoot! No! Umph! Owie!  and other words not suitable for this blog or my thoughts. I knew I MUST take some time off or face yet another long layoff from running. My streak had been blown for the year anyway.

Reluctantly, I stashed my running shoes away from the front door and decided to not run for 5-7 days before trying it out again on a short run. Walking didn't hurt at all.

The week of not running was filled with some new adventures for me. I have been job hunting for a VERY LONG ARDUOUS time (1 1/2+ years)with disappointment after disappointment that I will not elaborate here. Just know it was a time-consuming and frustrating journey. My homeschooling days have ended and suddenly I am able to work full-time again. My last full-time job was in 1993! For most of my job-hunting time, I was still my younger daughter's driver and this kept my available hours to work more limited which kept me from getting hired. Retail stores of any kind want you to be available 24/7  or they won't even call you in for an interview. It's nuts.

I received a call from a local hardware store for a customer service position (previously interviewed the summer before and didn't get hired as well as 5-7 other applications for different positions over the past year). It was a weekday only position, 20 hours a week. Sweet! I could still race on the weekends! Interviewed, waited, hired in 2 days!  The same day I was hired, I received a phone call from an attorney's office I applied to calling me in for an interview. Seriously?

I interviewed with someone the next day, felt like I blew the interview and decided to just be happy I had a job with the hardware store.  The hardware store had to do a background check on me so it would be a week before I actually started. I received an email asking me to come in the next day for a group interview at the office. I was really surprised but so thankful and nervous. Back to the office and was happy with my group interview experience. I didn't place any hope in it after so many disappointments over the past year. Another email arrived that night asking me to come in one last time. I was floored. Would it be a skills test? Another interview? I arrived at the office with uncertainty. I left with a full-time job as a legal receptionist. What a crazy week! I started work the next day, a Thursday, and my no-running week began the following Saturday.

On the 5th day, after pushing and prodding under my kneecap without pain, I met Sharon for a slow 4 miler. I ran with trepidation for a few steps and quickly realized I didn't feel any pain! Inside, my thoughts turned to the chorus of this song:



Until mile 4. I felt an ache in the same place. Sigh. Cue new music.



I laced up the next day anticipating more of the same and very happily my knee pain was magically gone and hasn't returned since May 26th!  That brings us to today, the day before the North Olympic Discovery Marathon. My longest run since TCM was 10.7 miles.  I'm disappointed that I won't be able to race NODM but elated that I can run. Period. Here's last year's NODM race report: North Olympic Discovery Marathon 2012

Now to figure out how to fit in all my training while working full-time.

Until next time, RUN HAPPY!