Running Free: One Step Forward and Two Steps Back

Monday, April 9, 2007

One Step Forward and Two Steps Back

One step forward and two steps back---that is what my training has been like since August. I noticed in August that I was tired and feeling rundown. Lab tests showed that I was anemic. In September I DNF'd at Wasatch after starting the race with a flu virus and then getting very sick on the trail to find that I had Rhabdomyolysis. After a 20lb weight loss and three months to recover, I started to train again. I ran my first race after Wasatch at the end of December (33k), and felt pretty good with a first place finish. I still felt like I had a lot of work to do to feel strong again. In February, my right ankle which had at times been bothering me, started to really flare up. After x-rays, a bone scan, and a MRI, it was concluded that I had a severe tendonosis of my posterior tibial tendon. I wore a boot cast for 4 weeks and then anxious to start running again, I went for a long run. Stupid. In new shoes much less!! Well, to make a very long story short, I got a huge quarter size blister on my heel. One hour into my 10 hour run!! Damn! What was I thinking? So now I sit here frustrated and depressed because I am kind of back to square one again! Somewhere I read a quote that said, "Walk in the direction you wish to be going." I keep on moving forward, eating right, getting into the pool and swimming mindless laps, and trying to be the healthiest I can be, but somehow, I just keep missing the mark. Friday, I leave for a running adventure. We are planning to run the double crossing of the Grand Canyon. I am apprehensive and uneasy. I hope my ankle and my blister don't cause me problems. Ultra runners tend to push the envelope when it comes to training. I plead guilty on that one. So on Saturday morning I will treat my blister, duct tape my heel,and take off on an adventure that I have looked forward to for a long time. I will take it slow and steady and remember to enjoy the journey as many of us forget to do in this race called life. I hope that you will all take time to enjoy your next long run. We are not guaranteed tomorrow. Make the most of your run TODAY!!

4 comments:

Bob - BlogMYruns.com said...: Kelly Said:I will take it slow and steady and remember to enjoy the journey as many of us forget to do in this race called life. I hope that you will all take time to enjoy your next long run.

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Very well said!!!

Hi Kelly nice blog and nicer(is that a word) blister (ouch) take care of that one!!

Have a great week,

Bob; April 9, 2007 at 5:15 PM
kelly said...: thanks Bob! I'm trying to be positive!; April 9, 2007 at 10:11 PM
Lisa B said...: Whew! That's a nice blister! That shouldn't bother you too much if you dress it up really good..., but not having RESTRAINT with returning to running after injury will. Believe me, I KNOW all about that first hand. I didn't run ultras for nearly 2 years because I just couldn't control the rate at which I returned to running. Running felt so good and I was ABLE to do the long runs; however, I always ended up injured afterwards because I just did 2 much 2 soon 2 quick with 2 little restraint. I ended up pretty miserable with no one to blame but myself. I would definitely have returned slower if I had to do it all over again. I think I wouldn't been back to running much quicker.

I'd hate to see that happen to you, a far superior runner than me.

Have fun at the GC 2Xing. Making it a fun trip sounds like the best thing. Please be careful! We care about your legs!

All the best,
Lisa; April 9, 2007 at 10:41 PM
kelly said...: thanks Lisa for the reminder. It's hard to refrain from running when you know everyone is getting in great shape while you turn to jelly! Have a great day.; April 10, 2007 at 5:43 AM

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Not Even Lupus Can Slow Ridgway

NOT EVEN LUPUS CAN SLOW RIDGWAY Published on June 26, 2004 © 2004- The Press Democrat BYLINE: BRUCE MEADOWS Three years ago when she was diagnosed with lupus, Kelly Ridgway didn't take much time plotting her course. ``I figured I could lay on the couch and be a drug-seeker for pain or I could choose to be as healthy as I can be,'' said Ridgway, 46, an outpatient surgery nurse at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital. Ridgway, defying the odds, is entered in the Western States 100 Endurance Run, which starts at the base of Squaw Valley at 5 this morning and ends 100 miles away in Auburn. ``I see people at the hospital in horrible shape because of lupus, but I realized I had a choice how to deal with it,'' Ridgway said. Lupus is a chronic auto-immune disease affecting mainly women. The immune system attacks the body's own tissues as a foreign substance, producing antibodies to fight it. The cause of the disease is unknown although research has shown it occurs when a specific set of susceptible genes is exposed to a combination of environmental factors such as infectious agents, certain drugs, excessive ultraviolet light, physical trauma or emotional stress. Ridgway said she has been a ``serious runner'' for 14 years and has also competed in 50- and 100-mile events on horseback. She started running to get in shape after the last of her three children -- Caleb (18), Chelsea (16) and Courtney (14) -- were born. ``I've found I really love ultras,'' said Ridgway, a single mother who graduated from Montgomery High, then earned a nursing degree from Santa Rosa JC. Dr. Lisa Kremer, Ridgway's rheumatologist said, fatigue is the most universal symptom of lupus. ``For somebody to run 100 miles with an auto-immune disease is incredible.'' Ridgway first experienced flu-like symptoms, then fatigue. ``But when I started having problems with cognitive stuff, I knew there was something more to it.'' She was having trouble doing simple math or even finding her way around town. ``I thought of all sorts of things, including a brain tumor,'' said Ridgway. Ridgway has been training with Santa Rosan Karen Hanke, 42, and Suzanna Bon, 39 of Sonoma. This is the second Western States for Hanke, who finished last year in 29 hours, 47 minutes, running the last 70 miles on severely blistered feet. It is the first Western States for Ridgway and Bon. Because of the glut of applicants -- more than 1,000 annually apply for 400 spots -- runners must not only qualify with an acceptable 50-mile run time but also get lucky by having their name drawn by lot. Bon, whose goal is ``just to finish although I'd love to do it in under 24 hours,'' is impressed with Ridgway's effort. ``Kelly is strong and smart about training,'' said Bon. ``We'll run at our own pace this weekend, not together, but we want to do the best we can.'' Ridgway sees herself as a runner who happens to have lupus. ``My case is relatively minor and medication has really helped,'' said Ridgway, who logs 75 miles a week. ``But I don't know anybody with lupus who runs as much as I do.'' She has bouts of fatigue and deals with them. ``There are days I am really tired and need to come home and rest for a while,'' she said. But this weekend there will no place to rest. ``I'm not the type to quit,'' she said. ``I will persevere.'' Kremer said people with lupus react differently to the disease. ``Some have a real tough time with it and others take it as a challenge,'' said the doctor. ``In general, a disease like lupus provokes self-evaluation ... some patients look at it as a way to straighten out their lives, physically and socially.'' Kremer said most lupus patients with a positive outlook exercise to some degree. ``For them, making an effort is a personal victory.'' Ridgway, who left for Squaw Valley Thursday, has been on the Western States course before, having competed in the Tevis Cup horse race and also working the run the past two years as a medical helper. ``It's beautiful ... I fell in love with the trail,'' she said. ``I'm excited but not nervous.'' Ridgway will be tested following the race to determine how running 100 miles affects a lupus patient. ``I know I am capable of doing this.'' She likes to run, even 100 miles, because it makes her feel healthy and alive. ``Maybe in some ways this will speak to people who are trying to make choices,'' she said. ``You can push ahead and take charge of your life.''