Summer came early!

Three weeks ago there was snow. One week later we were riding our bikes outside. One week after that, summer arrived with a welcoming string of days at 80 degrees, and I was running in a tank top and shorts, happily sweating my butt off. March Madness indeed!!
Training in the last three weeks since the onset of the knee niggle has been interesting. I'm a bit reluctant to share this today as it seems all I do is complain about my aches and pains. It's truly getting boring, and I imagine it can be tiresome to read about it. But I'm trying to keep this blog honest and this is my reality at the moment. I also know there are at least a few others out there who can relate to what I'm going through.
My IT band seems to have worked itself out thankfully! There is still mild pain, especially during downhill running, but it's definitely improved. The week after my gimpy long run, I was able to run 18 miles with tolerable pain. I continue to stretch and roll it a few times a day and that, along with a couple of weeks of decreased training volume seems to have really helped. Last Saturday I raced the Shamrock Shuffle 10k, along with a few team members. I was more focused on Rachel as she was running her first 5k! I was so excited and SOOOO proud of her as she gutted out a tough race. It was warm, breezy, and the 5k course took her over Observatory Hill TWICE! (10k ers only had to endure that beast once!! :-))
The race went better than expected for me. I have been LOVING this warm weather. The heat helps me to loosen up sooner and my body just seems to respond better. (Too a point....remember the Door County Half IM? 106 degree heat index is even a bit much for me! ;-)) Last Saturday, the temp was perfect for me, (low 70's at the start of the race), and I managed to run my fastest stand alone 10k with a time of 49:40!!! I couldn't believe it. As I rounded the corner and saw the finish line with 2/10 miles to go, I knew if I really pushed I would stay under 50 minutes. That wobbly "kick" at the end was priceless to witness I'm sure! I immediately found Rachel and the family and experienced that amazing rush of complete happiness. The combination of the elation I felt for Rachel and the pain free, solid race I just ran, it's those moments that make all of the hours of hard work and pain more than worth it!! :-D
I will hang onto that feeling, and stay patient as once again I'm faced with a different niggle that occurred half-way through my 12 miler this morning. This time it's my left ankle tendon that has been bothersome since December. This time it came on suddenly and the pain evolved into something that was making me limp by the end. SIGH!!! Sasha, who is my amazing teammate and friend, was the first to talk me off the ledge...(Coach Blake was actually the first to TEXT me off the ledge ;-)), suggests PT. I think I will call on Monday. Too many niggles and only three weeks until Boston. I've got some quick healing to do!! :-)
Enjoy this day!!!