But those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; They shall
mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They
shall walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31
This seems to be the decision most distance runners eventually face. There are a few hardy bodies out there that for whatever reason can run marathon after marathon without flinching. The majority of us "mortals," though, aren't that lucky.
Now that I have dealt with this nagging IT band pain on the side of my knee, including three trips to the sports chiropractor, I find myself at the point of having to make a decision. Do I push on and train for my second full marathon I am planning to run in September, or drop to the half marathon? The pain is not severe, and in fact doesn't flare up until about mile 4 or 5 of a run. But it's there.
Since I DO NOT want this to be my last marathon, and I want to be a "lifetime runner," the decision was obvious. Half marathon it is. And the fact that I am mentally relieved should tell me something. The physical and mental commitment required to train for a full marathon SHOULD NOT be undertaken when feelings of fatigue and burnout are present. My first full marathon was a wonderful experience, and I want my second one to be even better!
So, a few more days rest, a trip to the chiro (still not sure if this is helping, probably blog material for later), then a greatly reduced training schedule for the half marathon sounds wonderful right now.
My overall game plan is to address the root of my IT band woes: weak quads, hip and glute muscles, and a basic neglect of strength training. I have begun some fairly easy/non knee-stressing leg, glute and hip work. Once I am pain free, Jillian Michaels will kick my butt further into shape (love her DVDs), and I plan to do P90X beginning in October.
I want to transition to a 3 day per week running schedule with two low impact cardio days (elliptical or bike/spin), plus 5 to 6 days per week of P90X. I am hoping this will make me a better trained runner in the global sense. I know several marathoners who use this approach, and they seem to have far fewer injuries.
A learning process for sure!
