January in Numbers

This month was bumpy.  I kicked off January with a 5km run around some very muddy fields, the last run in my first pair of Saucony Echelons.  It was time for a change anyway, and I had lined up the Asics Nimbus in my quest to find a running shoe that would not rub my peroneal tendon, to avoid irritating an already angry spot (that is slowly and steadily on the mend – FINALLY!).  I ended January realising that I didn’t really like the Nimbus too much (damn that was an expensive discovery). I missed my Saucony trainers…

I also had a big “oh sh*t” moment when I was told by the knee doctor to just stop running.

There are clear and obvious signals from my Training Peaks notes that things just weren’t quite right in January.  Notes like “Skipping – knee does not feel right” and “Skipping to rest knee and let swelling come down” are a dead giveaway. Diagnosis aside, I am not giving up hope. 

Once upon a time people said that folks with CMT could not exercise – that it would destroy our muscles. And over time that orthodoxy has been set aside.  Through exercise – and running – my legs are stronger than they have ever been.  With this in mind, I remain optimistic that I can find a solution and that I can coax out at least one last season of triathlon from my body.

January may have been a bumpy month, one that has seen me down, but by no stretch of the imagination am I out.  Anyway, I just ordered another pair of Saucony, so clearly I do not intend to stop running just yet!

The Numbers

50: minutes of MRI
30: sessions completed
26: hours of training for the month (actually 26 AND A HALF, but who’s counting?)
17: kilometers run
14: kilometers swum
10: hours on the bike (well almost – 9 hours 45 minutes)
8: sessions missed due to knee concerns
6: yoga classes
3: international trips for work
3: Saturday nights out
2: visits to the knee specialist
1: one-on-one swim lesson

Even though my knee was not so great, I still managed to get a lot of training under my belt, balanced with 3 separate work trips and 3 SATURDAY NIGHTS OUT. I cannot believe we actually went out three Saturdays in a row in January – that’s something totally unheard of for us, as we are usually so dead from the week and also we tend to train hard on Saturdays. Catching up with friends was great.  Somehow I have to figure out a way to build in more friend-time and balance into my schedule… Ah balance, you are so elusive!

Reaching Out

One thing I finally got up the courage to do in January was to see a doctor.  In the back of my mind something wasn’t sitting quite right with me.  And although my knee was starting to feel better, and I had what I would describe as three good pain free runs, my left knee still did not feel like the right.  It felt… Different.

As I wrote about earlier this week, somehow hearing a diagnosis left me FEELING as if the situation had changed.  I guess the only way that it has is that now I know the name of my problem, I know the cause of my knee pain.  But what I still don’t know is how it can be managed – or if going cold turkey on running is really and truly the only option. I haven’t figured out how to orchestrate a soft landing – not yet, anyway.

I’ve decided that the time has come to reach out – to begin to build on the awesome team I have assembled that has helped me with all aspects of triathlon and life with CMT.  I need to find new experts to add to the mix – people who know and understand hypermobility and sport.  People who know knees.  People who are open minded and willing to let me experiment with approaches.  People who are patient and kind.  I know these folks exist – I have found them in my current coaches and physios and doctors.  I just need to add a few new faces to the mix – the time has come to reach out and start networking for the sake of my health and fitness, again…

It is time for Phase Two of Operation “We Can Rebuild Her”. 

Is it ironic that The Bionic Woman was one of my favourite shows as a kid? 

Hope and inspiration, and a 1970s television show. Bring on February!