Dealing with Pre-Race Injuries

I ran the Urban Cow Half Marathon this last weekend.  This is the race I have been training for over the past 12 weeks and have been looking forward to since last year.  I had a few setbacks but still had a great race.

About a month ago, I went on a camping trip and had a few cigars.  Biggest mistake I could have made.  It made it hard to breathe on my runs for a few weeks.  Then a week later I started to develop back pain and a 5 day migraine.  After seeing the doctor and getting some medicine, I could start to train again.  I had lost some speed on my faster runs and felt more fatigued than prior to my camping trip.

Two weeks before my race, I started to develop Achilles tendonitis in my left leg.  I tried to train through it but it kept getting worse.  With a week to go, I stopped running.  I was icing my Achilles tendon and hoped it would resolve the issue.  I ran the Wednesday before my race and the pain was still there even though I had started to get some of my speed back.

I decided to not run until my race.  I took 600 mg. of Ibuprofen three times a day.  I also iced and used a heating pad on my leg for the next three days.  The night before the race my leg felt a little better, but would it hold up for 13 miles?

I took Ibuprofen before the race and used compression sleeves on my legs.  I stretched before the race and felt good.  I started the race a little slower than I wanted because I didn’t want to stress the injury too much.  I picked up the speed after the first mile.  I tried to catch the 1:55:00 pace group and ended up passing them about half way through the race.

The result was a new PR.  My previous best was a 1:59:02.  I finished this race in 1:55:00.  I was very pleased with the results, especially after all of the setbacks over the past month.  I had no pain during the race and felt great until the last half mile where I started to run out of energy.  The Achilles tendonitis came back with a vengeance the night of the race, but I have time to rehab it now.  

I knew that if I pushed myself that I could overcome my obstacles.  I did not finish where I wanted to when I started my training plan 12 weeks ago, but you have to reevaluate as you go. To still PR being injured makes me feel great.  If you have a setback in your training, just push though and don’t let your mind stop you from reaching your goals.  You might have to tweak your goals a little, but there is nothing wrong with that.

What are some of the biggest obstacles that you have overcome in your running and how has that helped you to become a better runner?