It’s always something!

I’ve spent the last two weeks pretty much doing nothing.  And whining. Lots of whining. Because the only thing worse than doing hard workouts day after day after day is not being ABLE to do hard workouts, day after day after day!

Sciatic Nerve

It started innocuously enough. A bit of a tender spot on the bottom of my left foot. I assumed, and as it turns out partially correct, that it was being caused by a) Tri-camp following a 3 week build and b) lots of biking with SPD cleats/pedals. Luckily I was in a Recovery Week and figured it’d be all healed and ready to go by the time my next Build Week started. Further, being smart, I scheduled an appointment with Physio Jill. Just in case. Oh man! I had this healthy body thing DOWN!

Tuesday dawned sunny and hot – summer in April! I loaded my bike into the car, dressed in my shorts ready to do my 6x6minute hill repeats after my PT treatment. Jill confirmed a muscle inflammation in the ball of my foot likely caused by my shoes/pedals. (I am SO good!) And the remainder of the soreness NOT from Plantar Fasciitis as I feared (thank you Foot Gods) but the same ol’, same ol’ – a recuring injury from my teenage years that causes irritation of the dura and sciatic nerve. Geez! I didn’t even know the sciatic nerve went all the way down to the bottom of your foot! Did you?? The treatment? Stretching. Stretching. Stretching. And of course I could do my bike workout. Yippee!!

You know this isn’t the end, right?!?

I did that workout. In 30C heat. In the blazing sun. Using my SPD cleats/shoes. I mashed my way up that frickin’ hill. 6 times! I almost puked the last time. But I am a warrior. I’m training for Ironman. I POWNED that hill.

Wednesday morning and I can’t put my foot on the ground without shooting pains searing the back of my leg. No weight at all. The pain? Excruciating. Uh. Oh. This isn’t what the Doctor ordered. So much for my run workout today. So much for my next build week as it turned out.

I spent the next week, RICEing – Rest, Ice, Complain, Elevate – scared to death about how long this was going to take to heal. How much my training would suffer. How much fitness I was losing. What if this DIDN’T heal? What if it took 2 months to get better? When would I have to call it quits? What would happen if I DID have to call it quits? The psychological toll was quickly overtaking the physical toll. I did manage to squeeze in some swims, upper body weights and a very easy spin to test out my new pedals/shoes (ooo! shiny! pretty!) but for the most part there was a giant Pity Party taking place on the couch.

By this past Monday, things were starting to feel a bit better. The muscles under the ball of my foot no longer hurt. One Thumb Up. And I could put weight down on my whole foot – not ALL my weight and only if I had my foot just so – but it was a vast improvement over hopping. One and a Half Thumbs Up.

Tuesday was the first night of Interval Practice. I’d already missed so much. I really, REALLY didn’t want to miss this. I loaded my gear. Prayed to the Sciatic Nerve Gods and headed out the door. Just to add insult to, hopefully NO, injury, it started to pour rain. But. But. After the first 5 minutes of the run warmup wherein my legs were doing all kinds of shin-splinty-pins’n'needlesy-crampy nastiness, I felt pretty good. Yes, my foot was sore. But it wasn’t getting worse! And I was able to do some 6minute repeats. In Zone 4. And okay, it started to get a bit worse then but not a LOT worse. And I stopped. (are you happy SN Gods?!?) And I was able to do the bike “flush” without any pain. (thank you new shiny, pretty shoes!) And the best news of the last two weeks?? Wednesday morning? No. New. Soreness. Oh! Be still my beating heart. I’m back in the game!

Okay. Maybe except for this weird alien growth now on the TOP of my foot. But you know what they say? It’s always something!