Not Again!

Not really a good way to start off the new year!  I headed out in the 15 degree temperatures to get a 16 mile run in.  I decided to run on the Little Miami Bike Trail for a change in pace….no cars, no hills, somewhat guarded against the wind.  Sounded perfect (minus the 15 degree temps).  I figured I’d run out about 7.5 miles and head back and get the one extra mile going the other direction.  That way I wouldn’t be tempted to cut my run short.

Things were going great…I got through the first 7.5 miles with no problems.  I was running about 10:35/mile and feeling good!  I hit the turn around, did a little stretching, found my water bottles to be somewhat frozen, and headed back. 

I made it to mile 10.5 and things turned ugly.  My knee started to give me major problems..and not the knee that gave me problems last year, and definitely not the same kind of problems!  My right knee started to hurt towards the bottom of it and the pain would radiate through my lower leg.  It did not feel good and I’ve never felt anything like it!  I decided to do some walking for good measure, and tried to run a while later and about 10 seconds in to running the pain would start back up again. 

I had to basically walk the 4.5 miles back to my car, which was awful.  I was dressed for running in cold weather, not walking in cold weather.  My fingers started to freeze to the point that they hurt really bad and I was blowing on them as much as possible to try to warm them up.  Finally I made it back to my car and warmed my appendages up.

I’ve done some research online and can’t come up with anything.  So, I guess I’m just going to take a few days off and stick with cross-training (maybe even get on my bike for an indoor ride) and give it another shot in a few days.  If it still hurts then I’ll make an appointment with someone.  I won’t give up hope yet, because I totally could’ve done that 16 miles today…I was feeling so good, even with the sub-freezing temps!

Mark my words: I AM NEVER TRAINING FOR A MARATHON AGAIN!  I just don’t think my body is made to handle all the running.  I’ll stick with triathlons from now on and use the winter months for cross-training.  No more marathons!