the dangerous cycle

I haven't been able to run "well" since March.  Even going out for short quick runs has been causing strain on my left calf.

Super bummer!

Especially when 2012 was filled with running.  Running was my job, my gift, my passion.  It's what I spoke about at each speaking engagement.  

Being a long distance runner, I thought I knew what was going on with my leg, each time I would access and diagnose the situation, "Maybe it's my tendon, a hair line fracture or perhaps a muscle tear.  You know, all the running you did last year probably was the result of this."

And thus was the cycle I fell into.  I call it "The dangerous cycle of an injured long distance runner." (insert dramatic music here).

• Injury accrued.  
• Attempt to run.  
• Re-injure or strain whatever was previously injured or strained.
• Evaluate, asses and diagnose the pain as if you were a doctor.
• Attempt to run.
• Re-Re-injure or strain.
• Say you are going to "Rest." (Codeword for I'm going to bike, swim, walk, jumping jacks)
• Attempt to run.
• Re-Re-Re-injure or strain.
• ... and so on and so on  

I don't know if it is pride, ego, or unawareness; what I should have done in March was go to the doctor, but I didn't.  I thought I could fix it, and was completely naive, thinking I knew what was wrong with my body.  I mean seriously, if I could spend a year on the road, running up to 55 miles pushing a 150 gear cart, couldn't I figure out what was wrong with my lower leg?  I sustained very few injuries on the Awake My Sole journey, and now I can't even go for a 2 mile run without my leg feeling strained.

After moping and complaining about not being able to run, my incredible wife shared some words of wisdom with me, "Doctors go to school to figure out how to asses and diagnose injuries."

I gave in and finally went in to the doctor.  Six months later.

I entered the doctor's office.  At most, waited for about 5 minutes.  Filled out some forms.  The doctor asked me to walk around the office.  Observed my stride and patterns.  Put me on a bench and moved my leg, asked if it hurt when she moved it a certain way.  I told her when it hurt.  Brought me off the bench and said:

"You have a strained Peroneus Longus muscle.  You need to stop turning your left foot outwards when you run, turn it in straight ahead, and you need to walk from your heal of your foot to the toe of your foot, not to roll on the outside of your foot.  That should help."

That was it!  In less than 15 minutes, my injury was assessed, diagnosed and what the next steps for treatment were.

It's been a humbling process.

So, I've been walking 30 minutes every day with my left foot turned in.  Hope to be back and running soon, and thus blogging too.

this "thank you" goes out to Charity for assessing and diagnosing my leg.  

The Road ahead

The whirlwind of the unexpected obstacles

Just like in running, life throws us some unexpected obstacles. 

This last week, we had to cancel all the Awake My Sole running and speaking events in Fort Dodge. 

Never expected this.

Why?

Our best friend was admitted into the hospital with pulmonary embolisms (blood clots in the lungs), and  without hesitation we made our way up to Bismarck North Dakota. 

An unexpected obstacle.

Life is full of these.
Some happy and joyful.
Some sad and disheartening.

...and just like in running, we must continue on.

Our week has been filled with a lot waiting in the hospital. 
Doctors and nurses. 
Prayer and food.
Tears shed, both in receiving positive and negative updates.

These unexpected obstacles make us question our present status, possibly realigning us to what really matters.

What does really matter?  People?  Career?  Money?  God?   
What is meaningful?  What makes life meaningful?  Am I living a meaningful life? 
Is there a God?  If so, why are negative unexpected obstacles allowed to happen?  

These are tough questions, and we must wrestle with them. 

After this week of going through this unexpected obstacle, we have once again been strengthened and realigned to what really matters:  the greatest commandment "to love God, and to love people."

I hope this makes you laugh

A New Path

The last 1.5 years of my life, I lived in the Morningside Area of Sioux City, near the Walgreens and Sunkist Bakery.

Often, I would take runs through this area.

For those of you who are familiar with the area, you are familiar with the roads:  Glenn, Lakeport and Morningside.  I too, am very familiar with the aforementioned roads.

This last week, I stayed with my Sioux City host family.  (side note: they were awesome and very hospitable, and loved staying with them).

My host family lived by a street named Aubin St.  A street that connects Glenn and Morningside.

I was never aware of Aubin St.  In my last couple years of running around the Morningside Area, I never ran down Aubin St.

The funny thing, it was there all along.  It would have been a perfect square for a good run.

I discovered that this new Aubin street connected Glen and Morningside when I was getting a ride home from a speaking engagement, and the person drove down Glenn, turned right at Aubin St.

I asked my driver, "Has this road always been here?"

He said, "Yeah, it has always been here."


A new path, always there, but never discovered by my running legs.  I was a bit bummed.

It's kind of like the paths we all choose, they are there, but sometimes we might be completely unaware of them.

Running across Iowa is my new path.  What lies ahead is unknown.  I do know "who I am" and "what I do," has been developed and influenced by other paths I've run on.  Paths that have intersected with other's paths.


Today, may you be open to the paths that are there and you are unaware of them.  May you also be open to the paths that are there, and you are deliberately choosing not to go down them.  Take a step on a new path, and see what happens.

"A journey is a person itself, no two are alike.  And all plans, safeguards, policing and coercion are fruitless.  We find that after years of struggle that we do not take a trip; a trip takes us."  John Steinbeck

RECAP of my run from Sioux City to Kingsley (pics)

RECAP of last week in Sioux City (video and pics and other links)