NOT MUCH FUN AT ALL

I have these injuries. They nag at me and refuse to go away. Groin and Achilles Tendon and Soleus. The groin makes it difficult and painful to stride with any length and curtails my ability to sprint. The Achilles and Soleus become extremely uncomfortable after any real distance and slows my pace on even relatively short runs. They've made it SO difficult to compete and SO difficult to run. And SO difficult to have my athletic fun.

I haven't raced since July or trained in a meaningful way. There's no way I can do the New York Marathon in November and I'm having doubts about Disney in January. I've been able to play softball because that doesn't require running for any length of time. But my speed is limited especially when my groin tightens after about an hour or so. Don't even ask about the second game of double headers!!

I go for treatment and I'm told that nothing feels bad. Great! Until I try to do something and keep hitting against these confounding limitations. Of course I cross train and have incorporated yoga in heated rooms into my options. But it's NOT RUNNING!!!!!

I think I need to take a break and let everything settle down but that is very difficult. I feel the summer (and time) slipping away. I've lost my sense of being in really good shape. I've concentrated on softball because I can at least muddle through the game but the fast running it demands probably exacerbates my ills.

At least there have been softball successes. My Sunday team won our championship and I played well at crucial moments. I've also done fine with my weekday team, the one that was the source of much dispair a few months ago. I've regained much of what I felt I'd lost there and we are now in the playoffs. We can take the championship there, too.

And in our first playoff contest this week I did very well...till I pulled a hamstring! So now I can't run at all. Maybe the forced rest will help heal the other ailments. But it's depressing. And a drag. And boring. And makes me distrustful of my body. And feel so old.

Get my point? Not much fun at all.