Hard decisions

Last year at Rev3 Cedar Point, I tore my plantar fascia during the run (race report) and it has been a long comeback since.  First two weeks I was in crutches and couldn't put any pressure on my foot without some pain.  Then I slowly started back to walking, swimming, cycling, & water running.  I did try to make the best of my situation as seen below.

Water running/aqua jogging is very boring.  Just sorta float around and move your legs in the deep end of the pool-not super exciting.

But, I did find these little gems from the Indianapolis Colts training camp!  Added a bit more resistance.

This injury basically killed the last half of my race season and I spent about 3-4 per week in rehab.  The ISU Physical Therapy & Sport Rehab Clinic is a great resource and they have been instrumental in my comeback.

So, the hard decisions.....well, I really want to race!  I think it's just one of those things, when you train, and train, and train, and... you want to put it all together and test yourself.  See what you can do, against yourself and others.  Can you dig deep and catch the person in front of you in the last mile?  Can you stick to your pacing/efforts and not get sucked into the masses who usually blow up and fade at the end?  Or the simple joy of hearing your name and the cheers as you cross the finish line.  These are some of the reasons I choose to race!

I am racing this weekend, but after much discussion with my coach, the rehab peeps, friends, family, and anyone who will listen, they have all pretty much told me that I should consider just swimming and biking the half, and either pull out of the run or do it as a relay.  I asked lots of peeps hoping someone would tell me to go ahead and race, but no takers.  My foot feels pretty good and I'm running on it again consistently, but not at any race intensity, and because it's only January, the fear is that I hurt myself now and am out for another 5-6months.

So, this weekend I will be competing in Naples as a relay team.  After I came to terms with not being able to do the whole thing, I'm actually pretty excited just to toe the line and race again, even if it means tagging someone to do the run.

2013 is going to be a great year, and I'm glad I listened to those around me and put my ego/pride aside for a minute to think about the bigger picture--let your foot heal a bit longer bro!