This is not from me. This is from a very well known and amazing ultra runner Annette Bednosky, but it echoes struggles of so many of us. I decided to share with you all.
Greedy. by Annette Bednosky
I have not run in 4 months. (At least not longer than a few miles at a time). My
hamstring throbs and I long to be in the woods, on the trails, over the rocks and
in the creeks. Yes, I miss the thrill and chase of racing, but more than anything,
the freedom of flying in the mountains.
Greedy. That is the best word I can use to describe myself last fall after
the Mountain Masochist. I'd had a fun and successful year racing and
10/16/05 was supposed to have marked the start of a 2 month rest .
Greedy. But, rest, I did not. There were too many cool local 5k's and trail
runs that I didn't want to miss out on. What could it hurt? I wondered? These are just little 3 milers, 6 milers and 18milers….that will be like
rest , I thought….NOT
Anyway, somewhere in the midst of rest I strained/tore or somehow
injured my hamstring. I've had 4 MRI's and visited different traditional
doc's and witch doctors …try to prove otherwise…but what I am doing
now is the dreaded among all ultra runners. Not running. All all. And trying
to heal so I can fly again
The moral of my story…I am still finding it. I always thought that something like this wouldn't happen to me. Yet, I remember, I am human. And although not running makes me cry daily, I am hazily reminded that I am more than a runner. I
realize running has been what has defined me for the last few years…and without it, I am…still me I pray for healing and that I may contour the mountains and vault across the creeks and hope that when I heal that will not be so greedy.
You know, the worse of all is that majority of us are learning by making our own mistakes, too often repeating mistakes already made. And, unfortunately, hardly anything will change that. But may be, a slight may be, there is a chance this stroy can help someone, at least as this someone is dealing with already happened injury, just to know he/she is not alone. Or may be someone is very close to get one and will recognize it just in time to stop and prevent. May be. You think?
A Mountain Soul
16 comments:
And the moral of the story is so important, but much easier said than done.
I vow to try and not be greedy this coming Saturday, but rather enjoy and celebrate the ability to be able to run and yes I hope it is pain free. If not, I promise I will stop at some point and go home. (probably not before 50K though. I'm greedy)
What an awesome post! Thanks for sharing it Olga.
Great post! Thank you for sharing it! I really love the freedom of flying in the mountains!
Rest is such a hard thing to master. Thanks for the post.
oh, my. Greedy is exactly what I battle.
Huh, is that what's wrong with me?? I so know better but I keep running with a nagging knee pain! Greedy, definitely is getting the best of me, especially yesterday!
Thanks for the story, Olga.
Good post... timely... Wise.
So true... we always think we can push just that little bit farther. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. Thanks for the reminder - I think the moral must be something like "listen to your body and your body's true needs, then explain them to your mind"!
Well and I just wrote resting is unacceptable... but definitely finding the right cause should be first than resting.
Thanks a lot for sharing this, there is so much to learn always about running and this which is an emotional side, more than nothing, that it is not in the books.
I will maybe give a second thought to my plan which is not making long runs and cancelling all speed sessions... what you think?
I think we learn more as we age. As we get older our bodies speak loud and clear when we try to punish it beyond what our mind thinks otherwise.
Good timing. I needed this post today. Thanks!!!
Thanks for sharing Bednoky's thoughts. When I look back there were signs pointing to my injury before it happened. I'm learning that becoming an experienced runner means learning to work through times of injury. So here's hoping the lessons are learned and remembered.
I read somewhere on a blog once that "Real runner's always want to learn the hard way!" I think they were referring to this subject. My idea of rest after a marathon has been about 4-6 days, my body is starting to rebel.
To learn what a unicycle is see my March 9th blog Thanks.
I saw Annette's post, also. There's a good lesson in there.
- Bad Ben
Hey Olga, can you please not step on my toes so hard? I already have another injury that I'm dealing with. Wow! Like many things in life, if we don't treat what we love with a healthy respect and some discipline, then it can hurt us in so many ways. That was very well put. Thanks for reposting it.
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