Being on the Bench Sucks! Or... A Time for Redirection.

Device of Torture or.... Healing.

I have been weighed down by a "device of torture" for 17 days now.  But who's counting?  Ugh!  I have a stress fracture on my left heel bone from running.  Doc says that I'll be in the boot for 6 weeks.  NO exercise until it is totally healed.  No running, no swimming, no biking, no walking.  I'm miserable.  Being fit has become so much of who I am now that I feel lost without being able to be active.  I greatly miss my time with my training buddies and I actually miss getting up early on the weekends to train or race.  I'm trying to keep myself busy with work and at-home projects but I still feel sad and, at times, angry.  I feel like I've done everything right:  I stretched; I ramped up my mileage by 10% per week; I hydrated; I practiced good running form; I ate well.  Right now, I can't drive past a runner on the road without thinking "Why me?" or "Keep the wheel straight. Don't run them over. It's not their fault."

While I am on the bench, I am trying to stay focused on good health.  Not so easy.  Starting my day with exercise put me in a healthy frame of mind for the rest of the day.  Removing the exercise from my daily routine makes starting the day off to a healthy start difficult.  Removing exercise from my daily routine leads me to making bad food choices.  Removing exercise from my daily routine finds me eating Rolos for breakfast.

Feeling sorry for myself ends today!  I have big plans on my running calendar this year and need to stay focused on achieving them.  Today I will focus on the plan to getting back on the road opposed to dwelling on the misery of being on the bench.  I WILL focus on a restorative, healing plan by putting together a training calendar similar to the ones I work when training for a race.  Except this training plan's finish line will be "The First Run Back".  This training plan will include:  60 min foot elevations, light-weight/high rep arm exercises, crunches, modified push ups, easy seated lower leg stretches,  fire hydrants, and back hyperextensions.  I will return to my "healthy eating plan" (as we call it in our home) to aid in building muscle and keeping my body well-fed.  When I am released from my "device of healing", my doctor is going to fit me for orthotics to help cushion my heal strike.  I also plan to get refitted for sneakers.  I was fitted for sneakers two years ago when I first got into running but haven't been fitted since.  I feel like my stride may have changed since getting comfortable with the activity so it's worth a look.  By the time I get to "The First Run Back", I will have increased strength in my upper body which will aid in making the transition back into running somewhat easier.  Sure, I will still have to work on my breathing pattern, build up mileage on my next-to-new-to-running legs, and concentrate on form.   But the increased strength in my hips and upper body and my well-fueled body will help to support that transition and make me a stronger runner..., biker..., and swimmer.