Road to Recovery

It has been 10 days since I injured my ankle and things have been progressing well so far. I have done my best to rest and stay off my feet as much as possible which has been extremely difficult for me. I am not a patient person and I don't do well just sitting around. This was amplified by having this week off work and having to cancel pretty much all of my vacation plans due to my ankle. I tried my best to find ways to stay busy that wouldn't cause further damage. 

For the first few nights I slept in my recliner with pillows under my feet. I wore a compression wrap during the day and iced it every morning and evening. I also used the elevator at work to cut down on the number of stairs each day. For the most part, I have seen slow but consistent improvement each day. Below are some pictures of my foot from April 12th, which was probably the peak of the bruising but when the swelling was just starting to go down. 

As of today, the bruising is about 90% gone, and the swelling is down about 80%. I'm able to walk around with a normal gait and mostly pain free. At the beginning of the week I started wearing an athletic ankle brace and intend to wear it for the next couple of months to help prevent reinjury. I've also started back to swimming and have been spending time on the exercise bike in the basement. I'm slowly beginning to add in some PT exercises to begin to strengthen my ankle as well. 

At this point I feel like I am on track to begin running again next week (after the 2 weeks of no running prescribed by the doctor) but will be extremely cautious as I start back in. While I am still very hopeful that I can get back on track by the Market to Market Relay on May 11th, I am focusing on my long term health and recovery. 

With a week off work and nothing to do, I have had a lot of time to think about how to proceed with my 2024 racing schedule. After a lot of thought and discussion with friends, I've decided that I'm going to switch things up. 2024 is less than 4 months old and I've already lost 2 months of training. I'm also a bit nervous about the intensity and milage involved with my marathon training program that was set to begin in June. With all that in mind, I'm going to shift my focus for 2024 from training longer miles for a marathon and half marathon PR attempt to shorter distance races. Specifically, I'm going to target a 5k PR. I feel like at this point of the year, this goal would be much more attainable with much less risk than going after a full marathon. 

For now, I'll keep my focus on continued recovery as well as adapting my training and race schedule for the remainder of the year. Additionally, I'm going to refocus myself on losing weight. Once I settle on schedule updates, I will share them in a future blog post.

Down But Not Out

My 2024 racing season has gotten off to a rough start. After missing nearly the entire month of February due to an impacted kidney stone, I was facing some mental struggles and issues sleeping throughout the month of March. I began to feel my racing season slipping away. As the calendar turned to April, I began to refocus myself and adjust my training schedule to match what I could do and help to build up some confidence. I really felt like I just needed some consistency and to get some miles on my legs going into the races in April. After opting for 30 minute run/walk on Saturday, April 6th I was able to complete an 8 mile training run on Sunday morning. It was hard, and I didn't run fast, but I felt great when I finished. 

I knew that my legs would need some recovery on Monday morning, so I planned to do a 60 minute run/walk again. I started off extremely easy around 5:15 am with the hope of getting about 4.5 miles in. A little over a mile in, my legs were really starting to loosen up and I had a good sweat going. As I approached 2 miles in I felt my right foot land on something hard and I instantly fell. My ankle completely rolled and I scraped my left knee on the ground. As the panic passed and I began to collect myself, I looked down to see a painted "Kindness rock" on the bike path right where my foot slid out from under me. I inspected my foot and ankle before trying to stand. My initial reaction was that nothing was broken and I was able to slowly, but painfully, walk the half mile home. 

Once at home I realized how badly scraped my knee was as well. I managed to get my knee cleaned up and take a shower before my ankle got too swollen. I quickly got a compression wrap on the ankle, a bandage on the knee, and headed to work. Things progressively got worse throughout the day on Monday and I really struggled to walk or drive. Monday night when I took off the wrap, both sides of my ankle and a lot of my foot were grotesque colors of blue and purple. Additionally, my right ankle was more than double the size of my left. I slept in my recliner with the foot elevated and I got into the doctor on Tuesday morning.

The doctor said that I had handled everything well, especially using the compression wrap. X-rays were taken and confirmed that I did not fracture any of the bones. I left the doctor with strict instructions to stay off the ankle as much as possible for 2 weeks and absolutely no running or biking for the next 2-4 weeks. We really won't know what damage is done until the doctor can evaluate the stability of my ankle after the swelling subsides, so depending on how things go in the next 2 weeks, I may need to return. 

So like February, April will turn out to be another lost month of training for the year. Unlike February, I will actually have to miss races this time. I was scheduled to run the Live Healthy Iowa 5k in Bondurant on Saturday, April 13 and the Drake Road Races 10k on Sunday, April 21 but I will not be able to do either of them. Additionally, I have the next 10 days off of work and was planning to fit a lot of good training in but that is off the table now too. 

The good news is that there is a chance that I will be able to run again during early May. After Drake, my next scheduled race is the Market to Market Relay on May 11th. That is supposed to kick off a 5 week stretch of back-to-back races. I'm not quite sure what my plans will be but I plan to evaluate that over the next several weeks and will post an update once I decide. No matter what happens, I know that I am very resilient and will be back chasing my goals as soon as it is safe and healthy to do so. For now, I'm going to try to stay positive and find ways to not die of boredom over the next 10 days. 

St. Paddy's Day 5k Recap and Training Updates

St. Paddy's Day 5k Race Recap

The weather on March 16th was fantastic for a race. Two and a half weeks removed from surgery, and just 2 weeks back into light training, I wasn't sure what to expect. Either way, I was excited to be racing again. I headed downtown early so that I could catch the start of the marathon and half marathon. Both my friend, Adam, and one of my employees, Austin, were running the full marathon. I felt some disappointment creep up as their race started knowing that my original plan was to run the half marathon. It wasn't meant to be. 

After a 45 minute wait, it was time for the 5k to start. The field included more than 1,000 runners. I felt very good from the start of the race and held a very consistent pace. The race started and finished in front of the Iowa State Capital, travelled west towards the river, ran south along the Des Moines River, made a loop to the west along the Racoon River before looping back to where we began. 

Waiting for the race to start

I didn't push too hard, and felt significantly more relaxed than I did at the Time to Paddy 5k two weeks prior. I had a pretty good kick for the last half mile and crossed the finish line very pleased with my performance. My official time was 34:28, which is the EXACT same time I ran at the Time to Paddy 5k. Even with the same time, it was clear that my fitness was starting to return based on my average heart rate for both races. 

Final kick heading to the finish line

Side-by-side race comparison

Proud Finisher

After my race, I stuck around for a couple of hours to cheer on both Adam and Austin. It was the first full marathon for both and they both did so well. 

Adam half way done

Austin half way done

Missing out on the month of February really through me for a loop. However, the realization that I have had since this race is that both of my last 5k times were faster than the Rexy Run 5k (2nd fastest 5k last year) that I ran in August last summer. Things feel harder, and I did get set back a little, but I'm still so much farther along than I was this time last year. 

Training Updates

After the St. Paddy's Day 5k, I finally returned to 100% training load as I work towards the Drake Road Races 10k at the end of April. I have also added in a couple of strength training sessions in, have made it to the swimming pool twice, and I did my first bike ride (although indoors) yesterday. I've decided to skip a couple of scheduled training runs to let my body rest when I've been extra sore or tired, but things have mostly been going fine. 

That being said, something is off, I'm just not sure what. Motivation is fleeting and although I'm getting the workouts in, I'm sort of just going through the motions. My speed is not returning as quickly as I want and when I did my 6 mile long run last weekend, my legs were shot for the rest of the day. My diet and nutrition has been off as well, which isn't helping with proper fueling and recovery for my workouts. 

I'm not sure what the cause is. Things at work have not been great, causing me more stress than normal. I've been in a bad mood at home with Erin and the girls as well. I've had an abnormally high number of bad nights of sleep in the last few weeks and the weather has SUCKED. Maybe it is combination of everything, but whatever it is, I'm really hoping to snap out of it soon. 

Wrap Up

I did have to make an adjustment to my race schedule. Due to family obligations, I won't be able to race the Bix 7 this year. I am now looking for another race (5k, 10k, or sprint triathlon) to add to my schedule between the end of July through the end of October. If you have any suggestions, let me know!

Even though my current training plan is targeting the Drake Road Races on April 21, my next race will actually be the weekend before at the Live Healthy Iowa 5k in Bondurant. 

Recovery Update, Race Recaps, and Redefining Success

A lot has transpired since my last post so I thought it would be a good time to provide an update on my recovery. Due to the whole kidney stone debacle, I have not had a chance to provide any race recaps so I wanted to do that as well. In spite of the unexpected issues in February, I really have gotten off to a great start for the year. Lastly, I will wrap up with my change in focus for the year. 

Recovery Update

My last post came just a few days after surgery #1. My 2nd surgery was scheduled for February 27th, 3 weeks after the first. To be honest, those 3 weeks of waiting were absolutely horrible. The combination of not being able to train or work out, the anxiety of not knowing the expected outcome, and the side effects of the stent were all mentally and physically draining. I really struggled. 

Finally the day came to head back to the surgery center. When the urologist stopped by before surgery, he discussed 2 possible outcomes. The best case would be that all of the damage was healed, in which case they would remove the long-term stent and replace it with a temporary stent that I could remove myself in 3 days at home with no more restrictions or issues after that. In the worst case scenario, if my body hadn't healed, he would replace the long-term stent with another one and we would discuss other options, all including at least 1 more surgery. After he left the room, I cried at the thought of this dragging out further. 

Surgery went quick, and I woke up in recovery about 45 minutes later. I will save you the details, but as soon as I woke up, I was able to determine that he had put a temporary stent in place. The feeling of relief that came over me is indescribable. Erin met me in the second recovery room about 20 minutes later and she relayed the information that I already knew. Everything went perfectly. My body had healed itself which meant I would be able to remove the temporary stent in a few days later and it would all be over. 

The side effects of the temporary stent were not as bad as the original, but it did make walking as well as the act of sitting down and standing up a little uncomfortable. Luckily, it would only be hanging around a couple of days. On Friday morning, I removed the stent and have been doing great ever since. Over lunch on Friday, I went out for my first run in nearly 4 weeks and it put me in a good mood that has lingered ever since. 

1st run in 4 weeks!

Tri for a Cause Recap

It feels so long ago now, but on January 28th I competed in my 1st race of the year. An indoor triathlon held at the Walnut Creek YMCA as a fundraiser for Girls on the Run. This was my 2nd year racing and I went into it with a lot of confidence. 

The race included a 400 yard pool swim, 7 mile ride on a spin bike, and 2 mile treadmill run. I was in the first swim wave at 6:40am and arrived with plenty of time. I knew that I would be able to finish the swim, but I hadn't been in the pool since October, so I really wasn't expecting much there. I ended up with an official time of 10:04 (2:31/100) which is almost identical to my time last year. 

Even though transition times didn't matter for this race, I quickly changed and made my way upstairs to the cycling studio. I was the 11th person out of the pool but the 2nd person on the bike. I hit the bike very hard and finished the 7 mile bike ride in 18:10 (23.1 mph) which turned out to be the 8th fastest bike time of the day. 

Crushing it on the bike!

I was the first person on the treadmill, but was joined by a couple others within a few minutes. I used a lot of my legs up on the bike, but was determined to put in a good time on the run as well. I finished the 2 mile run in 21:06 (10:33/mi) and was happy with that. 

My overall time was 49:20, which was good enough to finish 33/75 and was 7:14 faster than my time from 2023. 

Proud finisher!

Wellmark YMCA Red Flannel Run 5k

I mentioned in my last post that I didn't think I would be able to participate in this race on February 17th. A couple of days before the race, I was feeling pretty good, all things considered, so I went on a long walk to see how I felt. I handled the walk well, so decided that even though I couldn't run, I will walk the race with Erin. 

It was an extremely cold morning, so we huddled inside of the Y as long as possible before heading to the start line. After a short delay, we finally got underway. Once we got out of the building shadows, the sun felt quite nice and we kept a fairly steady pace throughout the entire distance. I felt pretty good for the first 2 miles, but dealt with some flank discomfort for the last mile.

We finished with a time of 58:14 and had a good time walking together. Even though I couldn't run, I'm glad that I decided to do the race. It gave me a little moral boost to get through the last week before surgery #2

True love

Beautiful morning for a walk along the river

Time to Paddy 5k

With this race being 4 days after surgery #2, on March 2nd, I wasn't certain if I would be able to race until the day before when the temporary stent was removed. I originally was registered to run the 10k, but with everything that had taken place in February, I updated my registration to the 5k in the slim chance that I would be able to race at all. 

Over lunch on Friday, I went for a 1.5 mile run. It was hard, but felt good, so I decided to go ahead with racing on Saturday morning. My friend, Adam, was running the 10k so we rode up to Big Creek together. It was a little chilly, but otherwise a beautiful morning to run. After a kids fun run and the national anthem, we were off and running. 

My legs were tired from the short run on Friday, and my heart rate was much higher then normal, but I ended up running better than expected. I finished the 5k run in 34:28 (11:06/mi), which was good enough for 31/56 and 3rd place in my age group. This is another race that I had done in 2023, and even though I was coming off a month without running, I was able to cut 4:39 off of my time from last year. I am very happy with that. 

Wearing green

Adam finished 3rd overall in the 10k!

Very proud finisher!

Redefining Success

There are certain things in life that we can control, but there are a whole lot of things that we cannot. A kidney stone threw a wrench into the year for me, but I am determined to make sure that it does not derail the rest of the year. With little else to do, I spent a lot of time thinking throughout the last month. One thing that was clear is that I missed running. Having both running and triathlon as an outlet is so very important in helping me to be the best person that I can be. The fact is, I lost a month of training in a season that I could not afford to. It is because of this, that I have made some small modifications to my racing schedule as well as my focus for the season as a whole, at least for now. 

As mentioned previously, I was supposed to run the Time to Paddy 10k but ended up racing the 5k instead. I was also scheduled to run the St. Paddy's Day Half Marathon on March 16th. I have opted to change my registration for that race to the 5k as well. Beyond that race, I am hoping to get back on track with my original schedule. By some miracle, it appears that I won't have to miss a single race, just adjust the distances. For the next 2 weeks, I will be gradually easing back into running by doing a 50% training load next week, and 75% the week after that. I will also begin to incorporate strength training, cycling, and swimming back in over the next month. 

Going into the year, I put a big emphasis on setting new PRs at various distances throughout the year. While I may change my mind later, for now, I am just going to focus on getting back into shape, cutting some weight, and having fun.

Wrap Up

It sure has been an interesting start to 2024, but I'm doing my best to go with the flow. I'm so relieved and happy to be running again and look forward to what the rest of the year will bring. I want to end this post giving a huge shout out to everyone who stood by my side throughout the last month. It was a very difficult month for me and I would have never gotten through it without the love and support of so many people. I'm certain that I will unintentionally miss some people, but will try my best

• My parents and mother-in-law, Mary, for spending time at our house helping out with the girls so that Erin could be by my side for both surgeries and all the hospital trips
• Adam, Megan, and Kyle. Quite possibly the best friends a guy could ask for. From Adam taking me to the ER, the care package that they put together for me, and all of the words of encouragement throughout those 4 weeks. They truly kept me going those 4 weeks, even when I didn't want to.
• My manager, employees, and a whole host of coworkers at John Deere. They supported me and filled in for me during all of the unplanned time off. So many of them reached out to check on me and showed genuine concern. I feel very blessed to work with so many great people.
• The Boys Basketball coaching staff, especially Coach Juhl. Missed games and practices along with an inability to be very mobile or do much at practice meant that they all had to cover for me as well. They also checked in on how I was doing often. 
• Finally, and most importantly, Erin. Erin has been going through a lot of her own medical issues the last couple of years, but even through all of that, she stepped up in a big way to take care of me both physically and emotionally these last 4 weeks. She managed to keep everything running in our house while working and handling her own school work. She listened to my fears and frustrations every day and continued to give me reassurance. On top of everything, her birthday was in February and we weren't able to do anything special for her. She didn't even complain a little bit. There is a 0% chance that I would have gotten through all of this without her

Thank you for reading!

727 Days of Dedication

It is very surreal to be writing this post, but as of last weekend, my run streak has officially come to an end. A streak that started on February 7, 2022 came to an end on February 4, 2024 just short of 2 full years. After a week of internal thought and reflection, I'm ready to share more with all of you. 

The unexpected ending (WARNING: some graphic descriptions ahead)

I'm going to begin with how and why the run streak came to an end so that I can end the post on a happier note. It still stings, and probably will for a long time, but I'm certain that as time goes on the disappointment will fade and a new goal or adventure will take hold. 

After an easy 3.5 mile run on the morning of January 30th, I noticed that I had some blood in my urine (hematuria). While it has been extremely rare, I have actually had this occur a couple of times before but usually after much more strenuous or long runs. In those other instances, it went away immediately and I thought nothing of it. This time, it didn't and for the next 2 days gave me a lot of anxiety as I began to feel some discomfort in my bladder as well. I dialed back to a very easy 1 mile run each day, cut out all other exercise, increased fluid intake, and scheduled a doctor appointment for February 1. 

The doctor appointment brought on more anxiety and waiting. The urine sample that I gave had too many blood cells for them to get results from an in-office test, so we would have to wait for results from the lab the following day. The doctor narrowed it down to 4 potential issues but we would have to wait for test results to know which one. Although he all but ruled out a kidney stone, due to lack of pain on my part, he also ordered a rushed CT scan to be sure. I could not focus on anything else for the rest of the day. I got a phone call as the sophomore basketball game was about to start with an 8:30am appointment on Friday for the CT scan and was surprised by how quickly they got me in. 

As I woke up Friday morning, I felt the same. I went on a very easy 1 mile run but within 30 minutes of finishing the run I was overcome with extremely sharp pain in my lower right back and side. I have never felt pain like this in my entire life. With Erin needing to get the girls to school, I called my friend, Adam, for a ride to the ER. Erin called in to take the day off work and joined us in the ER when she was done. This is where a long line of "firsts" began for me. First ever trip to the ER and first ever IV. After they got my pain under control I was off for my first ever CT scan. I ended up in the same hospital where my CT was scheduled and the staff got a bit of a kick out of that. 

The CT scan confirmed that I had a 4.9mm kidney stone that was just exiting my right kidney. The doctor was not very hopeful that it would pass on it's own, but said there as a chance it could, so I headed home from the hospital with a variety of meds and instructions to schedule a urology appointment ASAP. Shortly after arriving home, I got a call from my doctor with my blood and urine test results showing a kidney infection so antibiotics were added to my list of prescriptions. I also managed to get an 8:15am appointment with urology first thing Monday morning. I just had to make it through the weekend. 

My parents came down with intentions to attend my basketball games Friday night, but with the pain coming and going constantly, I decided to stay home so we watched the varsity game on YouTube from the living room. The pain continued to come and go on Saturday as I did my best to rest. The ER doctor said that I could continue running as long as the pain wasn't too bad, so I headed out for a VERY easy 1 mile run Saturday afternoon. 

On Saturday evening the pain came back very strong, and was radiating around my side a lot more. I fought it for about 90 minutes but eventually had Erin take me back to the ER. This time they already knew what was up, so no tests were necessary and they went straight to pain medication. The doctor's exact words were "Don't worry, I've got more pain meds then you have pain", and he was right. After a few rounds of medicine I was no longer in pain and was very drowsy. This doctor was convinced there was no way the stone was going to pass on it's own so he did everything that he could to find a urologist that would be willing to come in to the hospital on Sunday for surgery to no avail. He left a message for the urologist that I was seeing on Monday to inform them that surgery was almost certainly necessary and instructed me to not eat or drink anything after midnight on Sunday just in case they could fit me in on Monday. Before sending me home, he instructed me to decrease the amount of time between taking my morphine tablets and to take them on schedule even if I wasn't in pain to stay ahead of it. 

It was here, that I made the decision to not run on Sunday, officially ending the run streak. From Saturday night through Monday morning, I was pretty much in continuous pain, but it was a lot less strong. My parents came back on Sunday to be able to get the girls to school on Monday. Monday morning Erin loaded me up and headed to the urology appointment. The urologist was great and gave 2 options. We could either wait for an appointment to use a machine that would blast the kidney stone into smaller pieces that could pass on their own or schedule surgery for Tuesday to go in with a laser and remove it. Who can say no to lasers?!? Actually, the wait for the other machine would have been almost a week and both I and the urologist thought I needed relief sooner. 

So back home we went on Monday, awaiting surgery at 9:00am on Tuesday morning. I honestly don't remember much about Monday but remember feeling both anxiety and relief as we headed to the surgery center on Tuesday morning. Now it was time for my first ever surgery and first ever time having general anesthesia. I was amazed at how efficient the whole process was. The surgery did not go quite as planned, but they were able to get the kidney stone out. It turns out that the stone was embedded into the wall of my ureter and had punctured a hole. The doctor ended up inserting a stent that runs between my kidney and bladder to allow the hole to heal. I will have surgery again later in the month to inspect the hole and remove the stent. 

Reflecting on the streak

It may be over now, but that run streak meant so much to me. I originally wrote about the streak when I was 400 days into it. It started as a way to get back into frequent physical activity but grew into so much more. Each day that I ran, my confidence grew. I eventually found my way back to racing and triathlon. The run streak helped me to make more connections, build new friendships, and strengthen old ones. I certainly cannot remember ever single of the 727 runs, but there were a lot of great memories throughout. Battling weather, running while on vacation, getting up crazy early during basketball season, and just generally overcoming the desire to skip my run on occasion. 

The commitment that I demonstrated during this streak still amazes me. I wasn't sure that I had that in me. Back when I first started, I remember Bridget saying that I would be able to make it 50 days, then 100 days, then 200 days. I honestly had no clue how long I would go. There were days that I was sick and probably shouldn't have run, but I ran. There were days that it was bitterly cold or the trails were full of ice, but I still ran. There were times that my body was so run down and tired that I should have rested, still I ran. This streak taught me that I am capable of anything that I put my mind to. 

Total Runs: 727

Total Miles: 1,585.46

Total Time: 347 hours, 28 minutes, 48 seconds

Average Pace: 13:09/mi

Average Distance: 2.18 mi

Max Distance: 13.31 mi

Runs > 10 mi: 5

Runs > 5 mi: 44

Races: 18

Years: 3 (2022 - 2024)

I've talked with family, friends, and coworkers about my streak ending in the past week and I have received very similar feedback from all of them and the common thread is how much confidence everyone has that I will be back. Erin probably said it best, "Now you have a new goal!" 

What's Next?

For now, I need to rest and recover. I'm not on any particular restrictions but my body and mind have both been through a lot over the last week. I am not planning to exercise until the stent is removed and I recover from the 2nd surgery. I will miss my next race on February 17th for sure and am prepared to miss both of my races in March as well. Once I can get back after it, I plan to take things slow and adjust my racing season as needed. Patience is one of my biggest weaknesses, so all of this is so hard for me but I know that I'll get through and I'm confident that I will be back better than ever. 

Will I ever run 727 days in a row again? No one knows, but one thing that I do know is that I will try my best to get there.