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.
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.
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.
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.
