Getting started

This is my first blog post ever.  I thought it would be a good way for me to log my experiences while training for my first marathon.  So, here it goes....

Back in August of 2010 I decided I wanted to start running.  I wanted to get healthy and I was tired of being out of breath and tired all of the time.  I really knew nothing about running other that how much I hated it.  The last time I ran was at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) in 2006.  I was in basic training for my job and it was a requirement.  I ended up with severe knee pain, in both knees, and barely finished the academy (after cortisone shots in both knees).  I swore I would never run again!  So why did I have this sudden desire to run again?  I still can't answer that!

So I began doing research, I read blogs, subscribed to websites, watched videos and asked questions on forums.  By the end of September I felt that I was ready to begin my journey into running.  I set my sights on running a 5K at the end of October and even went ahead and registered for it.

Unfortunately my job sent me back to FLETC for a 3 week training class and I missed the 5K.  While I was there I continued running.  At some point on one of those runs a thought crossed my mind "I want to run a marathon"!  I researched it and found a 16 week plan for beginners who want to run a marathon.  Then I found a marathon near my hometown, the Mercedes Marathon in Birmingham, AL.

I began the training program, slowly increasing my weekly mileage and my weekend long runs.  Slowly I fell in love with running, my body felt great!  I couldn't wait for my next run, it's all I could think about.

Sometime in Novemeber, around Thanksgiving, my ankles began hurting.  On one run, it was supposed to be a 5 miler I think, I had to quit after just over a mile, I had been running for right at 2 months and had never quit a run before, but there was no continuing.  Over the next week or so I took it easy and slowly began to run through the ankle pain.....and then......the knee pain hit!

Yes the same knee pain that made me swear never to run again was back.  I thought I was doomed, I thought this was the end of my plan to run a marathon!  Luckily it wasn't, this time I was able to work through it, it hurt, but I worked through it!

Finally the end of December came, my mileage was increasing and I finally felt like "I CAN DO THIS!".  I was running farther than I had ever imagined that I could, I was pushing myself harder that I ever thought I could, and I was loving it!

On my last run, January 2, 20011, I made it 18 miles.  18 MILES! I was so happy, I couldn't believe that the guy who swore he would never run again just ran that far!  I took my normal after long run ice cold bath, but this time something was different.  This time I could barely walk afterwards, this time there was pain in my hips, not soreness but PAIN!  I knew something was wrong!

Initial X-rays gave me some hope, there was no signs of any fractures and the doctor started treating me for inflamation.  Over the next couple of weeks the pain never went away and so this time I had an MRI.  The MRI results were not as good!  Stress fractures in both hips was the diagnosis, 6 weeks recovery time! 

I was crushed.  I wanted this marathon bad!  I could almost taste it!  I was less than a month away from it and now I can't run it.  The doctor assured me that I would be running again, he even said he had no doubt I will run a marathon, this was good news.  He said I can still cross train while recovering, biking and swimming are ok!

And so, while my quest to run THIS marathon has ended, a new quest to recover and bounce back from this injury has began!