Going the Distance, Part 3

Since I ran the
Las Vegas Half Marathon in December, I feel as if I have
been on a downward spiral. On December 15, I ran a 20-miler
in Los Angeles, sustaining in a minor injury to my
foot that caused some isolated swelling --
possibly a stress fracture, also known as a fatigue
fracture. This results from repeated stress, like running on
hard surfaces, that creates microscopic hairline
fractures in the bone. These tiny fractures are rarely
visible in X-rays. The best way to treat this common
runner’s injury is rest. I stayed off my foot for
about five days.

After recovering
I was ready to resume my maintenance runs, but the
fierce weather here in Las Vegas interfered. The wind was
gusting at more than 40 miles per hour. The
temperature was in the upper 30s to low 40s. I ended
up running on my gym’s dreaded treadmill. Running in
the same spot 30 minutes or more can be boring, so I
take my iPod and listen to music as I run. I
especially like listening to Los Angeles–based rocker
Gabe Lopez. He’s a cutie with a hot sound that keeps
me going. When running on the course with the National
AIDS Marathon, we are not allowed to wear headphones
in the interest of safety. It also works against
building and keeping the team spirit of our pace groups.

Around the end of
December, I began to experience a profound lack of
energy. I was sleeping quite a bit and had little stamina
and desire to do my maintenance runs. I had to force
myself to get up and run. In so doing, I slowed down
my pace. I was able to complete a 30-minute run but
felt tired afterward.