Weebles

You know those Indiana Jones- type films when they are crossing a rope bridge with the baddies catching up with them, and the baddies cut the rope? The bridge starts to disintegrate and the slats of wood fall away one by one into the chasm; the roaring river below waiting to swallow up anyone who falls. Every time the hero thinks they have a firm footing it suddenly gives way and they scramble along with us sitting, hearts in mouths, thinking they can't possibly make it.

I went to a Kung Fu class once and my instructor asked me if I would mind helping him practice for his black belt; he wanted to practice his knife drills and needed someone to attack him. I was happy to do this and spent the next two hours repeatedly threatening him with a plastic knife; each time he used a different technique to kick, punch or generally hurl me to the ground and deal me a death blow. After each mauling I would get up, pick up the plastic knife, and square up for the next futile attack.  Down I went, punch, roll over, get up and repeat.

My running in the last few years has felt like this; recover from injury, nearly get back to form then something else happens to stop me running- another slat drops away from under my feet. In the last year alone I have sprained my ankle twice, continued with treatment for tendinopathy, had a sore knee caused by tight quads, had problems with every element of work that took up too much of my time, and found myself thrown into the role of primary carer for a sick partner.

So what now?

A torn meniscus. I can't run at all; in fact today I can barely walk.  The unfairness of this is many- layered. I look after myself, I stretch daily and carry out strengthening exercises as well. I always use the stairs at work to get up six floors to the office. I attend a yoga class once a week, so my muscles and joints are well looked after. I eat very well and am highly motivated and passionate about getting out running.  I don't push myself too hard and have read enough books to know how to construct a sensible training regime.  I have been running competitively for 30 years, so have surely built up some durability. However, I have managed only one race this year, and only two last year despite some pretty regular running.
I am now faced with weeks, probably months of no running; another race entry fee down the drain, and another year closer to not being able to compete at all. The whole thing is deeply dispiriting and feels very unfair considering the amount of time and effort I invest in running.  Not to mention that for me running is a perfect release for all the stresses of a challenging job and a seriously ill partner; the one thing I have always depended on has let me down again. I need to exercise but can't.
Surely one of the wooden slats is going to be the final one to give way and I no longer have the spirit to leap onto another one. I can't just keep getting up from an attack only to be floored again, and again and again. There will be a point when I just roll over.

So, how do I get up from this latest attack? Should I ask myself if my body is telling me something?  Be unhealthy like most people? Pull myself together?

So, trying to maintain some optimism and clutching at straws rather than bits of bridge, I have been told yoga is ok if I don't sit cross legged, and cycling is fine.  Cycling, my old fail-safe.

In the absence of any running it is on with the Lycra and out with the triathlon club. So the next blog entries will be cycling ones in the same vein as previous entries, and we will see what happens.