I Know that Feeling...

Today while I was running, I felt a familiar feeling...like I felt in the fall that forced an early taper for the Quad Cities Half Marathon I did.  It is an unpredictable pain located in areas around my knee - in front of and behind it - that causes me to change my stride and sometimes stop running.  Although I went to physical therapy and my injury eventually worked itself out and disappeared, I don't think my physical therapist ever exactly knew what it was.  It was rather mysterious.... and just like many mysteries, the villain comes back and the most inopportune, least-suspecting time. 

However, the major difference this time is I know some of the exercises that I did that seemed to help.  For some reason, the treadmill makes my running worse.  I can run outside on the streets/roads/trails much better and pain-free right now.  But once I step on the treadmill, the likelihood that I'll experience pain drastically increases.  Good thing the weather is turning nicer so I won't have to free everytime I step outside for a run.  Now, it is more likely that I'll get wet due to the copious amount of rain that we've been experiencing in the Midwest. 

I'll be attempting to incorporate my own version of physical therapy into my workouts and, hopefully, it will work.  Please keep your fingers crossed for me, as I have an incredibly busy spring and early summer.  Although I nixed my first race of April (a 10k), I do not want to cut any other races from my schedule, especially for an injury.  Remember....

I am racing a duathlon on April 30
..................a half marathon on May 15
.................a 4 mile race on May 29
.................the Tour de Cure bike race on June 12

and my newest edition.....as of two nights ago......the Madison to Chicago 200 mile Relay on June 10-11.

That means I'll have the MC200 on June 10 and 11 and the Tour de Cure on the 12th.  However, I'm only biking 30 miles for the Tour de Cure, which, in my mind, is nothing. 

I'll be doing two Ragnar Relays this summer: Madison to Chicago and NW Passage.  I decided to sign up for the MC200 because it will be a nice way to start my official marathon training.  However, I think it is fairly comical because the group I am going to be training with for the marathon will have their first training run that weekend and I'll miss it.  Oh, well..there is always the next weekend. 

How many races do you have left to compete in this spring?  I am sooo excited for all of mine.  Seriously, I can't wait for the April 30th to come because it is going to be a fun, crazy ride.