Injured

Since October, I have been in training to run a marathon.  26.2 miles.  The marathon that I am running will take place in May, so I still have a long time to train.  129 days to be exact.  And that's a really good thing, because this week, I got injured.

 

It's kind of funny, actually.  On Sunday, we had a meeting with our volunteers for our high school program.  Because it's the first week of the new year, we did an activity to reflect on the past year, and also to make plans for the year ahead. 

 

I had two personal goals that went together: 

1. to run a marathon
2. to not get hurt.

A couple of hours after we shared our goals, we went to Mass.  At Mass, we were kneeling, and when we stood up from kneeling, pain shot through my leg.  It was burning.  It hurt so badly that I could barely stand.  I pulled a muscle two hours after I said that it was my goal to not get hurt.  TWO HOURS!!  DURING MASS!  You can imagine my frustration.

The next day I was supposed to run again.  It was an easy day:  four miles (yes, that's an easy day in marathon training).  I was excited because, well, I'm training in the winter and, well, that's cold.  Most of my running takes place in the morning when it's 19 degrees, five degrees, one degree.  I've not actually run if it's been negative temperatures, but I have run in sub-freezing weather so many times now.  And when you're out there for two hours or so, it's miserable.  It makes my skin turn bright red, like I've been sunburned.  It doesn't feel too cold while I'm actually running, but it sure does get cold when I stop!  And sometimes it takes me a long time to really warm back up after I get home.

Well yesterday was such a beautiful day.  The weather was warm.  The sun was out.  And I really wanted to run.  But I couldn't.  It wouldn't have helped me prepare for my marathon.  It would have, actually, made it much worse.  It really was a sad day.

God gives us lessons all the time, in amazing different kinds of ways.  I know that He didn't hurt me (even though it was during MASS that I actually got hurt), but He still uses the bad situations in our lives to teach us a thing or two:  patience in healing is something that doesn't come naturally.  We definitely have to be taught how to do it.

It's really interesting that this happened when it did.  I had been getting discouraged with my running program recently.  And then, all of a sudden, I got really excited about it again.  I had just completed a "perfect week" of training.  I did everything that was on my schedule even though I really didn't feel like it.  I was so proud of myself, and I was so excited to start the next week.

Being discouraged from time-to-time is natural, I think, in any training program.  As disappointing as it was that this injury happened when I was really excited instead of when I needed a break, it's probably a really good thing that it happened this way.  I might have given up all together if this happened when I was discouraged.  I might have just hung up the towel and said, "Oh well, I tried."  But I can't wait to get back out there!  I am going to feel unstoppable when I do!

I have also learned a thing or two about what my body needs.  Clearly I did something wrong.  Either I didn't stretch enough, I didn't warm up enough, I didn't cool down enough, or some combination of those things.  Maybe I pushed myself harder than I should have (I did push myself really hard).  The point is, my body is telling me something, and it's important that I listen.

I got an injury, and that's sad.  Taking time to heal is annoying, but with any luck, it will make me stronger, more enthusiastic and determined than I was before.  If that's true, then I'm glad that it happened!  It's not going to stop me, just delay and rejuvenate me!  Bring it on!