Survey says? well, actually it wasn't a survey...but a doc visit...

I haven't had a lot of positive things to write about lately... Honestly, its been a tough year with regards to running. Training for the Snickers Marathon went well until I started feeling some weirdness in my left leg. At first it wasn't in the shin. It was actually in my left hip. It caused a 15 mile training run in mid-November to be cut short at 12.5 miles. Then, in February I started having shin pains and figured it was just shin splints. If only knew then what I knew now about 'shin splints'. March was marathon time. I've shared in an earlier post about my marathon experience so I won't get into that. A successful marathon in that I crossed the finish line. A failure in that I was almost a full hour off my target time.

The last few months have been filled with highs and lows....mostly lows. Go to the doc and be told 'stop running...get this test...come back in 4 weeks....ok, you can start running again'.... only to have the pain come back in my left shin. This cycle seemed to happen on a monthly basis...almost like a lunar schedule or something.

Last month I decided to seek a 2nd opinion and learned something the first doctor didn't see or even check for. My left tibia is larger in diameter than my right. Why? Well, still not sure. I met with 3rd opinion doctor today whom the 2nd opinion doctor requested me to see. He ran through a laundry list of things that he thought could be wrong only to cross off items on the list one by one. Probably the most comforting items to be crossed off were the three types of cancer it could be. All three are not possible because, well, if I had them I wouldn't be with you anymore. So, those were ruled out. Another possible item not possible because it would involve me having TB which I do not have. All items on his list were struck....leaving no definitive diagnosis of my problem....except that my left tibia is almost a half inch in diameter bigger than my right.

The doc said 'go forth and conquer!' But, he followed his edict with 'CROSS TRAIN!' He said it again a few sentences later...'CROSS TRAIN!' Ok doc...gotcha...i should consider cross training. Then, it popped in my head...'hey....i could train for a triathalon!!!!' Silly thought at first which I kept inside my noggin. I will confess this idea has popped in there before.

Who knows what the future holds.....all I know is I miss running....i miss seeing the mommy and daddy coyotes in the empty subdivision i have trained in for the last two years....i miss seeing the red tail hawk and it's neighboring coopers hawk floating effortlessly along my flank as i jog through that area....i miss seeing the baby deer tracks on the sides of the roads...i miss the smells of farm land and trees...and i miss listening to all that wacko 70s and 80s music i grew up on along with my Christian tunes on my ipod

Sometimes we encounter hurdles.....sometimes we come up to a wall and face the decision of 'over?', 'around?', or, 'go back the way you came!' I'm not sure if what I've faced (am facing) is just a hurdle or a wall....one thing is for certain though, i'm not going back the way i came......

and now begins a new chapter

Hopefully a pain free one. As of today I have done three walk/jog routines. The first two were awesome. Today was tough in the heat. I wish I could report no pain on this run but unfortunately I have some pain in the location that has the docs baffled. On top of that, the knot that was the point of interest...is once again the point of interest....it actually grew in size after today's run. I have a followup at Piedmont next week and I'm anxious to see the doc. I'll continue to alternate my days of running and riding the bike. My mileage is very low...the running segments have been 800 meters with a recovery by which I wait until my heart rate hits 100bpm. It takes about 60 seconds for my rate to drop from 150 to 100. According to one of the coaching physiology books i'm studying thats pretty darn good! Anyways, i'll contine to trod on...lightly...slow mileage...short distances....and lots of praying.

T

Survey says!!!!

NO MASS FOUND!!!! Actually it was the MRI report that stated this. Periosteal reaction is the determination. This means there has been new bone growth on my tibia. The unknown is what caused this to happen and when.

This has baffled Doc #2. Two docs? you ask? Yep. When i'm told to stop running it is serious enough to seek a second opinion. Doc #1 says no running for 2-3 weeks and believes it is 'just a shin splint that got really aggitated....possibly brought on due to the stress fracture...'. Doc #2 says to start back running when I'm ready and is still 'puzzled by the size differential of my left tibia compared to the right tibia'. Which, by the way, only Doc #2 took the time to x-ray both of my legs...unlike Doc #1 who has remained focused just on my left leg.

I'm staying with Doc #2 because I feel he is looking for the cause...not simply treating the symptoms. Nothing bad against Doc #1....well, maybe a little. When I have to ask the doc (#1) to feel my leg and tell me what something is, well, thats kinda unsettling. However, my first visit with Doc #2 he rolled his stool over to me, rolled up my pants leg and started pressing and mashing asking where it hurt and didn't hurt. He used a Sharpie pen to mark spots where it hurt and where he felt something unusual. Then, he sent me back for xrays...of both legs! I remember laying on the xray table and thinking 'now this doc is trying to find out what is going on with me....'

There are those who say if you go to the doc enough they will find something wrong with you. Totally agree with that. But, when you feel like all you are doing is paying a copay, getting a test, coming back in a few weeks for a followup....well, it begins to grate on you. Not to mention the lags in my 'treatment' by Doc #1 caused me to run into a new insurance year (started July 1st). That means the MRI I had done July 21st isn't fully paid for because my deductible was reset on July 1. So, Doc #1 has cost me my $500 deductible. Ugh.

I'm anxious to start running again. But, this setback has allowed me to really think about why I run....what about it gives me joy.....do i really need to do the marathon distance? Many discussions with myself over the last few months. RC told me back in late March..."the thing" should be my fitness....not running a marathon in 3 hrs 30 minutes (my qual time for B) which would be totally awesome....its not doing a 50k in the rain and mud (like my buddy Tim did last year).....its about keeping my heart conditioned....enjoying the feeling of being fit and able to play with my kids....and grandkids some day.

I don't know what the future holds yet. This weekend I plan on doing a short 2 mile mixture of walking and jogging. Just to check out the legs. If the pain returns I will not lie....i will be very upset. My prayer is that the pain never comes back.

T