Restart

I've decided to start the blog again!

I'm not running regularly right now, in fact I've essentially been on the sidelines since last May. For much of the time I barely think of myself as a runner any more such have been my injury frustrations! However, my body is starting to feel like it will be ready to start training again soon and I'm hoping that after so many false dawns the past few months, this time the restart will be for real!

For the second half of last year I had ongoing issues in my left glute/hamstring. I was able to put together the odd solid week of training, even venturing back into the odd couple of races but really I was running through the injury, only the good hands at Carolina Sports Clinic holding me together. I could run so I did, even though not even one run was pain free. Yes I was being stupid and in major denial, shoot me!

Then just round the New Year, a new injury struck. Great, at least I can forget about the other injury for a while and focus on this one right?! Groin strain on the other side. At last I was stopped in my tracks. I couldn't run even if I wanted to. This was a weird injury. I could barely feel it on a day to day basis but every time I did a test run I would get 10 minutes in and the pain would start to flare up again. A couple of days off and it would feel ready again only to break down on my next effort to run. So my training log for the first six weeks of the new year was a cycle of run, rest, rest, run, rest, rest, rest, run, rinse, repeat!

However, last week, a breakthrough of sorts. After yet another aborted effort, I was walking/limping around the next day and the pain in my groin seemed to have shifted around to my quad. From previous experience of injury I have found this to be a good thing, a sign of pain trying to leave the body if you like. So I haven't run for the past week or so and right now I can't feel any pain at all.

Am I ready at last to start training again? We'll see. One of the purposes of restarting the blog is to have some sort of accountability to a wider audience. If I say here that I'm going to be cautious and listen to my body more then there is more chance of me doing so. Keep your fingers crossed!