I probably qualify as one of the lost sheep, but am happy to be returning to the fold. Not long before the Hurricane Half Marathon last year I was playing unlimate frisbee (Best team sport known to man, by the way) when I hurt my foot. The doctor did an X-Ray/MRI, but in the end said that the best thing I could do was to stay off of it while it healed. I took a six week break, but found that even after the six weeks were passed that things didn't feel quite right. I could run on it, and felt like I could deal with the soreness the day after a run, but must have unconsciously changed my gait to compensate. (That's the theory anyway, because my left knee and shin started to bother me after a few weeks.) I decided to take more time off. When it became clear that I was going to miss running St. George I lost a lot of the urgency I felt to keep on my schedule. I think that's a lesson for me - I need to focus on the lifestyle of running instead of a particular event so that I can stay more focused through the ups and downs.
Things feel much better now. The back of my heal to the arch of my foot alternates between being numb and tingly (like the feeling after you hit your funny bone), but that's more an observation than a hindrance. I started running again in December, though it was intermittent. I've been more regular this month, but am purposely keeping it easy. My wife is having a baby on Thursday, so I'm going to wait until she's home from the hospital to bump my schedule to four times per week. After a few weeks of that I'll begin building my weekly mileage back up to 25 miles per week, where I'll stay for the foreseeable future.
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