becoming a runner

so, remember this post? the one where i told all ya'll that i had a tibia stress fracture and would be out of the running game for four-to-six weeks?

well, i got back at it after five weeks off. once i was able to pass the "hop test" with flying colors, i decided to start running again, but very conservatively (my runs mostly consisted of long walks with occasional running thrown in for giggles). but within one week of resuming my training, the exact same pain came back... only this time, in the other leg.


infuriating. i know.

i decided it was time to put on my big girl pants and see a real doctor.

turns out, that was the right decision. it has been about five weeks since i saw this doctor and i.am.totally.f*cking.rocking.it. he diagnosed me as a severe over-pronator and also noted that my hips are quite turned out when i run (birthing twins from your loins, anyone?). he confirmed that i'm in the right kind of shoe and highly recommended some custom orthotics for my feet.

i was skeptical, to say the least. i left there feeling a bit like i had seen a medicine man. like, you want to believe him, and he makes you feel really good about the possibility of your healing, but you just have so much doubt rolling around in your head.

turns out, he was right.

oh, it has been so good to be out there running again. and to top it all off, i have running buddies - something i have never had, nor ever really sought out. i have pretty much always been a lone runner, save for the few years in college when my roommate and i would run together. since then, it's just been me, my shoes and the pavement. but two neighbor friends of mine are runners, and we've started running together. it's glorious. four miles tick by in the blink of an eye. also, one of my best friends in the world just took up the sport. we've been friends for nearly eight years and have weathered many things together - but never running! we have now crossed that barrier, and i'm pretty sure we'll soon be wearing each others underpants... or something.

today, just to mix up my training routine, i got on a bike for fifteen minutes, ran a pretty quick clip for a mile, and swam for another ten minutes. maybe a triathlon is in my future? maybe. but first up is the rock and roll arizona half marathon in january 2012, which i will be running with one of my other best friends. i've heard that these RnR marathons are pretty much like parties on the road, except, you know, you're really sweaty, you stink like a pig in vinegar, your thighs are probably bleeding from rubbing together for way too long, etc. i know that doesn't sound like much of a party. but it sounds like bliss to me. this will be my first half marathon, and i plan to rock.the.effing.face.off.of.it.

i'm not sure who i have become since this running bug came up and bit me in the ass, but i'm pretty sure i'm a runner now.