Feeling like a blob....and needing a little stress release

Forced rest..... that is what I am dealing with right now, on so many levels.

First my silly toe/foot tendonitis may actually be a stress fracture; at least that is the current worry of my physical therapist. I've been going diligently twice a week for weeks now; so while I have some improvement I've also had set backs. So I have a message into my doctor in the hopes to schedule a bone scan to look at that silly phalanges of my fourth toe. I did make it through my first triathlon of the season, with a fair amount of pain in my foot during the bike and run portions.

The pain of my foot was highly underscored by GI issues I've been challenged with for several months. Not surprisingly, my training has included several endurance workouts, either on the bike or a long run; each endurance workout has resulted in the same symptoms, cramps, and discomfort. I'd spoken with my Mom (a RN) about the symptoms once, and we decided to watch them; me being who I am never bothered to mention to her again that they were continuing or increasing, I was still "watching". Then after my last training run with Cindy, I mentioned how tired I was getting of the symptoms, and how much they'd increased in intensity. Cindy, a paramedic, gave me a "what the hell" look and gently probed me to contact my doctor as my symptoms were far, very far, from normal or healthy. Apparently the email to my doctor that night set off several warning bells, and I had a same day appointment within minutes of the office opening. (I had sent the email at 8pm the prior night) A tentative diagnosis was given, with orders to rest (a lot) and get in to see a GI doctor as soon as possible. I did my triathlon after the diagnosis, knowing that I couldn't push my body as hard as I would have liked. Even without pushing my body certainly didn't like me. The nausea, vomiting, stomach cramps, and other symptoms after the race was certainly not fun. Here's a shoot out to my sister, father, and Cindy for taking such wonderful care of me after the race. How great of a training partner do I have, for walking me to the Porta-potty and waiting for me. My sister managed to get me extra bottles of water (my lovely nephew popping out of her belly probably helped) and my dad stroked my back while I sat at medical while Cindy checked my BP. So here I am 5 days post race, and 2 days prior to my next race and the only workout I've gotten in, is a Barre3 class.

Here I am complaining about having to rest, and here's the real reason why.... I need the stress release of my workouts. My Aunt Jane's health seems to be failing rather rapidly. Two days before my triathlon Jane received some bad news about her battle with cancer. The lesions in her liver have grown, and she was taken off the trial medication she's been on. Since then she's had a persistent fever, extreme fatigue, and nausea.  My mom is worried, more than she's letting on, and it's really getting to me. We lost Ken to this same cancer in April, and here we are facing the same scenario just months later. I've been in tears several times this week, knowing there's not much I can do for Jane. I'm not ready to let her go, but I also don't want to see her suffer or feel as miserable as she has been. I want to get lost in my swims, rides, and runs to let my mind go blank instead of sitting here dwelling on what's to come.

Even knowing what discomfort is to come on Sunday, I'm looking forward to the 1/2 Marathon. Ken will be running it with me, I'll have his picture pinned to my shirt, and I'll get that little bit of release I've been craving. I know Cal will also be watching over me occasionally during my run, but I think he'll be watching over his wife more than me. (Cal I'm not ready for her to join you and Ken yet). Next week I have my GI consult, and hope that I can come off of this "extreme" rest and start to add workouts back into my daily routine. I also plan to spend a lot of time with my Aunt, hopefully riding my bike to and from my parent's house to combine my workouts and time with Jane.

Remember to tell your loved ones how much they mean to you. Don't wait until something happens, instead give them that daily reminder. Life is too short to have any regrets.