MystoMan

By my senior year of college, I had kind of outgrown the fraternity thing.  I had my friends and we all hung out, but not much at the fraternity house.  So, when we went to the house, all of the other guys would give me grief, saying things like "Whoa!  Who is that?  Mysto Man!  Where have YOU been?"  And that made it uncomfortable to go back to the house so that over time, I didn't want to go to the house to avoid everyone asking where I had been and why I didn't come by the house anymore.  So, maybe I have avoided my blog because I haven't been here for awhile.

So, where have I been?  Well after my last post and recovering from a maybe stress fracture in my right foot, I had a series of mishaps and set backs, primarily injury related.  In May I ran a fun run with my 9 year old daughter and friends.  After we got spread out I turned around to look for them, running backwards.  I promptly stepped into a pothole, and went heels over head, landing on my head and elbow.  I sprained my ankle, severely bruised my elbow, and had to get checked out for a potential concussion.  All is fine on that front.  But my left foot starting hurting.  Namely, the base of my left big toe.  I have always had some toe pain there, and it does not go away with rest or inactivity.  But this toe pain got much worse over last several weeks.  After putting it off, but being unable to run with it, I went to a podiatrist.  The verdict: Stage Three hallux limitus.  In  essence, arthritis of the toe joint.  This is rather worrisome in that it is chronic pain, and will NEVER go away.  I have dealt with it for years, but it has gotten worse lately.  I am not sure exactly what to do about it, actually.  My podiatrist is developing an orthotic to limit toe flexion, but still, there is no cure for it. 

So, I have run about 5 times in the last 3 months, none of which were memorable except for how hard they felt and just how far from OK I felt.  My plans for the NY Marathon this fall are really, really unsure now.  I might defer for a year.  If I can get a good July and August in, I can make the call then.  But I also need to drop some pounds now (I have been eating during this layoff), so I will need to train and diet, which is hard to do.  And avoid injury to boot.

Later this week we leave for Colorado for 10 days.  It is always good to get out there and be outside as much as possible.  Running out there is a total bear because of the altitude, so it is a hard place to start a health kick, but I simply have to do it.  It is also difficult because last year when I was out there over July 4th,I was in great shape.  I had just lost 45 pounds, run a 1:39 half marathon and felt and looked great.  This year is the polar opposite.  In fact, it is why I have avoided my blogs and everyone else's also; sort of guilt at not being in the club, but almost the exact opposite: unhealthy and injured.  And that is why I didn't post;  my medical travails (and lack of motivation) were depressing enough to live through, but to blog about them would have been a real downer.

But one thing I have realized lately is that I am not getting any younger.  These injuries, while annoying are not life threatening and just part of leading an active life.  And as the saying goes "Get busy living or get busy dying."

I have missed reading about everyone's struggles and triumphs, and getting feedback also.  But I am back now, hopefully for a while.