Well now.....

Time has slipped away and I owe you an update:

 - April 6 -12: regular weekday runs of 4 miles (Tuesday) and 8 miles (Wednesday). I skipped my run Thursday so I could get a head start driving south to volunteer at the Zumbro Endurance Runs. No running for me until I returned home Sunday afternoon where I joined Sarah for a nice 9 miler at Jay Cooke State Park on a very warm day.

 - April 13-19: 5 miles on trails (planned 4) on Tuesday in my Inov-8's (have been running my shortest run each week in these shoes). 10 miles on Wednesday (up from the planned 8 due to peer pressure and fun trails). 4.5 miles on Thursday (down from 6 miles due to the longer runs the previous two days). Saturday I headed out the door for my first 20 miler of the year. It was a fun run with Shaun in which we stopped a lot, took many photos, explored side trails, and enjoyed a sunny yet blustery day on the trails. Despite our leisurely pace (or because of it?) I rolled my ankles a lot; three times on my right side and twice on my left. None of the rolls was very painful though I do remember at least one having me hop a bit and another being remarkable for happening on a relatively smooth gravel road. By the time we reached my house my gait was being affected by pain in my right lower leg which I attributed to tweaked muscles from all of the ankle rolls.

Cherry species - Ely's Peak area

Wintergreen berry - Ely's Peak area

Hepatica - somewhere on the SHT in Duluth

Creek near Magney-Snively, SHT Duluth

Close up of the ice - where SHT crosses the creek

Fancy new railing on the old bridge near the
Highland & Getchell intersection - SHT - Duluth

Sunday I met my daughter for a run at Jay Cooke State Park. She wanted to run 6 and I was planning on 12. My right lower leg was a bit stiff at first but seemed to loosen up as I ran. By 2.5 - 3 miles things had gotten worse and I opted to finish up the day by hiking back to my car. I couldn't run any further due to the pain I felt each time I bent my leg.

- April 20 - 26: No running but a lot of limping. It felt like I might have an acute tendinitis as it hurt to bend my knee. I iced a lot and had some deep tissue work done that week as it felt like I had tweaked the peroneus longus muscle. By the end of the week I was able to walk normally so thought I would try a short run Saturday. Made it 0.1 miles before the pain made it clear I was not going to be running yet. Since I wasn't able to run I was making good progress on my most recent knitting project:

Dovetail Shawl

I am using Kauni Wool 8/2 Effektgarn (Rainbow color way) as called for in the pattern but have combined it with a nice solid black to bring out the color changes. It is quite stunning. I started this shawl just before heading south to work the Zumbro races.

- April 27 - May 3: Still no running. Sigh. I had now missed one race for the Northwoods Team (Get in Gear 10K) and had another race and hike planned this weekend. I was mostly able to walk without pain, but hills and stairs still hurt. I could bike, so rode one night after work and commuted on another day. By Friday, in consult with a health care provider, I decided it was time to get an x-ray. One of the doctors I work with ordered the imaging and I had this done prior to seeing a Sports Medicine doctor that afternoon. Diagnosis: hairline fracture of my proximal fibula. The crack was going down the length of the bone from just below the fibular head. The odd thing was that it hadn't hurt to have my fibula manipulated. My doctor attributed the injury to the ankle rolls I experienced during the long run two weeks previously. I was provided with an air cast to wear for the next 4 weeks. I could continue to bike, so got in rides both Saturday and Sunday including a 9 mile mountain bike ride (shhhh.... my doctors might not like hearing that one).

Bloodroot 

My mountain bike in it's natural setting

Hepatica - white and purple variants

Wild Oats

 - May 4 - 10th: Lots of biking to and from work (15 miles round trip). I also brought my bike to Stillwater, MN to ride the final miles of the Break the Stigma Run with Julio and his crew. It was great to see him finish his run across Minnesota. Sunday I volunteered at the NMTC run which involved some short bike rides up and down the Spirit Mountain ski hill (shhhhh.... don't tell my doctors) and scouting out pockets of wildflowers amongst the bedrock outcroppings.

Large-flowered Trillium

Viola species

Ribes species

Large-flowered Trillium and Bellwort

Sarsaparilla species

Strawberry species

Large-flowered Trillium

So... three weeks of healing down and three more to go. I see my Ortho doctor at the end of May for a follow-up x-ray and visit. Hopefully all will be well by then and I will be cleared to start running. I am already seeing improvement, only experiencing mild discomfort when walking downhill/down stairs (an issue when you live in a house perched on a hillside).

I won't be running the Spring Superior 50K, but plan to head up to volunteer and cheer on my daughter in her first 25K this weekend.

I am hopeful that I will still be able to run Voyageur in July, and my doctor was pretty confident that would be possible (assuming I keep up with cross-training). My goal race is Superior (Sawtooth)100 mile and I am willing to set Voyageur aside if needed to ensure I am in good condition for this race.