My Tumultuous Return to Racing

Last weekend, I raced for the first time in about a year and a half. My last race was the

Burn Run in 2024, which sounds and feels like it was forever ago. Shortly after that race, I was

sidelined for a year. I had shin pain, that was more of an inflamed feeling, like my shin was

simmering if I would stand for too long or after I ran. I tried to come back a couple of times, but

at some point, I would reach the conclusion that I was doing more harm than good. Eventually I

was suggested to see if it was my back, because apparently your back can make this sensation

occur as a version of sciatica. Since I have been addressing my back, I have been able to run and

do it at a high level. So I finally signed up for some races, and they just happened to be on back-

to-back days… oops.

However, this is not what made my return to racing tumultuous, it was the fact that nine

days before I was supposed to do my first race, I, of course, got hurt again. It was nothing too

serious or debilitating, but it was caused by going fast. I was doing my weekly 6 x mile workout,

and on my last rep at the very end, the back of my right leg felt a pull? A tinge? A strain?

Something that made it start to not feel good.

I was able to run the next day. My leg just felt very tight. I did not have any workout

lined up the rest of the week, and I was able to get through my long run with minimal

discomfort, and by the following Tuesday, I did not feel any discomfort at all, so I went for a

workout. It was now the week of the race, so I was going to keep the workout light anyways, but

before I even made it to my fourth mile of running, I felt the same feeling again of the muscle

straining. So I cooled down to the house and skipped out on workouts for the rest of the week. I

thought about not racing. I really did not want to if I was not going to be 100%, but at this point,

I have wasted hundreds if not a thousand dollars worth of race fees and hotel accommodations

that have gone unused. So if I could run, I decided I would do it, but I wanted to be extra mindful

of how my body felt.

So Saturday, I showed up to the start line for the Run for Recovery 5k put on by Helio

Health to help raise awareness and funds for those struggling with addiction. From what I saw, I

figured it was going to be Joe Bright and I running at the front. I went out fast, and after a quarter

mile I did not hear anyone behind me, so I went into a more conservative mode. Not completely

slowing, but I was my leg to feel more comfortable than it felt, but then at the mid-point of the

race, I heard footsteps behind me.

This caught me off guard. I knew I slowed, but it did not feel too significant. I did not

want to turn around though, but it made my heart start to flutter. My rhythm felt off and so did

my breathing now. I had not significantly changed my pace, but now it felt like I was working so

much harder. I slowly accelerated, and at some point the foot steps subsided. There is one hill,

and I cruised up it, and I was able to ride the momentum of the downhill to the finish.

I wanted to be able to fully speed up at the end and really give an all out sprint as I

crossed the tape, but I did not have it in my leg. This is still the only race that I have broken the

tape on, this year and two years earlier as well. I have had the honor of alternating wins with Joe

Bright. I won four years ago, he won three years ago, I won two years ago, he won last year, and

I won this year, so it has been a fun back and forth. They also give great prizes to first, a gift card

to beak and skiff, a gift card to fleet feet, and a pass to the zoo. They also interviewed me after! I

have not seen it anywhere yet, but it felt cool to be interviewed.

I spent the rest of the day resting up, and I have been giving the spot on the back of my

leg added attention when I am stretching and rolling. My legs did not feel too sore, and this can

be said for the next morning as well, when I got up early to prepare for the Sand to Serengeti.

This started at 8, which was nice, because that meant that there were less people out around the

lake, which was an issue the previous day. Although sadly, it was not any cooler, and it was more

humid, so I was already sweating bullets on the warmup.

I did not know the people racing in this year, so I started out in the second row, just to

see, and when the race started, I went out behind the guy that went to the front, and after about

half a mile of following him, I went around and did not look back. I knew there were a couple of

people close behind me for the first hill, but by the second big climb, I no longer heard anyone.

It did feel like the first six miles were uphill. I know I had to do a lot of descending too,

but that went by quickly, and it just felt like I was back to climbing again. There was only one

part where I literally looked back, and I did not see anyone behind me, but my eyesight was

limited, so I kept trying to push to the best of my ability. Although it felt like I was running in

mud (sometimes literally), I kept trying to push the pace when I summitted a hill, but it was hard.

When I finally descended from the top of the park, I still had to go about a mile and a half

around the lakes, which was flat. Normally, this would be a good time to hammer the speed, but

my leg feels worse on flat than on the hills. So my ability to push was limited. I still cruised into

the finish line and won. It was over 67 minutes, and even with the injury, I was hoping to be

closer to 65, but I felt like I had gone as fast as I could go, the hills just beat me up despite

heavily training on hills leading up to the race.

I love Green Lakes, so if I was going to come back to race anywhere, I am glad that I was

able to do it on the trails. It was also nice to win both races, but it would have felt much more

fulfilling if I felt like I was 100% and was pushing as hard as I could go, instead I left with a

partially empty feeling after the win. Since then, I have run less, mostly running 6 miles last

week, and 8 miles the last two days. A significant drop from the 60 mile weeks I had worked up

to. My leg just does not feel right. It does not cause any pain, but it just feels stiff and annoys me.

It has lowered my desire to race in general right now, but hopefully I can run a fast Boilermaker,

and maybe that will ignite the spark again, but I have to be healthy to get to that point.