Readjusting to injury

So, it has been 9 months since I injured my femur and I am still unable to run with no signs of running until this summer.  How did what seemed to be a simple case of ITB syndrome become something that has caused me to redefine my athletic goals in the near and long term?  Well, the injury was diagnosed from the start and the ITB inflammation was due to a cracked lateral condyle in my femur (outer bottom each of the femur) and the swelling on the bone was irritating the ITB.  All summer long, I walked the streets of London, and tried to run with absolute frustration. Big races came and went and I was crushed and in a place that I had never been before.  My Kona dreams were shattered bit by bit as my injury failed to improve and I finally gave up the idea of racing the race, and then even trying to do the swim and bike and walk the marathon.

The autumn of 2010 has to be the lowest point in my athletic life, and that is where I had to come to terms with the injury.  First, I had to find out more about the injury (I did do a lot of research before, but I had to up my game) and I began to seek alternative sources of medical help.  I have used acupuncture (with electrical stimulation) and have continued physio treatment to ensure muscular imbalances don’t manifest themselves while also keeping in mind the ITB and its potential impact.

The medical breakthrough (it seems), came from from the most innocuous places (Slowtwitch triathlon forum) and the advice I received was different, much different, than I had been given by my sports docs and ortho surgeons and physios.  The critical thing that he said, was that in his patients with a similar injury, they are kept off their feet or walk with an unloader brace for up to 24 weeks.  Walking on hard surfaces continually aggravates what is already a slow healing injury and life in London was all about walking on hard surfaces.

The good news is that I have left London behind and all the walking that it included as I now base myself in Denver, where there aren’t hardly any footpaths nor bikepaths (topic of another blog). I drive everywhere and now walk with a very ginger limp (to make every step soft and jar free).

So what good has come from this?  Well, for the first time in my triathlon career I can now focus on becoming a great swimmer.  The injury is not effected at all by swimming (except for aggressive flip turns) and I have found a great masters team that has taken me in.  My 100 times have come down dramatically as my swim volume has averaged over 18k per week in the first five weeks of 2011.  Considering that I cannot think of running until May at the earliest, that means no triathlons until July at the earliest.  That gives me several months to become a better swimmer, and regain my skills on the MTB (I can still ride, to some degree).

I do have ideas on some late season XTERRAs and 70.3s, but for now, my big goals lie in the water.