I Race, Therefore I Obsess

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I Race, Therefore I Obsess
By Thea Gavin

I am too old and slow for this nonsense. Why did I click through the Race360 web site a couple of months ago and commit to: a $40 entry fee, pre-dawn wake-up, one hour drive, $5 for parking, hours/days of pre-race fretting about how to handle the chilly morning air and ground, and a 24-hours-before-the-race moratorium on chocolate (while an unfinished box of Sees Christmas chocolates lurked in the cupboard)? To continue reading, please visit http://theagavin.wordpress.com/2014/01/04/i-race-therefore-i-obsess/
 
Love to hike and trail run with no shoes on
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Great report !
Have you figured out what's causing the knee pain ?
I've been working with a Pilates instructor, who thinks it's gait related (and that makes sense, since I'm learning that I've got interesting imbalances in various joints/muscles/etc.). The latest from my other miracle worker, the physical therapist, is that the recent numbness in my left foot's three "inside" toes is from scar tissue/problems with nerve paths; after thirty minutes of focused pressure and manipulation on my mid-foot last week (my PT doc is a genius, if anyone needs help in Orange County, CA ), the numbness has subsided. I had a couple of good runs (an hour of steady trail run) over the weekend; no knee pain. It seems to happen at around 1.5 hours into a run...and I don't always have time for that, so I'll just try again next weekend and see if the pain comes back. For now, I'm feeling pretty thankful for an hour of pain-free running!

The "original" patella pain began ten years ago on a long downhill 12 miles into a 20-mile race; since then I've been chasing a cure. Losing my shoes has helped, but I still over-do it and need physical therapy to get me back on the trails.

This is way too long of an answer :)

But thanks for asking . . . I'm endlessly fascinated with how running works (or doesn't work) for all us runners; meet a runner at any party, ask how their running is going, and you're sure to get an injury story. I was hoping getting rid of shoes would change that for me (as I said above), but I'm finding it's just a long, challenging journey to see what works. Oh well . . . I'm having a boat-load of barefoot fun along the way, and I'm looking forward to running till a mountain lion decides to have me for dinner (I hope after I hit my 100th birthday).

Happy Trails!