NJ Life

28 Comments

I feel like with not training for anything my blog lacks any sort of focus.  Not that it really matters but I don’t have any training or races to recap. 

I have been in New Jersey since Monday night.  After some rough patches with my car I made it.  When I was halfway between VA and NJ my car started to make strange grinding noises.  I wasn’t exactly sure what to do…do I drive 3 hours home or drive the 3 hours to NJ?  I chose to keep going.  Lorraine (my car) got progressively worse and having problems switching gears as well as continuing to make grinding noises.  I finally made it to my new house without any accidents but my car is now in the shop getting a new transmission.

After that welcoming party to NJ on Monday I could only venture to think what the next few years would bring.  I’ve had my car for 6 years now and never had a major issue so it’s not surprising that a 2000 model car with over 100,000 miles is starting to fall apart.

In other news, I’ve spent the rest of my time applying for jobs and unpacking.  It is nice to (slowly) unpack and know that I won’t be packing for quite a while.  I really like our house so once I unpack I’ll take some photos.  There is plenty of space for people to come visit.  Then we can all exist in real life together.

Since this is a running blog I thought I would be honest with myself.  I promised myself I would take two weeks away from running.  That really hasn’t been hard at all.  About a day after the race, my foot started to bruise underneath the fifth metatarsal.  I immediately thought stress fracture, what did I do wrong?  It never once hurt during the race nor the evening after a race.  (I would have stopped at the race if I felt a bone break).

It’s been two weeks and it’s still bruised and is tender to the touch.  It doesn’t hurt (it’s just noticeable) when I walk or the couple of times I’ve been to the gym.  I’m leaning towards a bruised bone but there isn’t much (that I can think of…) that causes a  bruise to take that long to heal.

Thinking about human anatomy the fifth metatarsal gets blood less quickly since it’s so far away from the heart (meaning it heals slower).  I don’t think it’s a stress fracture since I’m fully able to walk with no pain.  It is noticeable but not painful.  It reminds me of a dark bruise you get on your leg and you wonder…where did this come from. 

Long story short, since I’m not training for anything I’m just going to continue to take it easy until the bruise goes away.  I might try and short run next week sometime to see how it feels running.  I think it’s me being paranoid more than anything but there isn’t a sense to rush into running right now.  I’ve been to the gym a couple of times and done the elliptical and it hasn’t hurt.  The only thing that makes me suspect it’s something more serious is that it’s been two weeks and the bruise is still there.

I hope everyone else is having a great weekend.  I was dying to go to the Philadelphia Marathon but since they haven’t called me back about Lorraine I’m not sure I will.

Questions for you:

How have you been this week?

What are your plans this weekend?

Good luck to everyone running Philadelphia and Richmond!

28 Comments

  1. Don’t freak out too much about your foot. So many people I know have had weird foot pain (or minor injuries) after a marathon – your feet take such a big beating during the run! In the time that I’ve been reading your blog it seems like you’re being really smart about listening to your body, and not taking silly risks. Trust yourself and run when you’re ready 🙂

    1. Thank you! I can’t imagine it’s a stress fracture since I’m able to walk with absolutely no problems or even a weird stride I just don’t know what stays bruised for 2 weeks!

  2. I REALLY hope its just a bruise. I’ve had some bruises last a few weeks before and since its on your foot the recovery process may be slower because you use your feet so often. Be super careful now so you can get that 1:23 half in the spring!

  3. I hope it’s just a deep bruise, but you are smart to take the time off for it to properly heal. All too many times runners think they can push through the pain, but you’ve repetedly shown that you’re not that stupid. So yay you for using some common sense!!

    I’m running RnR SA this weekend. I hadn’t planned on it, but I get to pace someone and I could NOT be more excited. I’m not sure if I’m really allowed to talk about it. But since I don’t exist in real life, the rules are fuzzy. 😉

  4. Definitely take it easy post-marathon, but it really could just be a bruise. I had foot pain about a week after a half marathon a couple of years ago, went to a podiatrist sobbing about my broken foot, and he was like, “So, you just did a race? Did you tie your laces extra tight? Yeah…that strained your muscles. Everything is clear, have a nice day, stop being an idiot.”

    Hopefully you can get it looked at if it doesn’t clear up on its own soon.

    1. Thanks! I believe I remember that! I think that could be it combined with Nike is a little more (or a lot…) narrow then Newton. I’m retiring those shoes early because although I did long runs in them, I don’t think they were a best match for me.

      I live half a mile from a hospital…how great for my frequent member hospital punch card…come in five times for injury get one free…

  5. I do hope it’s just a bruise. I don’t blame you for taking as much time off as you need because the marathon is a real pounding on the body (no pun intended). Plus, with moving and everything you’re pretty busy anyway so it’s not like you’re sitting around with nothing to do wishing you could run. I hope things are okay with the car, I just had to get mine fixed/worked on this week. As far as car problems go, I’m not too surprised that it’s had issues. Mine’s an 01 Honda Accord and it’s had them too. Sometimes I feel like car manufacturers don’t make cars to last because they want you to buy a new one at about that time (over 100k) when things start to go wrong! I have friends with cars from the 90s and well over 200,000 miles so if you keep them up and get things fixed you can avoid buying a new one and payments. Glad you got there safe too, yikes!

  6. My bruises from my incident with the boat dock stayed for about 2 weeks too. Don’t fret yet 🙂

    So glad to hear that Lorraine got you safely to NJ and that you’re enjoying your new house. Can’t wait to see/hear more!!

    A friend of mine from Army training lives in Lake Hopacatong (I’m sure I butchered that spelling..) and I’m dying to get out there to visit. Now I have another reason 🙂

  7. ouch that bruise sounds nasty! I would definitely take it easy until it goes away – but taking time off from running is harder than it would seem…I told myself after last half that I would take a week…I made it about 3 days.

    This weekend I’m doing a “fun” 10K called the Pumpkin Pie 5K/10K. Probably not going to be a PR race – but they give everyone a slice of pie at the end, so it can’t be that bad!

  8. I had the exact same thing happen to my third toe a while ago! It wasn’t unbearable pain, it just was sore when you walk on it a certain way. It felt exactly like a bad bruise but it didn’t look bruised or swollen at all. It lasted for a couple weeks, but then slowly it just went away. So hang in there, I think you should be okay!

      1. Well you definitely earned yourself some R&R girl! You’ve gotta take care of yourself sometimes, even though it can be hard to take time off.

  10. Poor Lorraine, and poor foot 🙁 Keeping my fingers crossed for you both.

    Boarding season starts this weekend, so I’m hoping to hit the slopes a few times. Also hoping I can avoid getting injured over the next few months. Ohhh the things we put ourselves through for the sports we love. Happy Friday!

  11. YAY! You’re all moved in which is AWESOME. I can’t wait to meet you one of these days. I know how it feels to be paranoid (obviously) so if the bruise doesn’t go away in another week, you might want to get it X-rayed if you have the insurance coverage. Rather be safe than sorry, right?

  12. I’m sorry my home state has given you such a great welcome ha. I promise it gets better. I survived 13 years there and loved most of it 🙂 I hope the foot gets better soon, too. Better to be safe than sorry in any event, and I’m glad it’s not too painful. Hope to hear that you’re back at it soon!

  13. Happy you made it to your new home! 🙂

    My weekend will involve a trip to Costco, hiding from the snow (hello treadmill!) and watching as much sports as I can fit in one weekend. I’m a sports nut!

  14. I am actually getting certified to teach a group class this weekend. I’m insanely nervous about it…as in so nervous I feel dizzy when I talk about it too long.

  17. My 2003 Hyundai accent (the cdogmobile) finally gave up this year so I feel your pain. It was her transmission. She wasn’t performing very well otherwise, either, so we spent the money on a used car instead of replacing the transmission. *sigh* Noe she is being driven by some creepy guy on Craig’s List who had three different names.

  18. I had the same issue with the 5th metatarsal. I thought mine WAS a stress fracture because it did hurt to walk. More to wait than to run, actually, because of the flexing motion. I ran the marathon in shoes with almost no cushioning, so i think it was a bruise. The pain gradually subsided over the first week, and was gone after maybe a little over two. I found wearing stiffer shoes helped. I had to get stiff insoles, because I don’t actually OWN stiffer shoes. I just went to a sports overuse injury seminar for medical people on Thursday, so here’s my take. Give it three full weeks, then do any activities you can do pain free. The more movement to get even a little more blood the the area will help. Stiff but cushioned shoes will help for now. I like Altra because they’re zero drop, but a little more shoe for longer stuff. The rule they stressed at the seminar for for pain was Must Be Pain Free. I’m willing to bet you’ll be fine in another week or two.

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