“The arrow that hits the bulls-eye is the result of the one hundred previous misses.”

Well, it's been a few weeks and a long few weeks. June was a long, rough month. I think the main focus there was on riding my bike and I think I only managed to fall off like five times which is a good thing. Didnt even get hit by any cars which is a good statistic too. Now it is approaching mid July, holy cow, and I only have 6 weeks left to the big day! June was packed with races, events, big training days, etc. and a lot of it left me wanting a few weekends to myself to not be sick to my stomach and in pain, so I could have some fun and enjoy the summer a little bit. So that is what I did last weekend, July 4th. I headed to the lake, did some running, a little (very little) open water swimming, and a lot of drinking beer, which was much needed.

Because I havent had any big races or huge weekends with milestone training days, ie- biking the whole course, etc. I dont have a lot of stories to tell. I think the biggest story to tell is the fact that my knee, namely my right knee, has become increasingly more painful. I ran about 12 miles last Friday morning at the lake- not too many hills or anything, but I could tell as I ran further and further, my knee was getting worse and worse. So I went to the doctor today, convinced that I was going to get a cortisone shot (and he knew that) and immediately told me I was NOT going to get a cortisone shot. This was a good and bad thing. Good because, I was on the verge of passing out even before he entered the room. I get myself so worked up over needles, I cant even see straight. And then, to think they will stick said needle into my KNEE... ummm, NO. Not happening. I was dizzy and spinning in the waiting room and I didnt even know what was wrong! So when he told me that it would be malpractice to even give me a shot to reduce my pain, I was partly relieved (maybe a lot), but partly sad because 1. I had already gotten worked up, so the bad part was over, and 2. this meant I was going to continue to be in pain until I stopped running, which is going to be after the Ironman, which is over 6 weeks away at this point.

So the consensus is, at this point, I have patella tendonitis (sorry if I spelled that wrong) and there is not a lot they can do for it besides ice it, put some anti inflamatory cream on it, and take a lot of aleve/advil. Most likely, my knee will hurt, my job is just to minimize it as much as I can. So I will, but at least I know I am not doing any permanent damage. Whew! And no shot...

So now, our job is to lay out the training plan for the rest of the season so I can complete this thing... I am really starting to get nervous, have some weird dreams about getting stuck in the middle of a hill on my bike, etc. But, I will finish and I will do well- I just know it. Tonight, I need to get back on track because the past week with my mini July 4th vacation and knee problems, my training has really fallen off and I am not ready for any taper just yet! I still have a month before that happens.

Any ideas any of you have for re-habbing knees are welcome... or training, or tapering for that matter...