Out of the Loop

Man, I am way late on this post. Sorry all! OK, here it goes...

So, after the 14 miles we ran a few weeks ago I felt really great and really proud. There was, however, that unfortunate foot pain which I was feeling in the run's aftermath... Well that following weekend was 7 miles, and I couldn't complete them all. I stopped at 4.5 miles because my foot was hurting too badly, and I didn't want to exacerbate any injury. So, I didn't run during the week in order to rest up my foot for our forthcoming 16 milers the following weekend. I did, however, go and see Kevin Minney who is a Bowenwork therapist. Bowenwork is basically it's own special brand of chiropractic and incorporates light pressure to reinstate your body into its optimal position. So, Kevin kindly donated a session with him to my cause, and after meeting with him I felt a bit better and more armed for 16 miles. Sunday morning, we started at 7am to avoid as much sunlight as possible, and because we're not big enough masochists. I ran 16 and felt relatively OK for most of it. At mile 10, however, I had a big problem. My right foot was hurting so much so that I began to run exclusively on my right toe, allowing my left foot to compensate. Well, 6 miles of running with lopsided weight distribution was a really dumb move. I went home and had trouble walking at all. I spent the entire day with ice packs wrapped around my feet, but it still was extremeley painful to put any weight on them at all. This past weekend I drove to LA to visit family, and I went to visit my brother's sports medicine doctor, Mike O'Donnel. Well, Mike confirmed my fears. I have two stress fractures in my feet (one on each foot), on the outermost metatarsal. As a result, I've got to lay off the running for a few weeks. He gave me some exercises which should help me strengthen the muscles around those feet, told me to rest, and then to reevaluate how running feels after a few weeks of recouperation.

That's where I stand now. . . Unable to run, but still trying to do what I can for the program. Tonight I'm having a fundraiser at The Parkway Theatre in Oakland. At 9:15pm the 1983 cult classic "Valley Girl" will be shown, with $2 from every ticket sold going directly to my fundraising efforts. If you're around the east bay, please come out tonight. I really need the support!