The roller coaster of running

Do you know what an IT band is? No? Well - let me take you on a little journey. You have one. It runs down the side of your leg from your hip to your knee. And if you run a lot, increase mileage, increase speed and add hill training into the mix (all at the same time) - it will hurt. A lot.

I started experiencing pain shortly after our 8 mile run. It didn't hurt through the run, but shortly after... oh dear. It hurt really bad. So much that I thought I was going to have to opt out of the 5K I was registered for the next day. Thankfully, a lot of ice helped. I saw an athletic trainer the following Tuesday after running 5 miles that resulted in the most excruciating pain when walking up the stairs to my office. He declared the pain to not necessarily be my knee - but to be my IT band. He told me to ease up, ice and stretch.

Our AT coach, later explained that the IT band is like leather. It's not pliable and when it knots up - it's very hard to work them out. The pain on the outside of my knee is a result of the knots. The solution? The same thing my ATC prescribed - and a foam roller.

At this point, Jess and Toni had also had knee trouble. Staci being the genius she is - crafted a foam roller out of PVC pipe and a yoga mat. So I was excited - until I actually started foam rolling. IT. HURTS. LIKE. HELL. Seriously. Totally does the trick - but HURTS.

I'm absolutely determined to not let it get me down. Thankfully - it can be worked out and I can continue running. We ran four today and I'm not going to lie - it wasn't painless nor was it the best run I've had. But really? At this point, I don't care. I will run through the pain and we will run 13.1 miles in three weeks.

I think I can speak for all of us when I say this journey has been full of physical and emotional ups and downs - and I think I can also speak for all of us when I say - that running through it all (TOGETHER) has helped lighten that load more than anything.