Why I Didn’t Start my First Half Marathon & Easter Weekend 2014

At the end of 2013 I decided that one of my goals for 2014 was to complete my first half marathon. I chose the Ohope Express as my half of choice for a number of reasons, including it was flat and fit the time frame I thought I needed to realistically train for the half.

I spent some time one weekend putting together a training plan to get me through to the half with only two runs per week.  While it would be taxing the training plan was completely realistic and ticking along quite nicely until I rolled my ankle during a social indoor netball game and ended up in a moon boot.

After being x-rayed and told it was either a sprain or a possible fracture in the back (or a calcium build up) and then returning a week later to be told it was just a sprain I began trying to get movement back into it and got back in to the gym.

I attempted a short 2km run a few weeks after I was out of the moon boot and realised that something wasn’t quite right. I kept at it at the gym as I didn’t really get too much pain during exercises it was only afterwards that it was painful.

I knew running was definitely out of the question so didn’t even really try. Fast forward to about week 8 after the injury and I knew it still wasn’t right and we were closing in on the half marathon date at what seemed like an increasingly quick rate.

I made my way back to the doctors (this makes the third doctor I had seen at the same place, the downside of not having your own GP in a new city!) who recommended that I get an MRI done. The thing is MRI’s are not cheap, and while I would have paid I was glad when he said he could refer me to an Orthopaedic Surgeon and if he referred me for the MRI it would be free under ACC.

Fast forward another couple of weeks, two Orthopaedic Surgeon visits and an MRI later I now know what is wrong with my ankle.

The MRI showed it was still badly sprained, I have bruising on my bone and my ligaments have started to come away from the bond – luckily they have not completely torn!

This explains the slow healing, and ruled out being able to run the half marathon. I have been told no running for a minimum of 4 weeks and to keep off it in the gym as much as I can (goodbye squats, lunges and dead-lifts :() for a few weeks and to get to the Physio for some mobilisation and strapping.

If it has not come right after the 4 weeks I need to go back to the Surgeon. It WILL be right after 4 weeks as I can not handle that long without squats & dead-lifts.

We still went away to Whakatane for the weekend as we had originally planned as we had paid for the accommodation already.

For the ‘sunniest’ place in NZ according to the Whakatane brochure I picked up in the reception of our accommodation there was a bucket load of rain, thunder and lightning going on!
We were lucky enough to get a couple of hours (literally) where the sun popped out and we could go for a walk along the river from our accommodation in to town and back as well as going for a drive to some lookouts to have a look over the city.

While I couldn’t cross the half marathon off my list – I did cross off visiting somewhere new in New Zealand which was on my list of things I wanted to do this year.

I had a facebook stalk of the half marathon this morning and it turns out it was cancelled anyway due to the extreme weather so even if my ankle was all OK I would not have been able to complete it which does make me feel slightly better about it. Although I’m not so keen on starting all over again with the running once the ankle does come right.

All in all we had a nice weekend away, although a few more days would have been nice. Slightly regretting not having the three days off in between Easter and ANZAC day now!

What did you do for Easter Weekend?