A Day Off?

As I train for the 13.1, I’ve been alternating weight training and cardio training at our gym. Typically, I am there every morning to work out and my training week culminates with a distance walk/run on Saturday and then I start all over again.

I’ve scheduled Tuesdays as my one day off during the week. I very much look forward to my off day as my body is quite tired by that time. Getting up early to get to the gym is difficult - most of the time the purpose for the run (funding the water projects) and everyone’s support is the reason that I get up to go. However, getting in shape is also a strong motivator. As I progress in that effort, playing sports becomes a larger part of my fitness plan. Playing sports has always been a love of mine and I’ve always been athletic. So, as I get more in shape I am able to do more things…The kids and I have been playing a lot of basketball, racquetball and yesterday we started playing some tennis.

Even on a day off, it’s fun to get some exercise and spend time with the kids.

However, it seems that my body is telling me it needs that day off. Twice over the last couple of weeks I’ve “tweaked” my knee playing on my day off from training. Actually, it’s the same nagging injury that won’t go away. Yesterday, I took a skip step and felt a pull behind my left knee. I originally hurt it a couple of weeks ago playing basketball. Same pain, same area.

I don’t believe there is anything seriously wrong, but it can be painful at times and it worries me that perhaps I won’t be able to train for a while. I’ll take it easy for a couple of days and then try to ignore it as much as possible. But, it’s gotten me to thinking – what if I needed my legs to walk to get water? What if I was hurt, but I still had to get water? I know I can stop training for a couple of days and then even change my training routine, if needed. In fact, I’ve been thinking about swimming for a couple of weeks to get off my legs and give them a break. Imagine that, I’m going to jump in a pool full of water to train for a half marathon that we’re using to fund projects in Africa that will provide life-giving clean water to people that don’t have enough.

It seems ironic to me. It also serves as a reminder to how much we've really have.

It also makes the nagging pain in my leg seem very inconsequential in the grand scheme of things. We have so much when others have so little. That seems to be very important – as does the call for us to share.

Won’t you please share and support me in my run? Click here to go to my Team World Vision page to give.

Thank you for your support and I’ll keep training, no amount of pain will stop my efforts to make a difference.

Scott