Tapering ...on steroids (literally)

Well, to say my final week of tapering (for Grandma's Marathon) was out-of-the-ordinary would be an understatement.


While most runners dread the taper before a big race, I actually embrace it. I treat it as a mini vacation before the grand event. Kind of like the calm before the storm....

As I was getting ready to head upstairs for bedtime on Sunday evening, I noticed my right knee felt weird. Kind of like I had bumped it and a bruise was forming...except there was no visible bruise (and I could not recall bumping it on anything). No big whoop.

Monday morning I got up, met Barb for our #5at5, and all felt fine. Well, the knee hurt if I touched it, and it did feel warm, but I wasn't worried about it. I didn't feel anything strange or "off" while running.

Another five miles at 5 a..m. 

Later in the morning, though, I noticed it continued to hurt and appeared to be swelling even more. Also, the swollen areas were looking red and continued to feel "hot."

Tuesday morning, I could barely bend my leg. I have never had arthritis, but I got a very strong taste of it from the way my leg/knee joint was feeling. There was more redness, more "heat," and even more discomfort. I had not slept well, either, because I could not get comfortable...every sleep position made my knee hurt.

Ugh...the right knee is not feeling very joyous...

I was able to get in to see my family doctor at 10:00. She took one look at my knee and said, "Wow." She was concerned it was infected and was leery of treating it with meds (#steroids) without knowing just how severe things were. Keep in mind, I live in a pretty small town. We have a ton of family practice docs, but very few specialists. She sent me to Des Moines (an hour away) and I headed to the  urgent care center of the (referred) orthopedic clinic...and they were waiting for me.

They took some x-rays, and the doctor there extracted some of the fluid from the site of the swelling. All the fluids were clear (no infection, thank goodness!). She shot some steroids into the bursa surrounding my knee, wrapped me up, and told me to take things easy for a couple of days (in other words....stay off my feet, keep the knee area compressed, and do not bend my knee anymore than absolutely necessary for the next 24 hours). She also said I was cleared to run the marathon IF I felt better by the next day (which would be a sign the steroids were working).

I really wish the ugly Ace wrap came in a cheetah print...

Did you get all of that?

Anyways, Wednesday arrived, and I could tell already my knee was feeling better. Only a little bit of swelling remained, the skin no longer felt hot, and the achiness was gone.  Whew! Ever obedient, I dutifully wrapped my leg back up after my shower and headed to work. I was able to go for a 2-mile walk after work...and felt like a caged bird that had been set free!

I was so excited to unwrap the knee and go for a walk...that I forgot to take off my "workday" jewelry

I probably could have run my #5at5 Thursday morning, but elected to walk a #4at5 instead. Why tempt fate? There's absolutely no fitness to be gained by running five miles two days out from my marathon anyways (I did run the last 1/2 mile back to my house, though, and everything felt great).

Look at that! I can bend my knee again!

Already, by Thursday morning, my knee was looking almost back to normal. My left hamstring felt a bit "off," but that was probably from spending the previous two days walking with a compromised stride (from not bending my right leg much). 

Ahhh...the right knee looks like its counter part again

Friday morning, Barb and I hit the road, headed for Duluth! It's an approximate 6-hour drive, and we wanted to get there and have time to hit the expo, eat a good (pasta) dinner, and have plenty of time to relax before lights-out. 

Duluth bound!

While at the expo, it was great being reunited with Gina (from Running Around the Boyz).

Saturday. Go time. Barb and Gina and I caught the train to the start line of the race, and it was so exciting to finally meet Rachel (from Running on Happy)! I tell you...all of these awesome blogger/social media pals of mine are simply amazing. After knowing  each other for a long time (via the computer), and then meeting them in person...well, it feels like a reunion with a long lost friend from childhood. 

Yes...I took my sidewalk chalk along with me to Minnesota

I'll save the nitty gritty details for the race recap, but I'll give you this spoiler alert: there were PR's happening left and right, and a lot of laughter as well.

All smiles despite the heat and tough race conditions

Sunday morning, it was time to head back to Iowa. Not too eager for a long car ride (and subsequent post marathon stiffness), I spent awhile with my foam roller before we hit the road.

My knee felt fine, though it looks swollen in the pic (from the awkward camera angle)

 In case you missed them, there were only two blog posts last week (due to my long day of travel and limited access to wifi service):

Running into the Sun

My Summer Mileage Must-Haves

In other news:

My #FridayFashionFlair was actually my outfit from Thursday. My "real" Friday outfit was nothing spectacular (hello? I was riding in a car for 6+ hours, after all). Anyways, what do you think of the cold shoulder tops? I'm all over them....they are so cute and chic! And, you can never go wrong with a black and white combo...especially when you add colorful and funky accessories. (Pssst...are you following me on Instagram? Post a #FridayFashionFlair pic and tag me {@runningonthefly}!)

Do you love these cold shoulder tops as much as I do?

So, that's a wrap! As you can see, there were not too many miles happening (until race day), but my total mileage (Monday - Sunday) came in at 32. Due to my knee bursitis scare, I held off on some of my June challenges (various yoga balance positions) in hopes of not putting any unnecessary strain on my knee. Thankfully, the steroid treatment (and prescription strength anti-inflammatory meds) did the trick, and everything was in working order for race day. Again, WHEW!

Have you ever had a bursitis flair? Have you met any of your virtual blogger/social media pals in person? What's the farthest you have ever driven to a race?

I'm linking up with Tara (on behalf of Holly and Tricia) for the Weekly Wrap. Please join us!