Navigating Fitness Through Injuries

Over the last six months, I have dealt with tibial tendonitis, peroneal tendonitis, runner's knee, and plantar fasciitis—all on my left foot/leg (not all at the same time but bouncing between injuries). On top of that, I had severe bronchitis and couldn’t breathe until I saw an asthma doctor who diagnosed me with athlete-induced asthma and provided the right inhaler for treatment.

Throughout these six months, I took rest days, slept in, and did physical therapy to strengthen my injuries. Since I couldn't run, I could still do CrossFit, but many days I woke up feeling so upset that I couldn't run, I couldn't even get myself to go to the gym. I would wake up at 4 am to keep my routine but felt defeated. Some days I managed 2-3 miles but had to stop every half mile to walk—my foot wasn’t happy. Running wasn't enjoyable anymore as the injury persisted.

I felt like I was in endorphin withdrawal

I started sleeping in, questioning why I woke up at 4 am if I couldn’t run. But I tried to force myself to go to the gym, to move and do what I could. I began focusing on what I COULD do, not what I couldn’t. I managed to get through some races—my birthday half marathon in March and two back-to-back races in April—though I didn't feel my best due to the injuries. I knew participating in races would worsen my injuries, but I didn't complain because I understood the consequences. I knew I needed to rest, strengthen, attend PT, and do all the necessary recovery work.

My lungs prevented me from doing high-intensity workouts, leaving me feeling defeated at CrossFit. Instead, I focused more on weightlifting and bodybuilding, realizing it was okay to move at a slower pace. I incorporated more biking, rowing, and skiing to get some cardio.

Last week was the first week I managed 6-7 miles a day, with my foot feeling better. I am continuing all the necessary recovery work and feel relieved that I actually felt like myself while running—something I hadn’t experienced in six months! Although my lungs are still adjusting, yesterday I went hard during a workout and ended up sleeping from 11 pm to noon, which happened frequently in the prior months. I do believe that the foot injury had delayed my ability to condition my lungs back to their previous state because I couldn’t run.

Overall, I wanted to share this because I know injuries are incredibly tough mentally, especially if you are active. Here are some things I took away from this experience:

Stroud Preserve

1. Focus on what you can do: My injury forced me to take a break from running, allowing me to realize how strong I got in the gym with weightlifting.

2. Direct your energy into other things: I took my dog for more hikes and long walks, activities that didn’t aggravate my injury but kept me active.

3. Keep your routine:  Even if I couldn’t run, I woke up at 4 am and focused on projects or work that I could do to keep myself busy and feeling accomplished.

Injuries can change your perspective because we often get stuck in routines. I told myself the injury wasn’t healing because the universe wanted to show me that I don’t NEED to run every day, I don’t HAVE to get 8 miles in daily. While running is a HUGE part of my life and it keeps me happy, these last six months showed me that I don’t have to rely on running to maintain happiness.

I learned that injuries can show us a different way of thinking. While I don’t like to be injured (who does?), I truly believe they happen to shift our mentalities and open doors we wouldn’t otherwise have explored.