MTXE

Lookin' like I may need to bust out a little Mental Toughness Xtra Effort for the upcoming Houston Marathon. Despite feeling pretty well prepared, I'm unfortunately finding myself challenged in more ways than the 26.2 miles that await me. In the past three weeks I've been to the doctor twice, once because I thought I might have developed a sports hernia, which I luckily discovered was just a strained ab muscle, and the second time to have my knee X-rayed following a run in with a door frame. On that one it turns out I have a bone contusion and it's not going to be getting better anytime soon. There's no bruising or swelling to show off, but my kneecap continues to be kind of sensitive (CORRECTION: I ran this morning and it's back to hurting like hell.) On top of that, twice in the past couple of weeks I've experienced pain in my IT band. Actually pain doesn't really describe it. It feels like someone's shot me in the side of my knee. The good news is that its happened on the exact same block both times. so I'm hoping it's just a result of the pitch of the road and is something I can just avoid in Houston. That said, I've been doing everything I can to prevent it from flaring up during the marathon—ice massages, ice baths, rolling it out with a foam roller—but if it does bother me, I'm going to call on the power of Good News, The Hometown Hero and The X-Man to get me through. Basically, I plan to keep going as long as I possibly can … and at least a little bit beyond that.

(UPDATE: After this morning, I'm not sure what to think about the upcoming run. I'm still gonna give it a go, but my optimism is fading a bit.)