In The Words Of Sheryl Crow, "A Change Would Do You Good"

As time went on I was better about my injuries....well except for race day.  That day was awful.  (I'm not even going to dwell on the fact that they had the IDEAL RUNNING CONDITIONS in Philly!) 

As I mentioned in my previous post, I became stronger mentally and physically during my rehab.  I did my PT at a sports recovery facility so everyone there was just like me....itching to get better while taking all the necessary "baby" steps to get there. 
The staff pushed me and taught me things to prevent future injuries.  They kept me positive and encouraged me when my mental state was off.   The process was long, but they were awesome and realistic because they know the head of an athlete....they weren't overly conservative in holding me back from things like a traditional physical therapy office; tho that's not say they were reckless either.  Impact activities were out and I accepted that.  I got back into lifting (tho not legs) and they (and my ortho) allowed me to bike (tho I had to wear 2 pairs of bike shorts because the pressure on my pelvis in anything less could have made things worse).  That's when it happened.....

As I took my old trusty hybrid bike out on little rides I realized how much I missed biking.  I had known for a few years I had outgrown my bike-I was too strong for it, but I still loved it.  I also knew a new bike could set me back and bit, financially, so I hadn't even considered looking at a new bike.  On one ride I thought about the triathlon club I'm in (part of the deal with the coaching I got for the marathon was membership into their tri-club)  The club did group rides and training classes and I thought "those people are legit, if I want to ride with them I MUST have a new bike" (I rationalized dropping a few grand on a new bike any way I could ha ha)  I went to my bike shop (Pedal Sports in Oakland NJ...LOVE THEM) and looked around.  I bought  my hybrid from them years ago and trust them completely.  As I looked around the shop I saw it....the bike I had to have.  I knew I would buy it, but wanted to think about/research it a bit.  I checked it out online and finally went back to get it. 

I bought the 2015 Ruby Sport from Specialized.  I love her!  I made a birth announcement and everything ha ha

Ruby's birth announcement ha ha

 

When I first got injured I read up on other athletes getting injured and coming back from their injuries.  I wanted to read about others in my boat to help me see that I'm not the 1st, I won't be the last, and I can come back too.  Some of the athletes mentioned finding new activities while they were on the DL from others.  The purchase of Ruby did that for me.  I'm going to get back into biking to change things up a bit.  It's not to say, by any means, I'm done with running, but as I'm still regaining my strength and before I start training for the next marathon I'll be spending some time with Ruby! 

 

This is a photo from an indoor training class I took with my tri club!

 

"You know, everybody has setbacks in their life, and everybody falls short of whatever goals they might set for themselves. That's part of living and coming to terms with who you are as a person." Hillary Clinton