New route, new clothes, new injury...

So needless to say, I'm a little frustrated today. All week, I've been really focused on my 20 mile run that we had planned for this weekend. In preparation, I spent some time in the gym and at home doing some running, stretching, weight training and even a little jump roping. I felt pretty good all week although I really didn't run very much -one 11 miler and one 4 miler. Knowing that I had this big run today I didn't want to do too much during the week and exhausted by the weekend.
In addition to my training I bought my official marathon day running gear! New Nike running shorts, visor, and tank. All fit great and is light weight, and even better, it was all on sale!!
The next issue to tackle is where the heck are we going to find a good 20 mile route. We've run in so many different places already and both me and Rob really like switching things up. Goose Creek (many times) Daniel Island (way too many times) Summerville, Mt. Pleasant and even Hilton Head Island. Doing the same route over and over can really get old! So from the beginning of this training Rob has been telling me about the West Ashley Greenway which is a ten mile trail - some parts paved and some not. We figured we could run 10 miles out and 10 miles back. Neither of us had been on the trail before but we tried to do some research ahead of time so nothing caught us off guard.
So this morning we left on our trek. I felt great starting off. The new clothes felt awesome..and as we all know when you look hot you feel like you can do anything (haha!). I had my favorite playlist filling my ears and my new favorite mantras solidly stuck in my head. Everything seemed like it would be great. But we did however run into a few liite problems in the beginning. As we entered the path we saw a sign at the end/beginning of the path that said "mile marker 7" - what the heck! We went to the beginning of the trail we thought we'd see a mile 10 marker. What was this 7 mile business all about? So we ran a bit in the opposite direction first hoping it would add another few miles. It did add a bit but not close to the additional 3 miles we wanted. Wwe figured we could just double up on portions of the trail though and we'd get our 20 miles in the end. So we turned around and started the main part of the trail. It was decent in the beginning but it was definitely more trail than pavement. That can be a good thing, since it's a bit easier on the joints. But it can also majorly suck, especially when there are uneven parts, rocks, leaves and even some spots of mud...oh and did I already say ROCKS! Ughh..those suck! I was not thrilled but was determined to go on! Like I said I was feeling great.
But all good things come to an end right? So we got done with one direction and started our trek back. That's when I felt it. My left knee started to ache on the inside portion. I tried not to focus on it and just kept moving. I went another few miles and finally got a sharp pain that made me stop. I didn't panic though...partially because my husband was kind enough to stop with me a help me stretch. Did I mention he's amazing? After that I felt pretty good for another few miles. I slowed down a little to drink some water and take one of my energy gels. Once I changed my pace though my knee pain got more and more noticeable..and painful. I didn't want to stop though. I still felt great other than my dang knee! But then I remembered what happened the last time I kept running on a bum knee. It wasn't pretty and involved, Dr.'s, PT, and lots of downtime. With only a few weeks to go before the big day I was not willing to put myself in that position again. I had to take a huge gulp and just swallow my pride....I stopped! I was pissed!! But deep down I know it was the right thing to do. Rob stopped with me and we walked back the few miles we had left..even that was painful! Gosh this stinks. I have major healing to do this week because I need to get a 20+ mile run in within the next 2 weeks. I know I can do it though and am thankful I still have a little time to get better. I'm also so thankful for my husband who when I told him to go on without me said, "no, we're a team." He is my rock!
So I've been icing, heating and wrapping (oh and napping) for the remainder of my day. I will get better and I will kick ass on the day of the big race, but man there seem to be some major bumps in the road sometimes. No one ever said training for a marathon would be easy though. And gosh why should I feel like a failure when I've never heard anyone say.."I only ran 14 miles today!!" haha!
So next week will be our "take two" on the 20+ mile run. This time we'll be staying away from trails. I about rolled my ankle two times and the last thing I need is another injury..one is plenty! Wish me luck and some speedy healing! Thanks for reading!