Frisco 50k: What's a taper without a crisis?

Heading into the Frisco 50k, I felt fit and prepared.  My training cycle had been pretty seamless, I'd run more mileage than ever before, I'd learned/relearned a lot, and I'd never felt so good!  This was all particularly refreshing not only because it rarely happens, but also because fall 2020 was sure a let down, after I'd had to take 4 months off of running in spring 2020.  I think we can all agree that 2020 was not a winner, eh?

It's rare that things go according to plan, which makes it extra special when they do!  I was beyond appreciative of the 2021 experiences I'd already had, and excited to see what happened after 26.2 miles on April 24. 

I ran the Clinton Historic Half Marathon on April 17, and I ended up running a bit faster than I thought I would need to in order to win the race, and I also ran a little more distance that day than planned (related, because I saw my competition so did a real warm up).  I figured my mileage was high enough that a 16 mile day one week out from the 50k really wouldn't matter, nor would a 1:24 half - and I don't think they did, but it's impossible to completely know. That afternoon I rode my elliptigo with my friend Christian during her long run workout, which was really easy riding but I was still on the elliptigo for nearly 2 hours.  After that, my right tensor fascia latae (TFL) muscle was tight.  I figured it was just from running, sitting in the car, riding, being cold outside, etc.  But when I got up and ran on Sunday morning it was still tight.  Running easy on Sunday didn't make it worse but it also didn't feel better, so...cue taper freak out!  My left hip was where I've previously had issues, otherwise I'd have been freaking out from the start!  I spent a lot of time online reading about TFL releases and treatments on Sunday afternoon, and also used ice and Arnica gel on the affected area, ate the best anti-inflammatory foods, and upped my turmeric intake.

I got this pic after I posted my Clinton race recap, so
I am using it here because finishing photos in which I
look like I actually enjoy running are rare!

I'd planned to run 6 miles on Monday morning and 4 on Monday afternoon, but I took the day off instead, effectively missing my last double for awhile.  This was pretty big progress for me because I could run with the TFL tightness I had, but I hoped with a day totally off it would clear up completely and I could go on with usual programming.  It improved, so I knew I'd made the right choice.  I also made an appointment for ART/Graston, at the first available appointment on Wednesday.  

On Tuesday morning I did a final little workout, and while it felt decent I could still feel tightness, which increased slightly after running.  31 miles is a long way to run when everything feels good, but I started worrying I was screwed starting that distance of a race with something feeling off.  I had all kind of thoughts swimming through my head: Should I just not start?  Can I actually make myself drop out if it gets bad? [this has not gone well for me before and it's really hard to drop out of a race!] What if it's minor now but gets serious if I race on it?  Is this 50k worth the risk?  What if I'm actually fine and just being taper crazy?  I prayed for the wisdom to make the right decisions before and during the race, and I did everything I could to help the muscle.  I felt at peace regardless of the outcome, though, which is really not like me - but I think that originated from my huge appreciation of my training cycle as a whole.  The race is just one day, but the training enhanced my life for months - thought obviously I'm thrilled with how it turned out, and if you're reading this you already know the happy ending.

Wednesday I again did not run and I had treatment on it, which helped.  My chiropractor also showed me some ways to release it myself that were not surprisingly better than I'd found on YouTube.  He said it felt tight when he did Graston on it, but not bad (i.e., he thought I was fine to race).  I started feeling a little more optimistic.  I ran on Thursday morning, and while it had continued to improve, it still wasn't normal.  I just resigned to it hurting during my race.  Running didn't make it any worse at any point, so I figured it would bother me and I'd deal with it, and then I would get it to clear up in my time off after the race.  Friday it had again improved a little more, but was still there, so my plan of accepting it bugging me during the race continued.  I still felt at peace with whatever plan God had for this, and only He could have given me that peace because like I said, it's very unlike me!

The plus side was that my thoughts about my TFL prevented me from obsessing about anything else related to this race.  I barely thought about anything else - not the distance, not the pace, not the new challenge factor, etc. - which in hindsight was really a blessing!

Jumping ahead, but to tie this story together, my TFL was totally fine before, during, AND after the race!  I haven't felt a single twinge in it since Friday; it feels completely normal.  It was really a miracle, and perhaps the pain I had was God's gift to keep me from obsessing about the race, to make me rest a little more, and to keep me thankful for the opportunity (and probably a reminder to not be greedy about the outcome).  It also made me realize that even if I DNFed the 50k, I'd still had a season I was very happy with, which probably also made me less concerned about the outcome.  I have never had any issue that lasted 6 days only to immediately clear up like this.  It gave me a hobby for pre-race week I guess, hah!

The only people who know where the TFL is
are probably some in the medical field &
those who've had issues with it...

The story continues here...