Over three months of training through all conditions since February have recently come to an end, as I decided not to run in the event I signed up for. I made the decision two weeks prior to the event, when I realized my knee pain was more than just a one-time thing.
It was disappointing to not run, but I still supported friends who ran in the races at Grandma's Marathon weekend in Duluth, Minnesota. The conditions were pretty good, as the temps were around 50 degrees and it was foggy. It was raining on and off, but for the most part it was pretty light. It was a good day for many of those who ran.
I didn't start to feel the knee pain until after my second 20+ mile run, which was also after visiting Isle Royale. I don't know if it was something that happened on the trip, something during the long run, or something during the next run, which was a fast, but ultimately painful run. On the run following my last 20 miler, I set out to run 45 minutes fast, but I made it about 20 and felt a pretty sharp pain in my knee. This happened again the next two times I ran, so I knew that attempting the marathon would be foolish at that point. Could I finish? Sure, but I would have finished in a walking pace, not a PR like I was aiming for. Since I've already completed a marathon, just finishing didn't mean much to me at all, not nearly as much as protecting myself from further injury.
Fortunately, I did have some good moments during training. One significant PR that I broke a couple times was my treadmill 5k PR. This was shortly after my first 20 miler, which went quite well, as I ran the last 4 miles faster than any other segment of the race. That week gave me a lot of confidence for the marathon. Prior to that, I had some long runs in cold weather that just made me question what I was doing, but also built some toughness. I don't think I ran in comfortable conditions during any of my long runs prior to the month of May.
I intend to work on rehabilitating my knee, starting with taking it easy and seeking professional help. It might not be cheap, but I don't run to save money (though in general running does cost much less money than many other hobbies). If the knee problem isn't too serious, I intend to continue running in events in the fall.
