Injuries Happen--Just Deal With It

It started just before Thanksgiving. Many athletes call it a niggle. It starts in the calf, the hamstring, the back--anywhere really. One or two workouts later, a few dozen squats to pick up a toddler, and before a person knows it, the niggle has turned into a full-blown, take-your-breath-away stabbing pain.

At least that's what happened to me.

I woke up Thanksgiving Day with the inability to lift a child inaudibly. Sharp, intense pain hit the middle of my back. I'd heard about these types of injuries, but I thought that certainly they would never happen to me. To make matters more interesting, we had just finished paying the chiropractor's home mortgage for November thanks to some piriformis issues Jason had dealt with (which can be a real pain in the rear). I wasn't about to fork over more for another injury.

Thankfully we have smart people in our circles.

I tried ibuprofen, Tylenol, and heat. When I talked to Mr. Ironman, he told me to try ice three to four times a day and to take Motrin to reduce the inflammation. Oh yes, and do not do anything that makes it hurt, but don't cease activity. Do things that don't hurt.

Now, I know this next part of our little narrative is going to really reveal my ignorance, but if my stupidity can help someone else avoid the same problems, I'll lay it out for the blog-world to see. I never knew that ice could make such a difference on a back injury. I iced religiously for one day and saw remarkable improvement. I kept the regimen up for a few days (not even a week), and the pain disappeared completely. Ice saved my back and my mood.

When I texted Mr. Ironman to say thanks and let him know how I turned out, I expressed my great displeasure for injuries. His response was telling:

"Injuries will happen, Nikki. You need to learn how to deal with them."  (or something like that)

Life lesson after life lesson echo to me as I read this message even now. Setbacks happen. Bad things happen. Life will not be fun sometimes. It hurts. The key to succeeding lies not in (just) avoiding these bad things, but learning how to deal with them. So we do.

Training continues for us all as much (more like as little) as we like in December. We're definitely still low key here with a countdown now on the fridge to remind us that in 285-ish days, we'll find ourselves with arguably the biggest physical challenge we've ever taken on voluntarily. Tuesdays and Thursdays are still bike nights, and Wednesday night is a swim night for Jason. I'm resuming my early-morning swim sessions this week, and we'll both try to find time for runs here and there in the midst of single-digit temperatures.

Christmas certainly will make training more interesting and definitely more fun. More on that next week, though.