After the 20 miler last Saturday I’ve had foot pain.The same type of pain, in the same spot I had before and during the 2010 Chicago Marathon. I’ve been freaking out about it since. I made an appointment this morning at First Step Foot Care, right around the corner from Runner’s High’ n Tri this morning. Thanks Steve, for the recommendation!

I saw Dr. Lee, a podiatrist who is also a runner and she is awesome. I knew I had funky feet, but Dr. Lee confirmed it today! The pain is tendinitis, but wait there is more….

• I have a Dorsi Flexion issue, which I knew about.
• I have hammer toes
• I also have bifurcated sesamoid bones in my feet. Either I was born with it or fractured it at some point these last 2 years. It’s healed but can cause issues. Thinking about it I had the type of pain Dr. Lee said was associated with this type of injury over the summer. Apparently I have a high tolerance for pain.
• My arches are falling.
• I have an arthritic bone spur near my ankle. No pain, so we’re going to leave it alone.
• And I am in the wrong shoe. I’ve been wearing stability shoes my whole, short running career and need a neutral. Dr. Lee commented it was amazing I have run so much, and finished 2 marathons in the wrong shoe without major injury.

Here’s the plan leading up to Austin- we’re going to do what we can to make sure I finish the Austin Marathon, and then after we will fix this!

• Dr. Lee gave me a night splint to wear while I sleep
• I have an anti inflammatory med to take for 6 days
• Dr. Lee gave me some anti inflammatory patches I can wear when I run to help get relief in the area that hurts.
• She also gave me some temporary orthotics to try and see if they help to help my feet in the shoes I am wearing. Changing shoes now isn’t doable with the race a mere 2 weeks away.
• Physical therapy, 4-6 sessions before we leave to help with the tendon.
• After Austin Dr. Lee wants me to go for a gait analysis, to find what shoe I should be in and if I need orthotics in addition to that.

I emailed Coach Jen and she agrees with what Dr. Lee recommended.Actually, we’re conversing over email as I finish this post.

No running next week! While that makes me a little nervous, I know I have put the work in. I need to rest and see if I can let this heal as much as I can before the race. Jen wants me to hit an elliptical tomorrow for an hour. If I have pain, I should stop and jump on a bike for the rest of the time. I’ll email her and let her know how it goes.

With all this, I have to say I’m happy. OK, maybe not happy…relieved. I’m relieved that this isn’t just a phantom pain. Yeah it sucks, but I feel lucky. I’m glad that it’s correctable! I do regret not getting a gait analysis done, especially after I knew my stride had changed. I’m not going to sit and kick myself. I’m going to stay positive, rest and gear up for the race!

So there we go…some answers, and I’m a lot less stressed/ frustrated. Thanks for the support on facebook, twitter and on daily mile! I appreciate it…and if I vented to you, thank you for letting me.

More later!