Race Week: prep time.

I realized this week how much work goes into staying healthy sometimes. Last week, I started having issues with my SI joint. Friday afternoon, in a slight panic, I called up a chiropractic friend of mine (Dr. Noah Edvalson @ http://www.boisespinecenter.com/) and asked him to see me. He agreed and although I was racing on Saturday, the numbness I was experiencing in my leg was enough for me to break my "no manipulation pre-race day" rule. The mild adjustments did the trick and the shift was enough to relieve some the numbness temporarily.

It was back in full force by Sunday evening as well as knee pain and hamstring spasms so I scheduled an appointment with my miracle worker (Mike Devitt @ http://www.focus-pt.com/) and went in to see him on Tuesday morning. Sure enough, my SI joint was all screwed up and my pelvis was shifted almost 3/4"- as Mike put it, "what makes you a good athlete is how unrestricted the movement in your body is, but that is also your worst enemy". He was able to shift things back into place and I left feeling totally fresh and mobile. Next, I went in to see my massage therapist, Laura, who works wonders with estem on my lower T-spine and worked out the rest of my unhappy muscles.

That evening, when I was doing my neuro-muscular session, I felt like I was gliding and it occurred to me how amazing the body is at compensating. Sometimes you just KNOW something is off, even when you cannot pinpoint what it is because your body is a compensating machine!

It has been a light week but not an off week. Pat (my coach) put it well when he was "reminding" me to lift light this week, "This week is about getting all your normal motions and routines in but going light with the weight and reps to keep your body fresh." My main focus this week has been hydrating, eating well and enough, ice bathing, stretching, and chilling out.

Knowing that I have done everything in my control to set myself up for a good race allows me to let go of all the things I CANNOT control. This gives me an opportunity to use my energy positively instead of the opposite. I can't wait to get on that line on Sunday and for me, the process of getting there makes it worth it.