Body Reconstruction
Body Reconstruction
A Fitness Experiment
Progress Report: Week 12-15
Cardio
Week 12SunMonTueWedThuFriSat
RestFartleksRestRestFartleksDrillsLong Run
-8 mi.
75'0"--8 mi.
73'0"1 mi.
10'0"10.5 mi.
110'0"
Week 13SunMonTueWedThuFriSat
RecoveryRestRestRestRestRestLong Run
1.5 mi.
14'0"-----4.2 mi.
43'0"
Week 14SunMonTueWedThuFriSat
RestHIITRecoveryRestRecoveryRestLong Run
-3 mi.
25'0"4 mi. (8)
38'0"-5.5 mi. (8)
50'0"-12 mi.
122'0"
Week 15SunMonTueWedThuFriSat
RestHIITFartleksIntervalsFartleksRestRest
-3 mi.
25'0"8 mi.
76'0"1.2 mi
10'0"8 mi.
87'0"--
*Numbers in parenthesis denote mileage attempted
Lyme Disease.
It sounds so hopelessly ominous, doesn’t it?
Not to mention cruel and contagious.
Ly...me... Dis...ease...
The morbidity of the term was overwhelming, no matter how slowly I pronounced each syllable as I tried my best to absorb the reality of the situation. When I was younger, I used to believe that Lyme Disease was the opposite of scurvy. I mean, if there was an illness mother nature inflicted upon the vitamin C deficient, it wasn’t entirely impossible that mother nature would also concoct an unforgiving illness upon the vitamin C overdosed (from ingesting too many limes, naturally).
“You’re exhibiting many of the early symptoms,” the doctor said as he poked a needle into my elbow. “if your blood work comes out positive, not being able to run your race in October should be the least of your concerns.”
My heart sank. I wanted to vomit.
Prior to my doctor’s visit, I already knew something was dreadfully wrong; and it showed in my training. How was it possible I could finish 8 miles close to a 9 minute pace, and not have the energy to finish 10 miles at a 12-13 minute pace? (with two days of rest to boot!) I certainly wasn’t overtraining, and my dietary intake was increased accordingly. And then came certain days where I couldn’t even complete my lower mileage runs. There was no possible explanation. None whatsoever.
Then the insomnia hit.
Then the fatigue. Body aches.
And then the migraines. Oh God, the migraines.
And of course, the sinister-looking bulls-eye rash hiding under my arm.
The seemingly inevitable end to my half-marathon training would not be the result of overtraining, torn ITB’s or stress fractures - which makes this all the more frustrating; I wasn’t responsible for my own demise, but rather, it was a tiny little tick who was the culprit - a tiny little tick no bigger than the period at the end of this sentence.
Imagine that.
Over the next two weeks, I wandered around in a medically induced state of general unease and worthlessness. I wasn’t sure which was worse: the side effects from the illness or the side effects of the antibiotics bombarding every nook and cranny in my body. During this “recovery period”, I even made a few ill-advised attempts to trick my body into going on a few runs. Needless to say, it hardly budged.
Despite this, my ego wasn’t going to give up without a fight, and endearingly kicked my ass past the 12 mile marker by the end of 2 weeks. For all I knew, I may have even struck a Rocky pose when I was finished, all haggard, battered and whatnot. Take that, Ivan Drago! Um...I mean, Lyme Disease!
So the good news is, it looks like I’m still good to go for my half marathon next weekend, health permitting. The not-so-good news is that we won’t find out if the antibiotic regimen took care of the Lyme Disease until the week after the race. My energy levels seemed to have returned, and I even completed a 9.5 mile hell run without blinking an eye. Suffice to say, everything seems to have returned back to normal.
But it’ll still be a slim chance in hell anyone will convince me to duct tape my sleeves on my next training run, the risks of falling ticks notwithstanding, of course :).
Weight Training
Weight training was put on hiatus during the recovery period. But everything is back on schedule now.
Diet
One would think that two weeks rest would result in added weight. But quite the contrary. During these past few weeks, I've actually lost an additional 5 lbs, making it a grand total of 17 lbs since I've started this experiment. Not too shabby for 15 weeks, eh?
I'm sorry I haven't updated for so long! If I don't see/hear from you guys before next week, good luck to all you runners coming to Baltimore! Hope to see you guys all there!
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(xposted on Runners)