I contemplated not running the Platte River Half Marathon, as I’ve been having an issue with my right hip for the last two weeks. I had an ok week of training and I ran a 20 miler on Thursday. After the run on Thursday, I was rather sore so I took Friday & Saturday off. I’m not exactly sure what the pain is, my guess is that it’s my IT band. Thus, generally with an IT band the pain is lessened when you’re racing and moving at a higher rate of speed, well I was hoping that would hold true.

I decided to wear my Mizuno Wave Elixir 3 instead of my Asics DS Racers, the Elixir is a heavier shoe but due to the fact that most of the race is run on concrete, I wanted the added cushioning. I figured it was better to save my body from some of the pounding than to opt for any potential timesavings of going with a racing flat.

At the start of the race, I went out conservatively. Hit the first mile in 6:46 and thought that was acceptable. Starting the race my hip was sore but not problematic. I was actually pleased that it wasn’t hurting more than it was at mile one. Of course I also took 6 ibuprofen before the race, so I may have been numb.

I picked up the pace after the second mile and probably passed 30 runners over the next two miles. It was a great day with the temperature in the 40’s, however the wind was a cross/front wind and being that the course is point to point, the wind was never at your back.

I didn’t have any time expectations, I think had I been 100% healthy, I should have run around a 1:22-1:23. Cardiovascular wise I felt great and wanted to push harder but my hip was now getting sore and I was having trouble pushing off the ground. I could also feel that my left leg was compensating as it started to get fatigued.

Miles 2-7, I consistently passed people. I wasn’t paying attention to my mile splits but I asked a fellow runner with a Garmin what pace we were running and he said we were at 6:26 pace. That wasn’t where I wanted to be at all so I started to pick up the pace, still feeling fine cardio wise.

At mile 8 my hip really started to hurt. Every step of my right foot was agonizing. If I was running a marathon today, I would have quit at mile 8, but I figured I could tough it out for five more miles. My pace really started to slow down, as my mind went from racing to pain management. The downhill portions of the course were exceptionally hard and I could tell my form was off and that I was running with a limp.

Miles 10-13 were disastrous. I have no idea what my pace slowed to and I don’t even want to know. I tried to pick it up a few times, since cardio wise I felt like I wasn’t working but the pain was too great. I coasted the last few miles, getting passed left and right and finished in a 1:28:35, my slowest half marathon ever and perhaps the worst race that I have run in a long time.

Right now it’s hard for me to even walk. I’m going to take a few weeks off from running all together. The Lincoln Marathon is in four weeks and I give myself a 40% chance of running it. I figure my fitness is at a high level and I would probably be ok with four weeks to go, but I’m not going to chance it unless I am at least 95% healthy.

Frustrating, since I’ve already done 20 (milers)*4 and 17(milers)*2, but I’d rather get rested so that I can race in the summer/fall injury free. In some ways I am glad that I did the race. I can handle blowing a half marathon in Denver, but it would have been frustrating if this had happened to me at the Lincoln Marathon.

I may try to get in appointment to see an Orthopedic, but last year when I wanted to see one I had to wait a month before I could even get an appointment, I felt like I was in Canada.

Instead I will probably just self diagnose, rest, ice, wail on my core exercises and ride my spin bike indoors.