A few weeks after Jules and I signed up for the Marathon des Sables, we both began to deal with some serious foot issues. Julie developed a very painful plantar fasciitis in her right foot and I re-injured my right big toe joint (possibly a sesamoid fracture - stay tuned for another blog post on why my toe is being so silly 🤷🏼♂️).
We immediately knew we had to get some help if we were going to conquer this long journey successfully. We are so thankful we've found Matt James - Physical Therapist and Peter Wenger MD - Sports Medicine Specialist. We've been working with Matt for many weeks now and we are slowly getting better. Peter is assessing my foot to provide a diagnosis and recovery plan. As most runners know, injuries are almost inevitable and are unbelievably frustrating. The term "IPOS" (injured piece of s**t) takes on some new meaning when the weather is nice and I have to sit sadly with my foot elevated wrapped in ice 😂😂. I've been training jiu jitsu for years and it has helped me become a much more balanced and rounded athlete. I've had to take a serious break from that as well due to injury and now COVID-19.
After my first sprint triathlon, I've gotten much more into cycling. This has been a great way to keep up my cardio and leg strength without putting much stress on my foot. My foot has been continuing to get better slowly and I can now get some more miles in, but still waiting to see what the final word is on what is going on. I just had an X-ray yesterday and an MRI is scheduled. Stay tuned! 🙌🏽
Julie has really pushed through some serious pain with her plantar fasciitis (PF) and has had numerous physical therapy sessions with Matt since February. She's tried a countless number of shoes, socks, insoles, stretches, massage, and strengthening exercises. Matt prescribed the use of a massage ball for her foot (see image of red ball). The irony of using a massage ball that looks like the coronavirus while in quarantine for the coronavirus is great.. 🦠😂 For those who've suffered from PF you know it can be a long, frustrating road to recovery, but she's always been so incredibly mentally tough and she's making progress everyday.
Starting this journey while both of us are injured has been really humbling. Early on in this process, we met with the amazing team at St. Baldrick's Foundation and they shared more with us about the children suffering from leukemias, lymphomas, and other cancers. We are running for them. This is what motivates us everyday. 💙
