Let some air out of the tires? Yes!
It was the simple solution presented by a young child, to solve an enormous challenge.
The challenge?
A large tractor trailer type truck got stuck under a highway overpass. No one could figure out how to get the truck unstuck. People, I believe, were even starting to discuss how some of the overpass would have to be deconstructed to free the truck.
Enter the mind of a child.
“Why don’t you just let some air out of the tires?”, the child said.
Wow. We sometimes are so stuck in what we see, that we can’t think of a simple, and perhaps obvious, solution.
Enter me, yesterday morning.
From the very beginning, in the first 100 meters, I sensed something was not right. Mild pain in my left foot. I think I may have even mumbled a curse word, which is totally out of character. I had pain most of the five-mile run, but not enough pain to make me stop. In fact, my second and fourth miles were fairly quick. It may have been denial that made me tough it out, to test my pain level. I don’t really know.
After the run, I made a same-day appointment to see Dr. Wagner, my great podiatrist.
He pin-pointed the location of the pain. The place where heel spurs occur. The cortisone shot ten days ago reduced the plantar fascia inflammation. This new pain source and location? A new challenge.
Dr. Wagner and I both thought yesterday would be a “back to normal – minus the pain” kind of day.
So Dr Wagner prescribed a second pair of custom orthotics – an “athletic” orthotic, which provides more cushion than the standard pair that I’ve been using for a decade. Also, go back on daily 200mg Celebrex for one month. I had cancelled the Celebrex after the cortisone shot ten days ago, as instructed by Dr. Wagner.
It was at this moment when it hit me. The heel pain is from heel contact. What if I switched most of my training to running hills on my toes. Which is part of a sprinter’s training anyway. Lower the quantity of miles, and raise the quality.
That’s it!
Look at this running (pain) challenge the same way the child looked at the truck challenge. Look at it with a simple solution in mind, not some complicated and perhaps impossible thinking.
I’ll keep you posted. I love when some simple creativity can add a new found sense of hope, to an otherwise hopeless feeling.
Make today a healthy day, because if you don’t, who will? Carpe diem, jeff noel 🙂