I’ve come to the realization that I’m injured and I need to seek medical advice.  I began to feel a stitch in my lower abdomen back in February – sometime between the Austin Half and Moab.  I guessed it was scar tissue that flairs up now and then from an injury I incurred in my college days.  It was in that general area.  I thought situps would help mitigate the pain but they haven’t.  Instead, the pain has steadily grown – shooting upwards into my ribs and downward into my testicles.  Enough said. I need a quarter mile to half mile on runs before the pain recedes enough to allow a normal stride and pace.  And the pain is with me all day now, not only during runs.

I’d like to think I’ve matured enough to understand the value of seeking medical treatment.  To not be concerned about missing a race that cost me $100 in registration fees.  I haven’t.  So I’m looking for a doctor that I’m confident won’t tell me, “It’s hard to say what it is Ed, just take off the next six weeks.”  That’s what so many of them do.  They offer the option of a $3000 MRI that insurance covers only 80% of, and tell you to stop running.

Gadget Girl and my buddy Chris both see a local Physical Therapist whom seems more in tune to a runner’s desire to train through an injury.  I’m going to setup an appointment as soon as I can get in to see him.  The old Ed would wait until after the Bolder Boulder and Steamboat Marathon so that there would be no risk of missing those events.  But I have matured slightly.  Or maybe it’s just that this injury has got me by the balls.  After reducing my average training pace down to 8 minutes per mile, I’m suddenly back up to 8:40 per mile.  I need to fix this.