After several weeks of downer blogs with little to report, I am finally starting to mount a comeback.
Last week’s resolution to hit the bike has already paid off handsomely. I can’t actually say yet how much difference it’s made in maintaining my fitness, but the intangibles alone have been worth it. It feels great to start your day by breaking a sweat. It’s even better when you can add to the physical work with some mental gymnastics, courtesy of Connections and Revealed and cryptograms and sudoku. After my time on the bike, I was more focused at work and home. I felt more in control of my day.
For the first time in about a month, I feel in control of my training again. I took another test run on Saturday, and while I could still feel some pain in my rib, it was very faint. I tried a more substantial run on Sunday with similar results, so I think I’m just about ready to go.
My plan is to ramp up my mileage over the next few weeks while keeping my biking regimen intact. I think cross-training will be really important as I approach higher mileage, making my peak weeks even bigger while adding low-risk volume to my recovery weeks. It adds a new way I can mix up the recipe and avoid getting overcooked or stale. I could even swap biking for PT exercises during recovery weeks to reinforce my body for the next upswing. As long as that workout time is already on the schedule, there are loads of possibilities.
I’m starting to feel excited about running again. In that sense, this month of illness and injury might have been a blessing in disguise, or at least it might have a silver lining. I’m fresh and motivated and about to start a marathon block. Maybe it would be better to be a little more fit right now, but that’s still a pretty good place to be.
theDNF 
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