As I was laying on the couch pouting a couple of weeks ago, Mrs. Golden Trails made the following observation: “Running is your other spouse. Right not she’s not there, and you’re going to have to work hard to deal with that.”
This post will connect Kuebler-Ross with Ice Road Truckers. How? Read on to find out.
As usual, Mrs. Golden Trails is right.
I found myself going through different moods and somewhere along the lines realized that I was going through the 5 stages grief. Kuebler-Ross is calling!
Denial – This really went on for about a month. My leg kept feeling tight/hurting at various pain levels for about a month. No, I didn’t listen to my body. That’s breaking a cardinal rule. However, I will say that I didn’t think I was injured…just really tight.
Anger – This stage came mostly right after the Canyon Meadows race, where I DNFed and finally realized I was injured. I knew, I was mad and tried my hardest not to take it out on anyone, namely Mrs. Golden Trails. My strategy was to keep things “in”. It was hard, since I generally cope with issues by running.
Bargaining – “If I stretch a lot, I’ll be fine.” – “This will only take a few days as long as I rest a lot.” These are just a couple of thoughts I had as I said pouring over maps plotting future runs and mountain adventures. That was pretty silly.
Depression – Once I realized that none of my bargaining strategies was working and that my planned summer adventures in the Sierras and Rockies were likely not going to happen, I was pretty down. I didn’t want to do much of anything. As a result, I watched way too much “Ice Road Truckers”.
Acceptance – This is where I am now (thankfully!). My focus is now on the fall season (North Face 50 mile championships), and I’m simply getting a lot of rest before I commence my training.
Or something like that.
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