The "I can't" moment

The last ten days have been frustrating in a way that is hard to

explain unless you’ve experienced it. I’ve been told not to run.

What makes that especially difficult is that I was actually doing

everything the way you’re supposed to.

My training had structure. I wasn’t randomly pushing mileage. I warmed up before runs. I stretched after. I foam rolled after runs. I did strength training during the week to support my legs and glutes. I was doing yoga for flexibility and eating right for recovery and strength.

In other words, I wasn’t ignoring the basics. In fact, I was meticulous and methodical.

So when the physiotherapist asks me if I’ve been doing strengthening, stretching, mobility work, the answer is always the same.

Yes!

All of it.

And yet something around my hip and lower back has still become a real issue.

At first it felt small. The kind of tightness runners usually assume will go away in a day or two. Instead it slowly became worse.

Now it has been almost ten days without running.

Ten days might not sound like much, but when you are following a training plan for a race, that time feels significant. Especially when you don’t know when you will be able to start again.

The physical pain itself is manageable. What has been harder is the mental side of it.

Running had become the structure around which my weeks were organized. Each run felt like a small step toward the half marathon. When that structure suddenly disappears, it leaves an uncomfortable gap.

The instinct is to push through it.

But this is one of the rare situations where pushing is exactly the wrong move.

The physiotherapist has been very clear. If I rush back too soon, I risk making the injury worse and losing even more time.

So the real discipline right now is PATIENCE.

Which is not something I am naturally good at. What makes this moment particularly challenging is the timing. The half marathon is approaching. And the nerves of it all affect my mood and creative side immensely! The Art Fair is approaching, the creativity that was flowing with every successful training run done, is all blocked.

Both things that Runnaissance is built around are still moving forward on the calendar.

Earlier in the project everything felt like it was building in the right direction. The structure was working, both physically and mentally.

Then suddenly the structure broke. That is probably the most frustrating part of all of this.

You assume that if you follow the process carefully enough, you can avoid setbacks.

But the body does not always cooperate with the plan.

Sometimes you can do everything right and still get injured.

Right now my days look different.

Physiotherapy exercises.Strength work that doesn’t aggravate the injury. Trying to stay calm about the timeline.

And honestly, hoping the run is still possible.

Runnaisance was never supposed to be a perfect story. It was supposed to document the real experience of preparing for two demanding things at the same time.

This week that experience looks less like running and more like learning how to wait.