Now that the pain of the marathon has gone away, I’m anxious to start filling up my2011 race calendar!

I’m pretty sure I’m going to do Marine Corps Marathon again (registration opens February 23!). Or maybe Baltimore or another nearby fall marathon.  But then I got to thinking … I wonder if I’d have enough recovery time to fit in a spring marathon, too?

Hmm, can I even use one fall marathon as a training run for another?

But I have to face the facts.  I’ve had on and off knee and hip pain for a while now. And during marathon training, my left foot would bother me during most of the long runs. At first I thought it could be a too-tight shoe, but I adjusted my laces and tried different shoes.

The same foot also hurt in yoga once during a balance pose that I’ve since stopped doing. I did my best (successfully!) to ignore it during the race itself, but I can’t keep pretending nothing’s wrong.

It’s time to fix this.

Dr. Google tells me it’s a metatarsal problem, which will only get worse if I don’t do anything about it. It also seems most people don’t see doctors during the early stages when it doesn’t seem so bad. And currently, it doesn’t seem so bad. But I want to keep running. I should probably get a proper diagnosis, too.

I’ll be seeing a doctor tomorrow.

And for the my other aches and pains? I’m planning to see a chiropractor. I’m particularly interested in going to one who does Active Release Techniques (ART). I know I’ve got alignment/biomechanical issues, so it seems like it’ll help.

Does anybody have any experience with this?

I’ve still got a few races planned this year, but I’m going to keep my 2011 calender open for now. Have to make sure I’ll actually be able to run all those races!