My Mount Doom Run...

So this past Monday I went on a hike with my family through the mountains to Stewart Falls. And though the hike was beautiful and pretty easy at one point I thought I'd hotdog it and jump over a big tree that had fallen across the trail. Needless to say, it was a bad decision and on the other side instead of landing on flat ground my foot landed on the side of a rock and I slightly twisted my ankle.

Fast forward until yesterday and my long run. My ankle had been bothering me throughout the week but it was really bad yesterday. Pair that with the late afternoon heat and a lack of water and you've got the worst run of my life on your hands.

After the first mile and a half I was doing a sort of limping jog - which isn't really pretty to see or to do. And I was hot hot hot. And I just felt awful. As I made it to the half way point I had to stop and just breathe - my face felt like fire and my ankle and knee were both so tender. I wanted to quit at that point but I didn't see the use since I had so far to go still and we had to be somewhere shortly after my run.

As I climbed up and down the hills on my way home I couldn't help but think of The Lord of the Rings. Remember in the third book when Frodo and Sam are on Mount Doom and they are trying to make it to the top? And they really think they can't make it? They really think they are going to die but they just have to keep putting one foot in front of the other? That was my run. Already the pain of it is fading...though I still have a knot in my stomach when I think about it. Hopefully my ankle gets better really quick so that I don't have to miss any days next week...