I should have been doing the first Virgin London Marathon today.
With all my run club friends.
Instead I watched it at home. With my foot up.
Because I am recovering from knee surgery and my good for age place has had to wait until next year.
I have had knee problems since I was a teenager and had learned that it was something I couldn't do anything about because doctors always sent me away when I went to see them about the pain I was in. Then I entered the Edinburgh Marathon 2009 and had a physio recommended to me when my knee started playing up early on in training. My wonderful physio kept my knee going and enabled me to run 3:41:44 in Edinburgh, but she wanted to know what was wrong with my knee.
So just after Christmas I had an MRI scan on my knee. It showed damage on the surface of the joint. A simple day surgery arthroscopy would sort it out. I tried to put it off because I didn't want an operation, but it was arranged for me and London had to wait (my bad knee had meant a strain on my achilles so I hadn't been able to train anyway).
21st April was D-Day and a very scared me went in to have a general anaesthetic. When I woke up and came round, I was told that more had had to be done to my knee and the consultant had performed microfractures to encourage cartilage growth where the joint had been rubbing bone on bone (no wonder it hurt!). This means a longer recovery and crutches.
I am glad I had the surgery. It hurts, but hopefully it will mean I can run properly once I am recovered.
So, my journey to the London Marathon 2011 is starting a little sooner than most people. I have a way to go before I can even start running again. Great North Run is at the end of September and I have entered as part of a school team. Whether I will be fit enough to run it remains to be seen.
The video for my operation can be viewed here.
