These Hips Don't Lie

It's been a while since I've mentioned my marathon training and I do have a good reason. Really... I do. I have a doctor's note that says I have something called patellar tendonitis. Say what? I know- I can't even pronounce it correctly so bear with me:)

I was doing pretty well with my training, running around an 11 minute mile or so consistently until I hit the 8 mile mark. My knees started to ache a little but I brushed it off. I mean- it's marathon training, it's not supposed to be a cake walk. I expected blisters and aches and pains that I've never in my life imagined going through. But both knees started to get worse and worse to the point that I could barely walk up a flight of stairs, sitting on the toilet gave me nightmares and looking at my running shoes made me quiver in fear. I still pushed myself through it though; the first mile or so my knees would be killing me but then the pain would work itself out until I stopped running.

My running trainer told me to hightail it to AthletiCo and take advantage of the free one-time injury screening they offer. After multiple visits to AtheltiCo and then the orthopedist it was determined that I have tendonitis in the knees and I needed physical therapy. The reason for it makes me cringe in embarrassment for multiple reasons. It turns out I have weak hips. Yes, that's right... weak hips. I'm 27 years old and I have weak hips. I got slapped on the wrists for not doing my my cross training so the muscles around my hips and in my quads are weak. So my poor knees have been taking the brunt of my *cough* "weight". What makes me mad is that I could have prevented my injury by being diligent with my cross-training. I obviously wasn't in shape to take such a huge undertaking like running a marathon and in my hubris I ended up hurting myself.

So it's time to make Shakira proud and hit up the gym and lift weights. Does the gym intimidate any of you? It sure does intimidate me. I really don't have much of a choice; if I want to meet my goal I have to do it in a way that still keeps my healthy. Thankfully, the doctor says I can still run the marathon as long as I cross-train in conjunction with my running. Despite the chaffing, blisters, aches and pains I want to run that marathon so bad I can taste it. Are any of you pursuing a training goal? Any advice or tips?