Run-Down Forums

[Dan]

I don't think I've ever really thought about this before, at least not in the full context.... Strange.

I've often wondered if I got all I could out of my body athletically, or if I never tapped my full potential. Sort of a tough question to answer... But something hit me today that never really ocurred to me before which might actually shed some light on it.

I ran track in 4th and 5th grade and was above average but not spectacular. Good enough to get ribbons fairly often and the occasional medal. I played soccer from 1st through 7th grade, up until our team disbanded. It was about that same time that I was getting the bug to get back into track, and I remember one day in P.E. we had some races out on the soccer field. I think we did one that was one length of the field (100y) and another that was down and back (200y). I absolutely killed everyone and felt extremely fast. I think we might've done some longer tests that I beat most if not everyone, as well, but I don't remember them specifically.

I should point out that my Jr High had some extremely good athletes, with 2 guys that went on to place top 8 in the state in the triple/long jump (one was a far better sprinter than jumper at the time) and another guy that could blow the doors off anyone around, 5 of probably the 7 or 8 best basketball players in the state, etc. Oh, and my friend Ahman Dirks who went on to be considered the top NAIA DII runner in the country his senior year at U of Puget Sound and did quite well at the Olympic Trials this year... I know I couldn't have hung with those top couple of guys, but we had some pretty fast ones in that particular gym class as I recall and I took them easy.

That spring, I had planned on joining the track team but was derailed by the onset of some pretty bad knee problems. Bad enough that I couldn't get in or out of a chair without holding onto something. Ditto for going up or down stairs. Pretty much all I could do was swim for rehab. I got over it by 9th grade and started track again at that point. Never had knee problems per se since, although I also haven't been able to kneel down on anything harder than a mattress...

What ocurred to me today is that may well have signaled the beginning of all my injury and health problems that my body never recovered from enough each time to reach any sort of potential. The knee stuff probably explains why I've never been able to develop any explosive jumping or sprinting capabilities despite extensive work on those specific aspects. From that point on in 7th grade, it was literally a miracle if I made it more than a month without being derailed by some injury or health issue. Knees, quads, back, neck, kidneys, hamstrings, hip flexor, IT bands, plantar faciitis, achilles, shins, ankles, metatarsals, calves, sciatica, migraines, allergies, viral infection, eyes...

That day in PE class may have been a glimmer of what I was actually capable of.

Gee, if that doesn't just make you want to go out and tear up the local trails, I don't know what does.

Dan
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[graeme]

Jeese Dan, that's depressing. It makes sense though. One injury will often cause imbalances or weaknesses that lead to other injuries.

If it's any consolation, I've always been more worried about doing what I can, than accomplishing anything specific. You obviously worked hard to develop your talent, so even though you may not have reached your potential peak, at least it wasn't through lack of effort.

[Dan]

Yeah, that could be the biggest downer of a post I've ever contributed.

[graeme]

ouch, that's not a very friendly suggestion

[Dan]

I was just reminded of another example of how out of whack my body is...

By far the healthiest portion of my body over the years has been my lower back (defying the family odds), yet it's probably the clearest example of something I've got structurally wrong, with a fairly badly bulging disk obvious to the touch. Sticks out enough that I regularly bruise it doing situps or ab work on moderately hard surfaces (i.e. thin carpeting) and hit it just now climbing out of the canopied back of my neighbor's truck.

Dan
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