my 30 year old body

No, it's not my birthday.  If you thought you missed it, it was 11 months ago - I turn 31 in a month.  And no, this isn't a "body after baby" post - you'll have to wait another week for that update.  Instead, let's talk about age and injuries.  Ugh.I forgot my friend's birthday last week which I will never forgive myself for.  I'm huge on birthdays, and the fact that I literally had it written down in my planner bugs me to no end.  When I emailed her an apologized again, she commented that, unlike me, she wasn't big on birthdays.  In her words, she said, "I'm only as old as I feel anyway."  Truth.Well, for years now, I've always felt like I was 18.  I never feel old enough to have completed 4 years of undergrad, another year of school to get my teaching certificate, and almost 2 years of graduate school (I will be doing cartwheels once this semester is over).  I still don't even feel old enough to have 2 kids, let alone be married and have a career.  I mean, who would let me, this 18 year old little girl, own a house?!  Right?!  Maybe if I could pass for older than a middle schooler (yeah, I get mistaken for a student all the time) I might actually feel older than 18.

Really, I'm old enough to have TWO kids?!

Unfortunately, as much as I feel like I'm still an 18 year old senior in high school, dating this awesome guy who would eventually become my husband, and playing volleyball non-stop, my body is telling me otherwise.If you've been a reader of the blog for awhile, you know that I've had a pretty good streak with being injury-free.  When I started this blog back in 2010, I was dealing with a little bout of plantar fasciitis.  While it was definitely a pain the butt foot, it didn't do much to stop my training.  That was the last time I really felt like I had been injured... until this year.Let's just say my 30s haven't been my best for running.  I was pregnant with Miles when I turned 30.  I was dealing with a lot of pubic pain that thankfully my chiropractor could take care of after my "long" runs every week.  Then, after having Miles, I was dealing with pelvis pain yet again.  But, this time, to the point where I could barely walk.  Again, my chiropractor came to my rescue and fixed me up really well and I haven't had an issue since the end of June.Of course, right about that same time, my foot started to bother me.  It was nothing serious - just felt like a bit of a bone bruise or some tendonitis on the side of my foot.  We checked for a stress fracture, but thankfully that came back negative.  It bothered me all through RnR Chicago and then magically disappeared a few weeks post-race.I've gone almost 2 months feeling, well, awesome!  Despite some calf soreness and general soreness from weight lifting, I haven't had any issues.  But, the pain in my foot came back with a vengeance.  It was bothering me when I got up in the morning, but it was just some tightness when I got out of bed that would go away in minutes.  Until one night when MacKenna woke up in the middle of the night needing to go potty.  I was walking to take her to the bathroom, when POP!  I felt it.  It wasn't necessarily bad, but I felt it.  A pop in my heel.  It felt tight the next few days but nothing more than it had been.  And it was sore after a few runs, but again, extremely manageable.That is, until this week.  I've been to the chiropractor twice this week (Saturday and Tuesday) to get my foot worked on.  Wednesday morning was the worst.  I woke up and couldn't put weight on my foot (shaving my legs was especially fun).  It loosened up as the day went on, but it was still bothering me.  I heated, iced, and rolled, which seemed to help a little bit.Yesterday, I woke up with much less pain, but it was still there.  I could put weight on my foot, but the pain was still there.  I wore a compression brace on my foot which definitely helped throughout the day, but the pain was still there.  Well, until I had a 6th grader kick me in the shin when he was going for a soccer ball.  That certainly took my mind off the pain - and left me with a giant bruise and swelling on my other leg...

Look at that lovely bruise on my left ankle area.  It hurts like hell...

I'm frustrated.  I feel like I just got to a point where my training was going well.  That I was back to where I was before I was pregnant with Miles - or at least close.  I seriously have not spent this much time injured since I was in college with a stress fracture.  I'm trying to wrap my head around the fact that I might have to take some time off, but then I think about RnR St. Louis (thankfully, I switched to the 10K a few months ago) and my mental health.  I know I can still weight lift and maybe do some other form of cardio to keep my endurance up a little, but it's still not running.  And I feel like I need running. *sigh*So, it's back to the chiropractor tomorrow.  I'm focusing on stretching my calves, foam rolling my calves and foot, and doing all I can to remedy the situation.  I'm praying this isn't a long time out, but I can't help but think it might be.  What is it about your 30s that all of a sudden your body just stops cooperating?!  Ugh.

Anyone else go through plantar fasciitis pain?  Did you take time off or decrease your mileage?  What seemed to work for you?  Anyone else's body start shutting down on them at age 30?