No way...its not gonna happen!

I continue to walk. And walk. And walk. This week, I did nearly 33 miles. This next week, I'm supposed to do 35.

But I'm flirting with an injury. Rather, its an old injury that I can tell is trying to flare up. I got it diagnosed over 15 years ago. It's a tiny fracture of the sesamoid bone in my left foot.

According to foothealthfacts.com:

What is a Sesamoid?A sesamoid is a bone embedded in a tendon. Sesamoids are found in several joints in the body. In the normal foot, the sesamoids are two pea-shaped bones located in the ball of the foot, beneath the big toe joint.
Acting as a pulley for tendons, the sesamoids help the big toe move normally and provide leverage when the big toe “pushes off” during walking and running. The sesamoids also serve as a weight-bearing surface for the first metatarsal bone (the long bone connected to the big toe), absorbing the weight placed on the ball of the foot when walking, running, and jumping.
Sesamoid injuries can involve the bones, tendons, and/or surrounding tissue in the joint. They are often associated with activities requiring increased pressure on the ball of the foot, such as running, basketball, football, golf, tennis, and ballet. In addition, people with high arches are at risk for developing sesamoid problems. Frequent wearing of high-heeled shoes can also be a contributing factor.

Types of Sesamoid Injuries in the Foot

• Fracture. A fracture (break) in a sesamoid bone can be either acute or chronic.
  • An acute fracture is caused by trauma – a direct blow or impact to the bone. An acute sesamoid fracture produces immediate pain and swelling at the site of the break, but usually does not affect the entire big toe joint.
  • A chronic fracture is a stress fracture (a hairline break usually caused by repetitive stress or overuse). A chronic sesamoid fracture produces longstanding pain in the ball of the foot beneath the big toe joint. The pain, which tends to come and go, generally is aggravated with activity and relieved with rest.

My situation is more of a chronic one. It isn't too bad right now.  It has come and gone for the last 15 years. But I can tell it is just wanting to flare up. To avoid this, I've modified a few things.

First, I'm done doing high impact cardio intervals. Sniff.  No more plyometrics or jumping jacks, jumping rope, etc., while cross training. I'll stick to low impact elliptical, stair climber and stationary bike. 

I kind of took today off. I was supposed to do 4 miles today. But I walked the dog a little over a mile yesterday and then this morning. Combined with some "extra" mileage I did during the week, I'm only about .55 miles off of my week goal of 33 miles. I'm also going to save my longer walking days this upcoming week (11 and 15 miles) for later in the week. Hopefully by then, I'll be okay.

I'd appreciate your prayers, though. We have about 8 weeks to go of training before the 3 Day. I really, really want to be able to walk all 60 miles. Of course, the organizers say there is no shame in taking a sweep van that weekend. If I'm really hurt, I will. But I really, really would like to walk all 60 miles.