Wednesday, October 11, 2017

A Familiar Journey Begins

Setting goals for 2018 has begun!  I will be training to compete in Figure and also running another half marathon.  These two goals came about in a way that makes them feel "meant to be".

The half marathon I am running is the Dam to Dam in Des Moines.  I have ran this race before and it is my favorite half marathon.  Starting off out in the country and heading into Des Moines, it is such a beautiful run and fairly flat.  The community is always out supporting the runners and I get to run with family and friends.  This is the last Dam to Dam half marathon which really pushed me to decide to run it.  I am sad the race is coming to an end but I look forward to running it!

After fully deciding on my goals I was hit with another little speed bump.  I had a bad cold and decided to go to a walk in clinic a couple of weeks ago.  The doctor said I had a virus but became concerned because my right thyroid was swollen.  In 2011 I had a biopsy done on a nodule in my thyroid, it was benign and I haven't had any issues.  My labs all came back normal so the doctor scheduled me for an ultrasound the next day.  The day after the ultrasound I had an appointment with an ENT because there were two nodules in my thyroid.  The decision was made to remove my right thyroid, I am having the procedure done in November.  When the doctor removes the thyroid they will test the nodules for cancer and if either is cancer they will also remove the left thyroid.  Thankfully the chance of cancer is very slim and the hope is that my left thyroid will be able to fully function with the right thyroid removed.

It was a bit of a shock to me going from having a bad to cold to needing surgery to have my right thyroid removed.  The cold kicked my butt for the past two weeks but I finally started feeling better and made it to the gym last weekend for my first workout with the gal who will be competing with me next year.  It will be her first competition and I am so excited to be on this journey with her.

My attitude is back to "me vs. me" and that is where it needs to stay.  I have been tired and felt a bit beat down this year.  Learning to keep moving forward has been something I am working on without quitting.  Knowing I have a partner in this prep makes me more excited to compete again.  There is just something about surrounding yourself with positive, strong, good people and Tracy is exactly that type of person.



 There is a lot of work to be done, I feel quite a bit weaker from so much time off from weight training but I know the strength will come back.  Running has been on the back burner for quite a while and I will have to be patient with my progress but it will feel good to get back at it!