1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:02,900
[MUSIC PLAYING]

2
00:00:11,610 --> 00:00:15,990
So the holistic approach
to recovery from an injury

3
00:00:15,990 --> 00:00:23,860
is knowing what you can do
and knowing what you are

4
00:00:23,860 --> 00:00:26,590
willing to do and want to do.

5
00:00:26,590 --> 00:00:29,830
I mean, there's a whole
protocol and several protocols

6
00:00:29,830 --> 00:00:32,170
of coming back from injuries.

7
00:00:32,170 --> 00:00:35,320
You have to listen
to your body and see

8
00:00:35,320 --> 00:00:39,410
how far you can push it,
and when you have to say,

9
00:00:39,410 --> 00:00:42,500
enough of the pushing,
and it's just about rest.

10
00:00:42,500 --> 00:00:46,130
And it's a waiting
game, oftentimes.

11
00:00:46,130 --> 00:00:47,960
The mind is part of
the body, but the body

12
00:00:47,960 --> 00:00:50,480
is part of the
mind, too, and it's

13
00:00:50,480 --> 00:00:53,480
a constant tug of war,
especially when it comes

14
00:00:53,480 --> 00:00:55,040
to recovering from injuries.

15
00:00:55,040 --> 00:00:58,880
I think it's a love-hate
relationship with injury.

16
00:00:58,880 --> 00:01:03,980
I think that if you overtrain
and are going after a goal,

17
00:01:03,980 --> 00:01:07,310
and wanna focus on that goal,
and know in your head what

18
00:01:07,310 --> 00:01:10,100
you think you need to
do to get that goal,

19
00:01:10,100 --> 00:01:12,020
you're playing with
fire when it comes

20
00:01:12,020 --> 00:01:15,560
to playing with injury issues.

21
00:01:15,560 --> 00:01:20,360
And I'm one to push
it as far as I can,

22
00:01:20,360 --> 00:01:22,430
hoping to avoid
injury, but sometimes,

23
00:01:22,430 --> 00:01:24,980
stepping over that line
and getting injured.

24
00:01:24,980 --> 00:01:27,380
And it's a really fine line.

25
00:01:27,380 --> 00:01:29,410
[MUSIC PLAYING]

26
00:01:29,410 --> 00:01:32,590
Back when I was training
for the Olympics in '84,

27
00:01:32,590 --> 00:01:36,730
I was testing myself
every day, every long run,

28
00:01:36,730 --> 00:01:39,340
trying to make my long
runs faster and faster.

29
00:01:39,340 --> 00:01:42,430
And unfortunately, I
pushed it a little too far.

30
00:01:42,430 --> 00:01:45,430
And I literally felt
something unravel

31
00:01:45,430 --> 00:01:48,040
on the outside of
my right leg, and it

32
00:01:48,040 --> 00:01:54,110
felt like a spring had unloaded,
and I knew I was in trouble.

33
00:01:54,110 --> 00:01:58,060
So I panicked a bit and
I didn't know what to do.

34
00:01:58,060 --> 00:02:03,610
Then, I went out to
Oregon and I saw a surgeon

35
00:02:03,610 --> 00:02:06,700
out there who
hesitated to do surgery

36
00:02:06,700 --> 00:02:09,040
and wanted to give me
an anti-inflammatory.

37
00:02:09,039 --> 00:02:11,979
And I didn't think it was
an inflammation problem.

38
00:02:11,980 --> 00:02:15,220
I thought it was a structural
problem because of the feeling

39
00:02:15,220 --> 00:02:16,690
of that spring unloading.

40
00:02:16,690 --> 00:02:19,480
So how do you tell a
world-renowned physician,

41
00:02:19,480 --> 00:02:23,200
surgeon, that he was
misdiagnosing the issue?

42
00:02:23,200 --> 00:02:24,970
It wasn't an inflammation.

43
00:02:24,970 --> 00:02:28,270
It was a structural issue.

44
00:02:28,270 --> 00:02:31,720
And that's why I keep
telling athletes,

45
00:02:31,720 --> 00:02:34,030
you know your body
better than anybody else.

46
00:02:34,030 --> 00:02:35,590
Listen to your body.

47
00:02:35,590 --> 00:02:40,990
So finally, he opted for
the arthroscopic procedure,

48
00:02:40,990 --> 00:02:44,810
and this was two weeks
before the trials.

49
00:02:44,810 --> 00:02:47,260
And I-- I went through
with the surgery.

50
00:02:47,260 --> 00:02:50,260
It was ambulatory day surgery.

51
00:02:50,260 --> 00:02:52,210
And I told him
before the surgery,

52
00:02:52,210 --> 00:02:56,380
I said, if you get in there
and it's a major problem,

53
00:02:56,380 --> 00:02:59,140
don't wake me up to tell
me it's a major problem

54
00:02:59,140 --> 00:03:01,780
and I need a big time surgery.

55
00:03:01,780 --> 00:03:03,580
Just fix the problem.

56
00:03:03,580 --> 00:03:05,620
And I woke up in
a hospital room,

57
00:03:05,620 --> 00:03:07,330
and he walked in
shortly thereafter.

58
00:03:07,327 --> 00:03:09,157
And he said: "are you
surprised to be here?"

59
00:03:09,160 --> 00:03:10,120
And I said, yes.

60
00:03:10,120 --> 00:03:13,000
I guess you found more than
we both had bargained for.

61
00:03:13,000 --> 00:03:14,920
And he said, well, not exactly.

62
00:03:14,920 --> 00:03:17,020
He said: "your
reputation preceded you,

63
00:03:17,020 --> 00:03:19,000
and I knew if I
discharged you today,

64
00:03:19,000 --> 00:03:20,770
you'd go out and try
to run on it tonight,

65
00:03:20,770 --> 00:03:23,480
so I'm keeping you
here for 24 hours."

66
00:03:23,480 --> 00:03:25,090
That was the best
thing he could have

67
00:03:25,090 --> 00:03:33,090
done because it kept me at bay
and I was able to bounce back.

68
00:03:33,090 --> 00:03:37,480
Now, the moral of that
story is with injuries,

69
00:03:37,480 --> 00:03:40,240
you need to be very
careful because you can

70
00:03:40,240 --> 00:03:42,830
develop compensatory issues.

71
00:03:42,830 --> 00:03:46,420
So by not trusting my
knee after that surgery,

72
00:03:46,420 --> 00:03:49,780
not believing that
everything was remedied,

73
00:03:49,780 --> 00:03:52,120
I pulled my opposing hamstring.

74
00:03:52,120 --> 00:03:54,910
And that was ultimately
what almost kept me out

75
00:03:54,910 --> 00:03:58,900
of those trials because I could
barely walk on my good leg

76
00:03:58,900 --> 00:04:00,610
because I had favored
my right knee.

77
00:04:00,612 --> 00:04:02,322
And I think that's
something runners need

78
00:04:02,320 --> 00:04:05,980
to be really aware of, is
the compensatory issues

79
00:04:05,980 --> 00:04:08,800
and injuries that arise
from the initial injury.

80
00:04:08,800 --> 00:04:11,490
[MUSIC PLAYING]

81
00:04:12,390 --> 00:04:15,860
The most important thing
with wondering about

82
00:04:15,862 --> 00:04:17,822
if you're going to be
able to endure the injury

83
00:04:17,820 --> 00:04:21,030
and get to the other
side of it is not

84
00:04:21,029 --> 00:04:26,999
losing sight of your
goals and being patient

85
00:04:27,000 --> 00:04:32,430
and realizing that you
can gain other strength

86
00:04:32,430 --> 00:04:36,600
through other sports that
will make you a better runner.

87
00:04:36,600 --> 00:04:39,450
And sometimes, there's
a silver lining.

88
00:04:39,450 --> 00:04:40,950
And I won't even say sometimes.

89
00:04:40,950 --> 00:04:45,360
I'll say, oftentimes, there's
a silver lining with an injury.

90
00:04:45,360 --> 00:04:48,150
You always have to look for the
light at the end of the tunnel,

91
00:04:48,150 --> 00:04:51,360
or you always have to make
lemonade out of lemons.

92
00:04:51,360 --> 00:04:54,930
And there have been several
instances during my career

93
00:04:54,930 --> 00:04:58,800
where I thought, OK, it's
time to toss in the towel.

94
00:04:58,800 --> 00:05:03,180
And this might be one of those
points in my life when I do,

95
00:05:03,180 --> 00:05:04,740
but I'm not ready to yet.

96
00:05:04,740 --> 00:05:06,780
I haven't given it my all.

97
00:05:06,780 --> 00:05:10,280
And only you as an
individual or you as a runner

98
00:05:10,283 --> 00:05:11,703
know when you've
given it your all

99
00:05:11,700 --> 00:05:15,000
and tried every avenue
to find that success

100
00:05:15,000 --> 00:05:16,350
or find that way back.

101
00:05:16,350 --> 00:05:19,440
And things take
time, and I'm trying

102
00:05:19,440 --> 00:05:21,630
to be as patient
as I possibly can,

103
00:05:21,630 --> 00:05:23,850
but that's not one of
my stronger attributes.

104
00:05:23,850 --> 00:05:27,420
So that's when I talk
about gaining strength

105
00:05:27,420 --> 00:05:29,340
that you didn't
think you had or need

106
00:05:29,340 --> 00:05:31,630
to develop to a higher level.

107
00:05:31,630 --> 00:05:36,990
And so I think if I can bounce
back from this current knee

108
00:05:36,990 --> 00:05:41,100
issue, I'll be a
stronger person for it.

109
00:05:41,100 --> 00:05:44,170
Whether I'm a stronger runner,
I'll be a stronger person.

110
00:05:44,170 --> 00:05:45,870
And ultimately, being
a stronger person

111
00:05:45,870 --> 00:05:48,690
is much more important than
being a stronger athlete.

112
00:05:48,688 --> 00:05:51,558
[MUSIC PLAYING]

113
00:05:55,390 --> 00:06:00,580
So I do have sort of a rogue
style with my running stride,

114
00:06:00,580 --> 00:06:04,900
and it's, I think, the result
of that ski accident when

115
00:06:04,900 --> 00:06:08,980
I broke my leg, my tibia
at the top of my boot.

116
00:06:08,980 --> 00:06:12,880
And, again, I didn't have a
lot of patience even back then,

117
00:06:12,880 --> 00:06:15,580
and I probably came
back on it too fast

118
00:06:15,580 --> 00:06:19,450
and bowed the actual bone
when it was still mending

119
00:06:19,450 --> 00:06:22,430
and I've had to deal
with it ever since.

120
00:06:22,430 --> 00:06:24,970
But at the same
time, maybe that's

121
00:06:24,970 --> 00:06:27,130
what set me apart
from my opponents

122
00:06:27,130 --> 00:06:30,370
and gave me a stride that
just worked for me better

123
00:06:30,370 --> 00:06:33,670
than the stride that
I should have had.

124
00:06:33,670 --> 00:06:36,580
Maybe I had to
work so hard to get

125
00:06:36,580 --> 00:06:43,090
into a rhythmic, efficient
stride with that new change

126
00:06:43,090 --> 00:06:46,240
that I developed
other strengths.

127
00:06:46,240 --> 00:06:48,310
Fortunately, I
didn't develop a lot

128
00:06:48,310 --> 00:06:52,300
of compensatory injuries
during that recovery

129
00:06:52,300 --> 00:06:54,790
and running all those years.

130
00:06:54,790 --> 00:06:59,500
Where you can err is when
you push through sickness

131
00:06:59,500 --> 00:07:01,840
or an injury and
your results start

132
00:07:01,840 --> 00:07:03,400
going in the other direction.

133
00:07:03,400 --> 00:07:08,530
And that can be mentally
really, really detrimental

134
00:07:08,530 --> 00:07:10,360
to future running.

135
00:07:10,360 --> 00:07:13,300
And I remember just having
to get this track work out,

136
00:07:13,300 --> 00:07:15,970
and I had a temperature of 102,
and I had to go to the track,

137
00:07:15,970 --> 00:07:18,910
and I had to get this,
and I fell way off.

138
00:07:18,910 --> 00:07:22,450
And that killed me for
the next six months.

139
00:07:22,450 --> 00:07:23,950
It just killed me.

140
00:07:23,950 --> 00:07:27,820
So you have to know
when to say, stop.

141
00:07:27,820 --> 00:07:32,410
And I still to this day have a
hard problem saying, OK, stop.

142
00:07:32,410 --> 00:07:36,820
You know, recalibrate,
reload, start again.

143
00:07:36,820 --> 00:07:40,300
I mean, because all the
running I have behind me,

144
00:07:40,300 --> 00:07:42,490
it's like, stockpiled.

145
00:07:42,490 --> 00:07:43,330
It's there.

146
00:07:43,330 --> 00:07:46,480
And I'll never forget how
to run and I'll always

147
00:07:46,480 --> 00:07:51,160
be able to bounce
back once injuries

148
00:07:51,160 --> 00:07:54,960
have disappeared because
it's just in the memory bank.