Hi,

I wasn't sure where to post this so I am posting here as well as the general discussion board.

I was recently diagnosed (mid-April) with Crohns and for the past year or so, my running times had been getting slower. Not sure if this was due to the Crohns or something else. I had been able to run 5ks in around 21.5 minutes a year ago and now I am lucky to finish them in 24-25 minutes. I haven't changed anything in my training so its not like I am out of shape. After some 5k races my body is beat up, as if I just finished a marathon. I used to be top three to top ten female finisher in races that I would participate in and now I am lucky if I am a middle of the pack. I should feel fortunate to be able to do these activities on my own will and I am but its still frustrating and taking its toll on my confidence level and my desire to continue to pursue running races, and running/training in general.

I was diagnosed days before Boston Marathon. I was put on Prednisone, to aggressively treat my symptoms and allow for me to do the marathon without bathroom stops. It kept me out of the Porta-potty but by mile 9 I was experiencing cramping. I have never had this issue during marathons or Ironmans in the past. I was hydrating like I normally would but it must not have been  enough. I was in shape to run a 3:20-3:30 marathon and finished in 3:37. I gave all I could to finish in this time.

I am reaching out on as many discussion boards that I am aware of in hopes of finding others out there who are highly competitive and involved in distance road races as well as endurance triathlons. I am signed up for a 125 mile hilly bike ride in two weeks (my 4 or 5th time participating), in late July I am signed up for my 7th of this particular half ironman and in September I hope to keep my streak going at IM Wisconsin. I am no stranger to running races from distances of 5k to marathon. I consider myself a veteran. I have been fortunate enough to start and finish Boston 9 consecutive years now...and hope to keep that streak alive as well. Right now though, these seem like huge chores in comparison to what they used to be. And as I said, I don't know if that's because of the Crohns, my body adjusting to the mild medication (Lialda) or if I need to do something different with my training.

If there is anyone out there who is familiar with Crohns and preferably extremely competitive and enjoys endurance events, please contact me at grafdezinr@yahoo.com

Thanks for your time!

Sincerely,

robin