i have done such a fantastic job with all of my training.  overall, i have stuck to the schedule and i’ve felt great about it.  so i find it wholly disheartening that now, on my biggest run week, right before the glorious taper, i am having pains.  🙁  for some reason that i truly do not understand, the *back* of my left knee has been bothersome since the beginning.  not really a “hurt” or “pain” but a chronic annoyance.  how the heck do you aggravate the back of your knee while running?!  anyhow, this week the annoyance has turned to ouch.  which doesn’t make any sense because last week was a light week and i took it easy and didn’t push.  also on my left, the “knuckle” on my middle toe is swollen to twice its size and hurts to walk on.  i have no idea why.  i’m pretty sure i have not injured it recently.  it is the toe that i broke before our grand canyon trip last year so i don’t know if 6 weeks of ground-pounding has just inflamed that old injury or what.  it sucks.  lastly, out of the blue, there is a spot in the front size of my right hip that is making itself known when i walk.  see, this is why i didn’t want to turn thirty.  all my training was going great but have a birthday and i start falling apart.  i had to do my monday four miles on the treadmill thanks to the strawberry festival fences not being dismantled in a timely manner at my park and it was a pain-filled four miles.  honestly, i would have quit after 1/2 a mile if i had been in there alone.  since there were two guys in the gym, i hated to look like a wimp by leaving after a whopping 5 or 6 minutes on the treadmill.  tonight i have to run six and i am really hoping that all of these aches and pains either let up or work their way out during the run.