Cha-cha-changes

It's been 9 weeks since i started training for the Philadelphia Marathon. Before that I would average 15-20 miles a week, and if I git 22 or 23 it was a huge deal. Now I'm averaging 25 (on a rest week) to 37 (on a heavy week) I am absolutely amazed at my body's ability to respond and adapt.

But possibly the weirdest thing that has happened to me over the past 9 weeks is a long time nagging pain has actually gone away. It started back in July 2009. I must have been in the middle of training for my second half marathon, NYC. I remember I was out of town visiting my boyfriend and his family in GA, and I went out for a run. By the time I got back to NY I had some nagging knee pain. It was in such an odd spot (inner/rear)  that I was never able to self diagnosis it. I went to a sports physician and he "diagnosed" me with tendonitis, I think, and just gave me some heavy duty IB Profin and told me to rest. The pain would go away when I stopped running, but  once I started up again after a few days it would always come back. It never effected my stride or my form (although it made sitting and some yoga poses extremely painful), so I just kind of ignored it like most runners try to do with aches and pains.

It took me up until a week ago to realize it was gone. It was something I had been dealing with on and off for so long, when it was gone I didn't even realize it. Does that even make sense? The only way I can even try to explain it is that my legs are stronger, and whatever was going on has been fixed due to stronger muscles and joints.

I thought that running a marathon would wear my body down and leave me injured, but it seems like right now, I'm the strongest runner I've ever been.