FALLBROOK ---- Her spirit is in St. Louis, but her mending body remains in North County. Milena Glusac, the flash of Fallbrook, is listed as the fifth top qualifier for Saturday's U.S. Olympic Team Trials Women's Marathon. But hip and lower back injuries prevent her from traveling to St. Louis' Washington University.

By staying behind, her quest to be among the top three finishers and to advance to the Summer Games in Athens, is derailed.

"In terms of disappointment, you can't explain how disappointed you are when you have trained for something your entire adult life," Glusac said. "It was a very obvious decision not to run, but that doesn't make it any easier."

Glusac, 28, hasn't raced competitively since she finished eighth among women in last April's Boston Marathon at 2 hours, 37 minutes, 32 seconds. Although she conquered Heartbreak Hill that Patriots' Day, the true heartbreak was on the horizon.

"The two races prior to that were not good," Glusac said, "and I knew something was wrong."

The stress of pushing herself at Boston accelerated her ailments. Injuries that were lurking in the background no longer could be ignored.

"I knew there was something not right at Boston because I was so tight and that's not like me," she said. "I couldn't ever get my rhythm and stride. And it was my lower back and hip, something that had accumulated, and it started hurting last year."

Since, Glusac has decreased her mileage to increase her chances of getting fit.

She is doing what she said are "steady" miles, but not the "intense" miles that are required to compete against the nation's best distance runners.

"I knew it would be difficult to be exactly in the shape I wanted to be in for the marathon trials, to get my body exactly where it needed to be,'' she said. "It wouldn't have been wise to push it with my injuries. There was no physical way I could do it."

So she's easing into her regimen, and optimistic her gradual pace will pay dividends.

"I'm encouraged about it, and I know it takes a little bit of time,'' said Glusac, a Fallbrook High product who was California's 5K Division I girls cross-country champion in 1991.

"I didn't want to go out there and push with hard workouts and set me myself back. I'm taking the full time to rest and recover.''

And she has an eye on the calendar.

Glusac, who competed in the 5K Olympic Trials in 1996 and 2000, is contemplating the 10K this year. Those trials are July 16 at Sacramento, 3 1/2 months away. Her 32:11 showing at that distance was good enough for second at the 2002 Track Nationals at Stanford.

"I'll definitely consider running in July," she said. "That's always another opportunity. And if not, it's not the end all and be all in life. I think in society we put so much pressure on athletes. But people have to realize athletes are human, and they have to take time to recover.

"And if not this year, the World Championships are next year. I'm still very young, and I know I have to let my body recover. That's the advantage of being a female distance runner: You get stronger."

Contact staff writer Jay Paris at paris@nctimes.net.