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Many people have problems with mesh. It’s unclear why. There are many different types of mesh and many different techniques for placing it. Generally, anecdotally, athletic people with low body fat have more problems with mesh. More chronic pain. You can find a many success stories and many horror stories. So many stories that there will be no clear “winners”, or losers. Recurrence is only one aspect of a successful hernia repair. The other big one is chronic pain.
So, your surgeon might have done you a favor, in the long run. If he is trained in the various mesh placement techniques and uses mesh, but he chose the modified Bassini repair he must have thought you were a good candidate for it. Mesh is generally considered to have a lower recurrence rate, and seems to be the “safe” route to take, based only on recurrence rates.
You should really be focused on the long term, not the next two weeks, or two months, or the fact that you’re losing your conditioning. If you go too fast and create problems you could have serious regrets, and be out of running for much longer. Maybe forever if things go really bad. Hernia repair is simple in principle and description but complex in practice. I was a very active runner and soccer player until I had laparoscopic mesh implantation with Bard Soft Mesh. It ruined me for athletics and running and hiking. It’s hard to say that you’d be better off with mesh implantation.
Good luck.