Long way to go

Well, I've started running again...if you count 5.0 mph for 0.3 miles as running (which I do!). It feels like I'm starting all over again -- except instead of huffing and puffing, I have a weird limp and a bit of pain my leg. At least I've managed to stay in shape during this injury!

Trying to run again has been a slow process. I've tried it twice -- the first time I just went a quarter mile till I felt some pain. I had a weird limp (maybe getting used to the treadmill again?) and I think I was really nervous about trying running again, which probably didn't help the situation. The second time I tried to run "normally", i.e. without a limp. It went better than the first time, and I felt like I was running with much less of a limp, but I still felt some pain in my leg. Instead of bone pain though, I found I've had mostly muscle pain throughout this entire injury. The tibia itself has never really hurt -- it's pretty much always been the back left of my calf. Maybe I tore a muscle in addition to the stress reaction? The first doctor I saw did say there was some muscle strain on the MRI, but it's hard to tell what exactly is going on since I haven't actually seen the MRI report for myself...

Anyway, I do plan to keep slowly increasing my mileage and plan on running twice a week. I also want to try running outdoors -- I think the treadmill might be throwing me off a bit with the moving belt and all. I think I need to practice going through the running motions some before I'm ready to let a belt dictate my speed! I still need to run one more race in order to qualify for the NYC Marathon next year (I'm volunteering at the NYC Marathon expo this year to get my volunteer qualification!), so I hope I can find a 5k to do at a super slow pace sometime between now and Dec. 31. Hopefully I'll be able to run that far! However, I did walk a running race as part of my qualifying races...I had signed up for two races pre-injury, the Fitness Mind Body Spirit 4 mile race and the ING Tune-Up 18 mile race (though I wasn't going to be running the NYC marathon this year, I figured it would be inspiring to be around other people who were training for a marathon).

Obviously I couldn't do the 18 miler, but I woke up on the day of the 4-mile race and decided that I would walk it. I did it in just over an hour and even beat 11 people! Woo hoo! It was actually pretty interesting because I was mostly with a bunch of people who were possibly new to running, or running their first race. I was really encouraged to see some of the newer runners running with friends who were maybe a bit more experienced with running -- they were encouraging their friends all the way, taking breaks with them and keeping them going. At the end I overheard one girl who I saw through much of the race exclaim, "I did it! I did it!!!" I couldn't help but smile and remember my first race!

I honestly haven't really looked for any "getting back into running after an injury" articles, but I know that I should. If anyone who reads this has any tips, I'd love to hear them!

It's official...

I CAN RUN AGAIN!!! I went to the doctor yesterday and he gave me the OK to run again. He did a little poking, prodding, and told me to get back to it! YAY! When he told me I asked him, "Are you kidding? Are you serious? How do you know?" I just really couldn't believe it. He said the bone was less sore and it was looking good! And I have to say, the past couple days my leg has been especially pain-free. I am PUMPED!

Of course, after that I went to get a vaccine and ended up fainting at the doctor's office (I have needle-phobia). So I haven't yet given running a try. When I do, though I'll be sure to let you know how it goes! I'm going to go slow of course, and not go very far to begin with, but at least I can get back to it!

This time has also gotten me thinking about doing a triathlon one day. Yeah, I only went swimming once in these two months, but I liked it and I think I'll try to make it a more regular part of my routine. And I can tear it up on the bike now. I think it's good to have a few different cross training exercises available for non-running days -- I used to just do the elliptical, but I couldn't really do it while I was injured; I used to think I hated the bike, but it's actually a great way to read while working out!

The next thing I need is a getting-back-to-it training schedule. I know I should start slow, build mileage gradually, not run much, but I wonder if there's a plan for that somewhere?

That's it for now. I'm back!

Injured: Part Two

Needless to say, I decided I needed a second opinion, but not after hobbling around NYC on crutches for a couple of weeks. Let me just say, if you ever feel like you need to get a seat on the bus but are not 85 years old or pregnant, GET CRUTCHES. People could not get up fast enough for me! In fact I might just keep them around for future use...

ANYWAY. I sent to another doctor whom my mom found in the New York Magazine, a running specialist from a town I once lived in, Kansas City. After waiting to get an appointment, the doctor took one look at me and said, "You overpronate. You need support in your arches. Go buy orthotic inserts and come back and see me in six weeks." I mean, he said more than that and was super helpful and supportive, but he also suggested

Let me just say, after running for a little bit in the neutral shoes that Jack Rabbit sold me when they told me I DIDN'T overpronate, I had this itching feeling that I was seriously lacking in arch support. When I asked at Jack Rabbit another time if I should get orthotic inserts, they just said "Those are for people with serious problems." WELL HELLO THERE JACK RABBIT NICE TO SEE YOU AGAIN PLEASE SELL ME THESE ORTHOTIC INSERTS SO I CAN GET BACK TO LIVING A NORMAL LIFE AND NEVER SELL ME ANY SHOES EVER AGAIN THANKYOUVERYMUCH!

(Bitter? ME?? Why...yes. Just a little bit. But I can't blame them completely...)

This doctor told me that all of this "stuff" (i.e. the crutches and the CAM walker) were completely ridiculous and unnecessary, and that all I needed was a set of orthotic inserts to put in my sneakers. And that I would have to wear these sneakers for ohhh I don't know, let's see how it goes in four weeks. I'll see the doctor again in two weeks and hopefully have an update for you then.

So far the leg is definitely getting better. There are days where it hurts, but it's more of a muscle pain in the back of the leg. I've been riding the stationary bike and I tried swimming the other day (which I plan to continue doing), and I sometimes do weights (but not nearly enough). I'm hopeful that my leg will get better in the next month or so, but I'm not going to push anything anytime soon. There are more marathons to run, and they aren't going anywhere, but a stress fracture is not really what I need right now! I'm going to keep doing what I'm doing. Hopefully I can start getting my butt out of bed in the mornings from now on...I've been SO bad at that lately. Tomorrow! I will get up early! And go to the gym!!!

Injured: Part One

I have a decent excuse for my disappearance from this site. Barely a week after my last post I set out for a 7 mile speed workout in Central Park. I was sort of dreading it the night before, but decided that that was no attitude to have and promptly decided it would be a fantastic way to start the day and that I would most definitely feel refreshed and accomplished after completing it.

The sciatica in my right leg had been an ongoing problem but my left leg had stood strong and been quite reliable throughout all injuries (except for that pesky hip flexor tendinitis back in March...that can be forgiven though). I ran one mile just fine, then started my speed work. My right leg felt a little funny at mile 2 or so, but I shook it off as a muscle cramp, and even stopped to stretch it out. At mile 3.5 though, I stopped short and was suddenly in absolutely TERRIBLE pain. It's hard to describe exactly what it was like, but it caused me to stop in the middle of my run that was meant to be amazing and forced me to hobble home, tears in my eyes.

Once I got home, I realized that the sciatica pain was gone from my right leg, and thought that perhaps the sciatica had jumped from my right leg to my left leg -- hey, it could happen, right? I called my sports medicine doctor and she had me come in right away. She was going to give me steroids to help me with the pain of the sciatica, but at the last minute did a pressure test along my tibia. Um, OW! "This hurts? Then this isn't sciatic. You have a stress reaction in your tibia." She took an X-ray and nothing showed up, which signaled to her that it was NOT a stress fracture, but instead a stress reaction (to be honest, I'm still unsure what the difference is, but all I know is that I don't have a stress fracture!). And I would have to stay off my foot. Which would involve a CAM walker. And/or crutches. In New York City. Lucky me!

After this injury, I went through ALL FIVE STAGES of grief:

Still here!

I'm still here! I'm still training, still a little injured (but am SO much better!), still not running outdoors nearly as much as I should. I moved apartments, I went to Boston for July 4th, and then went home last weekend. I attempted a midday 10 mile run last weekend when I was home in Virginia, but even with the CamelBak it was WAY too hot and WAY too humid. It was kind of pathetic, but I blame the humidity and heat. Something about running on asphalt in the middle of a hot day...the heat just rises up from the asphalt and attacks. It's awful.

Needless to say, I did not finish the 10 miles, but did make it to 5.5 miles! Since long runs are so important in training, I'm making up for the 10 miler tomorrow by tacking on six miles to my four-mile race. It's gonna be another scorcher, but luckily I'll be running in the morning so hopefully it won't be TOO bad.

Yesterday morning I set out for a five mile run, and since I moved to the Upper East Side, I'm now conveniently located very close to Central Park! Something about the sciatica in my right leg makes me a little nervous about running. I just KNOW that it's going to hurt afterward and I anticipate that pain before I've even stepped out of bed. But this run was good! I started out slow, but felt better and better as I went so I turned the easy run into a tempo run. I'm still not NEARLY as fast as I was before, but I'm happy! Check out the map and stats below:

I loved being in Central Park -- seeing so many healthy runners and cyclists working out so early in the morning was super motivating! I definitely plan on doing more runs in CP now that I'm so close!

Another great motivator? Amazing workout clothes. I went to lululemon at the mall last week in Virginia and picked up two pairs of lululemon running shorts. And now, I am obsessed. They are amazing. I mean, AMAZING.

The waistband is a 3" band that is actually flattering -- or at least, not unflattering... It doesn't dig into my waist, which is a huge plus. The seams are flat, so there's no chafing either. Honestly, they're just the best shorts I've ever owned, ever. I just wish they weren't so darn expensive!

Well, I have a race tomorrow -- the Central Park Conservancy Run. And it's almost 10pm. Sooo that means I'm going to head to bed! And hopefully I'll be better about blogging in the future! :)

T-minus 16 weeks...

Training starts tomorrow! Three miles at 10:58 pace is on the schedule. On top of starting to train, I've also started to pack for my move on Friday. Wish me lots and lots of luck in both the training AND the moving! Thanks! :)

Here's a peek at my schedule:

It's 16 weeks long. I decided to just go with the Runner's World training schedule again. I'll play around with it as needed, but this has been pretty good to me in the past so I'm going to stick with it.

Saturday I did a pretty long run of an hour (just about 6 miles) on the treadmill. It was hot so I decided to stay inside and just bang out the run. It was actually a really good run and was sort of just what I needed to get myself excited for training. To be honest, I've been in a bit of a running funk of late, and haven't been feeling "very running-like" as my boss once put it. It wasn't very fun, and I'm pretty sure it mostly had to do with the fact that I was (still sort of am but am much MUCH better!) injured. Now that the injury is looking up, I guess my spirits are up more too! And thank goodness for that, because I can't imagine how difficult starting to train for a marathon would be if I were still down. I know that I'll still have some ups and downs during the training, but it's nice to start it off on the right foot :)

That's it for now...packing really took it out of me! Night!

Training begins...

...on Monday, June 21. That's in five days. I am just going to think of it as another thing I'm training for, and maybe not think of it as TRAINING FOR A MARATHON!!! because that is a little be scary. I'm going to keep doing what I do...run a little, do some strength training, cross training, and definitely throw in more yoga and Pilates (especially since I just discovered Exercise TV On Demand!).

On top of starting to TRAIN FOR A MARATHON!!!, I'm also moving apartments, which means packing, cleaning, and moving. Ugh. Such a pain. But I know it'll be worth it! :)

So while I haven't been blogging much, I haven't really worked out much since my last post. I went to Montauk for the weekend and was lazy on the beach, eating shrimp and lobster, and basically being incredibly lazy. It was just what I needed and it was awesome.

I haven't done much running -- the sciatica is still bugging me a little bit, but it's gotten SO much better. I might do something crazy and try out my old shoes to see if that helps my sciatica...I just feel like I need to do SOMETHING like that since I did not have sciatica OR hip flexor tendinitis before I changed shoes. I'll let you know how it goes!

That's it for now...I'll post my training schedule soon. I'm still debating between Hal Higdon's novice schedule and the Runner's World training schedule...and I have a feeling I may well end up combining the two somehow but relying mainly on the Runner's World schedule.

What's your favorite training schedule?