Not running sux

Really I am feeling like I should rename my blog domain from christyruns.com to something like

• christyusedtorun.com
• christydoesn'trun.com
• christymissesrunning.com
• christyneedsanewrightquad.com

you get the idea.  I could go on and on. 

I had a good run Friday, and by good I mean slow easy and slow for three point one miles.  Saturday I was feeling pretty good so I ran/walked 5.5 miles with my sister at a faster pace than I should have.  Afterwards my right quad yelled at me the rest of the day. 

So Sunday I did not run.  Today I did not run.  I did do yoga.  and some more yoga.  This is how I feel about that.

When I first was injured and I started in on the yoga, I hated it.  Too slow. Too boring.

I am slowly learning to appreciate it.  I am learning that I am as stiff and inflexible as I have ever been, especially in my hips and hammies.
 I am learning to enjoy the feeling of my muscles stretching and oddly enjoying the slow relaxed pace.

It has been a long time since I have slowed down.  I am thinking of taking off the rest of the month from running.  Not a happy thought, but if I want to get better...AND I DO!  I think I really need to  not run.

It is making me crazy. I see a road and I can feel me running down it.  I can see me on the road, one foot in front of the other, breathing in the clean fresh air and hearing my foot steps on the gravel.  I am at this point planning to cancel all races until at least July, possibly August.

The frustrating thing about this is, I can feel so good sitting here, just a slight burning in my quad, but as soon as I start running it just gets uncomfortable.  Not really painful, just not good in a way that I KNOW that if I keep running, keep pushing, I am going to regret it. 

Okay well enough of the wa wa wa story. 

Positives are..working on flexibility, taking up yoga, and more time to clean the house.  I tried a little retail therapy.  I was looking for something nice to wear to a wedding this weekend.  Apparently I no longer have those kind of skills.  I can shop for running things like nobody's business, but something dressy..I didn't try a single thing on, and I went to about 10 different stores in the mall.  Aack!

When the cat's away

As most of you know I work in the operating room at a surgery center.  I like to have my phone with me, but not neccesarily in my pocket so I usually leave it by my computer.  Nothing ever happens to it ever.  Until yesterday, at work when my sweet friends took it upon themselves to change my screensaver while I was off getting a patient.

I nearly dropped my phone and I may have shouted out something.  I did not however learn. Next time they were sweet enough to tell me I am number one. It was unanimous they all agreed!

after that I was a little more careful about leaving my phone in the room when I went out.  Although I did leave once without it and then ran back to get it, just in time.  They were all headed for it.  I seriously love my coworkers.  We have so much fun and we work too. 

As soon as I got home from work Friday I headed out into the rain for an easy 3.1 miles.  It felt heavenly!  You can't really tell from this photo, but I am soaked.  There were better pictures really, but this was the only one with Cola photobombing in the background.

Today my little sister and I went for what will probably be our last run together for a LONG LONG time.  She is leaving to move to Virginia next Saturday.  We did an easy run/walk for 5.5 miles.

My right quad is SLOWLY getting better.  Patience is a virtue I am lacking. 

I did do yoga twice this week and plan to do some more today.  What I am learning through all this yoga is that I am about as flexible as an old man. When did that happen?  I used to be really limber!

 

Three Things Thursday: Short and Sweet

1. Stir crazy, that is how I feel right now.  In the last 10 days I have ran 4 miles.  I did two of those yesterday.  I am trying to remind myself of the big picture and scaring myself by imagining never runner again usually helps.    The two miles felt good and I considered going 4, but in the end decided I better just take it easy.  which in my book equals boring when I am doing it day after day!

2. Okay, lets get away from running talk.  I have been doing the Under Armour What's Beautiful (I am sponsored by Under Armour for this competition)  and found this page which has great videos of some awesome training moves like walking planks, pistols, pushup jacks and so many more moves that I love and want to try. So if you are looking for a challenge, new moves etc I say check it out! 

3. Sometimes I can't help myself.  I see new flavors of Chapstick I have never tried before and I have to have them.  Cotton candy Chapstick!!  Yum, it was in a three pack with grape and fruit punch.  Grape is also yum, fruit punch is so so.  I always have loved the mint and strawberry.

 The strawberry reminds me of being a kid and the plain reminds me of my Dad since he always seemed to have it in his pocked when I was growing up.  Not so long ago I also won these two awesome flavors from Kiley, plus apple.

My husband really liked the apple and I ended up buying more in a three pack. I think I have 6 Chapsticks in my purse right now and several in my makeup bag.  YUM.  Not a sponsored post I just noticed I had a lot of Chapstick and since I am not running I don't have much to talk about. 

Some postive things and some wallowing.

So I have been trying to see the upside to my quad strain...like how good the rest is for all my muscles and tendons and ligaments that I work hard year round with running and training.

 A runner can no more expect to train progressively year-round than a cornfield can expect to produce corn spring, summer, fall and winter. source

 I am adding some yoga in which is stretching out my stiff muscles like I haven't in a long time.  Feels good really, even if I am incredibly impatient with all the holding poses and breathing in and out.  I like fast workouts.  I am more of a HIIT type person so all this slow movement is a little bit of torture really.

I have been working on my pushups.  One of the What's Beautiful challenges is how many pushups can you do without stopping.  Last week I did 25 and this week 30.  Boom!  and I did 30 twice BOOM BOOM! with 5 minutes rest in between.  If you want to see the video it is on my profile page.

The What's Beautiful campaign has been very inspiring and a fun way to connect with even more fitness minded people.  I got into it because of Fitfluential and being sponsored by Under Armour through Fitfluential, but now that I am doing it I wish I would have started it sooner.  It is a competition, but it is also fun. There are a lot of neat challenges. I have been going out of my comfort zone a bit and I think that is awesome.

Today I am going to get reacquainted with the pull up bar in my kitchen doorway.  I learned about kipping pull ups so I might have to go outside and see if I can pull off some of those.  I don't think my doorway pull up bar will be able to handle them without dumping me on the floor.

I did also exercise on my elliptical yesterday for 15 minute intervals at a super easy level.  Boring and not at all the sweatfest I needed.

Injuries suck, they cause doubt to creep in.  Will I ever be able to run again, how long will it take to get back to where I was and will I just get reinjured right away.  Ugh.  Am I crippled for life? (yes I know I am not really, but I am feeling discouraged right now).

Having a quad strain increases the chances of having another one.  What does this mean?  I can't do any sprinting right now or jumping, lunges etc, anything that involves heavy quad stress.  Will I be able to in the future with the same amount on abandon I always have in the past?

It is getting better, just slowly.  It doesn't hurt right now it just doesn't feel right.  Things aren't normal.  I want to have that feeling of running for miles and miles and losing myself in the run.  I want to feel fast and powerful.  I want to love the run. 

It is so hard when it is your own body that is letting you down.  Your own body that has done such amazing feats of strength and endurance and let you push it so hard.  So hard I hurt it. and then I didn't listen so here I am.

AfterShokz Sportz M2 Headphones Review

When I was offered the chance to try out AfterShokz Sportz M2 headphones I was a little skeptical, but agreed to try them out.  I am not much of a tech type person and am generally happy with my the ear buds my iPod came with.  I usually run with one earbud in and the other one tucked into my bra so I can hear what is going on around me at least a little bit.

so what is AfterShokz claim to fame and uniqueness?

• They use bone conduction technology.  The ear pieces don't actually go in your ears, they go in front of them.  This leaves your ears open to hearing things like cars approaching, people talking, birds singing, and my little doggy's footsteps as he runs beside me.  Why is this so great?  SAFETY!
• How Bone Conduction Works
  Most of what we hear is due to sound waves traveling through the air to the eardrum, which then converts the sound waves to vibrations and transmits them to the inner ear. Sound waves can also get to the inner ear through direct vibration of the bones in the head which carry the vibrations directly to the inner ear, bypassing the eardrums. This is how a person hears his or her own voice, ans also how whales hear. This pathway of sound is known as bone conduction

What I really liked about them

• How much I could hear the world around me
• When I use them with my iPhone, I can take and receive calls through the headphones and the mic that is in the controller.
• Very comfortable and easy to forget I had on.  I never had to adjust them. They never fell off.
• Controller is easily clipped to shirt or bra.
• I had entire conversations with people while listening to music on these.
• Comes with an awesome carrying case.
• Works with my iPhone and iPod, and iPad.  I can use it as a hands free device in my car.
• The case they came in.  I also use it to store my iPod and the charging cable for my iPod now. Very handy!

What I didn't like

• Since they operate on a battery (it does last about 12 hours) it means another thing I have to remember to charge up.  So far I have only had it run out of battery on my once, and really that was my fault since I knew I should charge it and neglected to.

In the picture below you can see the controller clipped to my tank.

Side notes

• If you are looking for pristine sound quality this is not for you.  The sound is pretty good, but since it leaves your ears open.
• These retail for 79.95
• If you have the music up loud or put the earphones around your neck others around you can hear it too.  Which may be annoying for some, especially in a race.
• They are water resistant but not water proof, so they aren't good to wear in the rain.

I have been wearing them for about a month and am in love with them.  I listen to a lot of podcasts when I run and the sound quality is great.  I love being able to still hear the birds singing and vehicles approaching.

What the whole thing looks like in case you were curious.

Want to learn more? Check out their website HERE!
What do you think?

DNS and a 2 mile with my daughter and a THROWDOWN!

So if you have been reading my blog at all this week, you know I have been whining about my quad or possibly my adductor muscle being strained.  Maybe both.  eh  details.  whatever it doens't feel good to run and I HATE THAT.

I went to a chiropractor on Friday to make sure it wasn't anything he couldn't realign and magically fix..wishful thinking.  He pretty much confirmed muscle strain and while he wouldn't tell me I couldn't run, as did an orthopedic surgeon on Wednesday, but if I did run I wouldn't get better faster./

So I cried a little, felt sorry for myself A LOT and decided it would be better to sit out a race I have been so excited for since I did it last year and hopefully be up and running again sooner than later.  Right now it is a grade 1 strain and with any luck I can be healed in 10 or so days.

I of course did not do myself any favors with my long trail run last weekend and a 3.5 mile run Thursday, but other than that I have done NO RUNNING.  NONE.  I feel a little crazy and seriously lacking in appetite (at least compared to my normal voracious eat everything in site appetite) 

My plan is to continue resting this coming week until I feel no discomfort at all.  All the while doing some stretches, compressing, massaging and going back for another ultrasound treatment on Monday.  My chiropractor said it would help me heal faster. 

I will have to ease back into running and that might be the hardest part.  I know I will want to just pick up where I left off.  Ugh

SO instead of doing both the 5 and the 2 mile this morning, I just did the 2 mile with my daughter. 

I looked at the results this afternoon and I know I would have won my age group and placed high overall, bummer but no sense in worrying about what could have been. 

FORWARD PROGRESS!! 

My time for the two mile 33:58!   My daughter did really great for the first mile and ran a lot of it and then decided she was over it and when were we going to be done!!  She even got her own Beef shirt to wear.

 

Overall I am glad I didn't run the 5 today, I think it would have made things worse.  It still seems like little consolation right now as wonder what might have been.  Heal leg, HEAL

 

I just hope I use this as a lesson in taking time to recover.  As much as I want to believe I can do anything, my body apparently has limits.  Seriously doesn't fit in with my wonder woman self image.

 

What's Beautiful update...  17 lovely people have joined my team.  Thanks all.  I am throwing it down to you all to to the pushup challenge and see how many you can do without stopping, or try the burpee one and see how many burpees you can do in a minute.  See my throwdown challenge HERE on my profile page.  I might have ranted a little there.

 

If you want to join my team and I haven't invite you, go HERE and request an invite.  I would love to have you.  Feel free to post challenges and pictures of yourself there too. 

Three Things Thursday: Nurses Week, Injury thoughts, and MOM!

1.  Whew, a day off!  I don't usually work three in a row anymore so it kind of throws me for a loop.  I know such a sad story.  I really have only worked three days a week since I started nursing 12 1/2 years ago.  A great perk to being a nurse sometimes.  I worked 12 hour shifts until I had my first child and then I switched to 8 hour shifts.  That was a cake walk after working 12s.  Later I moved to the outpaitent surgery center when the hospital I work at opened one.  This has been so perfect for me with the kids.  NO call, no holidays, no middle of the night, and almost no weekends ever.  I love my job.

like holding a human heart in my hand

seriously nurses know these things!

2. I whined yesterday about a strained quad.  I am now thinking it is more like an adductor muscle.  The quad thing wasn't quite making sense and when I looked at the anatomy pictures, that is the one that was exactly where the discomfort is. Most specifically the Adductor Magnus along the distal medial part of it. More of an inflammation I think.  SO I haven't ran at all since Thursday and am compressiong, icing, and taking anti-inflammatories. It is feeling much better than it was, so at this point planning to run on Saturday for the Women's Run in Billings.

3. Shout out to my Mom whose birthday was Tuesday, and it is Mother's Day this weekend and Nurses week. My Mom is a nurse too.  My Mom made some pretty big mommy shoes to fill with all that she did for us.  Thanks Mom for setting such a great example, encouraging me to be my best, giving me that extra nudge so often and being one of my biggest cheerleaders ALWAYS.  She was also my support crew for my first marathon last summer and I was so grateful for it.

a little throwback for Thurday.  Check me out in my FFA jacket.  I think I was a senior in high school here

We don't work at the same place in town, but it is because of my Mom I went into the operating room and am so glad I did. Sometimes we get to work together because she works for some plastic surgeons and they come to the surgery center now and then.  Everyone who works with her always talks about how nice she is and what a great nurse she is.

LOVE YOU MOM!