Giving Thanks

Happy belated turkey day! Hope you all had a great one! I am still trying to grasp the fact that tomorrow marks the first day of December! I really need everything to slow down a little, but time...that funny creature...is going to continue to tick tock away!

I spent Thanksgiving day at work (bleh) while one of the things I am most thankful for, my family, was patient and kind enough to postpone our celebration until the day after Thanksgiving. And when it finally did roll around, it was glorious. Time spent with everyone, the smells of a home cooked feast, football on in the background...everything Thanksgiving should be and more.

I gained two pounds. I ran 5 miles to burn it off. My calf didn't hurt. I was thankful for that alone.

It was also a special day because I got to spend it with my buddy Landon. Until now, I haven't been 100 percent convinced that he knows who I am or that we are related. But this day, we played on the floor for what seemed like hours. He was totally immersed in what we were doing and I was surprised he seemed to like me. He laughed, he squealed, we played chase. I love his sense of wonder and curiosity. It was like we were in our own little world and I loved watching him study every toy and every movement we made. You could actually see him learning as we played with shapes and colors. Amazing.

Look at that face so focused...I wish I could read his mind!

Thank you to my wonderful family for the willingness to celebrate such a special day a day late! I know it's not the same but I love all of you for doing it for me. And to me, it felt just like Thanksgiving, no matter what day it was!

Yeesh

Yes, yeesh. After that 5-miler on Monday, the pain definitely creeped back into my lower calf and I once again had to say off it all week. This time I'm going to let it heal completely, I promise! In the meantime I have been cycling like a mad-woman at the gym. I did a really rigorous 40-minute cycle yesterday and my legs felt like jello, which is always a good sign. I guess cycling doesn't work the calves too hard because it didn't bother me one bit. I've been keeping it wrapped, iced and elevated and now I just wait until I can get back out there again (hopefully this week). I plan on doing some indoor swimming this week and I'm really excited about that! I haven't trained in a pool since my triathlon-training days a year and a half ago!

You may be thinking I am sounding awfully calm about this whole thing and I've come to the sort of calm place before the storm. Right now I feel like I could do 13 miles (slowly of course). Granted, it would be really tough but I think I'm in the kind of shape now where I could finish if I absolutely had to. After these 5 mile runs, I have felt like I could do much more if it weren't for the little injuries that crop up. The plan on race day is to ignore these injuries when they crop up and continue on to the finish line. I usually stop when I feel the slightest twinge of anything but I'm sure I could press on to finish and just have to suck up the damage I'm going to do 24 hours after the race is over. Exciting, huh?!

Some more exciting news...I've reached my 35 lb. weight loss mark and am 2 lbs. away from my original goal! I think I'm changing that goal though, because even if I lost 2 more lbs. I would still look and feel overweight. So I'm thinking of trying to drop another 20 but we'll see how that goes. Right now I'm excited because I got rid of all my fat clothes this weekend and am pulling out stuff from college which was 4 sizes smaller than what I was wearing before all this started! Hooray! It feels so great to get back into my Banana Republic pants...I've missed you!!!

No, this isn't me modeling the pants, but they are so fabulous, they deserve a shout out!

I'm Back! Hopefully...

Just finished 5 miles and am typing this in between breaths and stretching. I felt like I finally returned to where I was before that annoying little calf injury. This run was awesome! I tried to let my calf heal for the last week and wrapped it up good and tight tonight. It's currently being iced so I can't feel anything but here's to hoping no pain returns in the morning!

Fingers crossed!!

Lessons Learned

2 months left until the half-marathon. Many lessons have been learned and I learned a very important one this week: Never purchase the official half-marathon merchandise until you actually complete the half-marathon.

This past week started off not-so-great. I did my usual Tuesday evening run (3.5 miles) and it went horribly wrong. It was hot and muggy out, my food hadn't digested well enough so I got the horrible side cramp, I wasn't hydrated, and all these things combined contributed in some capacity to a strained calf muscle. Little things like this are starting to pop up more often, probably because I'm taking my body to a whole new realm its never seen before. And it's making me panic. I had to stay off the leg for a couple of days and went out and did an easy 2-miler on Friday thinking it was all better. It wasn't and now I've got to stay off it another couple of days to get it healed properly. In my mind, all I can think is, I don't have time for this! I've really got to keep consistent and on track with my training and I've allotted a little wiggle room, but that is running out quickly!

And just as a little icing on the cake....mmmmmm, cake....I received a package in the mail yesterday and I turned into Debbie Downer immediately upon opening it. You see, back in July when I registered for the half, I was given the option at check-out to pre-purchase the official merchandise since they usually sell out quickly. Well I just HAD to have the beautiful blue fleece jacket with the official half-marathon logo on it! And this was soooo NOT the week they should have shipped it to me! To have the doubts of not finishing set in and then receive the half-marathon jacket in the mail made me depressed to say the least. I don't even have the heart to try it on because to wear it, I should earn it...and I am far from that now.

All week I've been in panic mode, wondering if I will even make it to the start line...they say getting to the start line on race day is half the battle and just accomplishing that is a feat in itself. Now I understand this statement with complete clarity. I just need to get there. If I can get to race day injury free, I'll do anything to cross the finish line. But I can't start a race with a pulled muscle or anything of the sorts.

So please pray for me and pray hard. I have so many reasons to finish and now I have another...I really want to wear the jacket:

Hurts So Good...

Yes, this is the actual needle that penetrated my skin, went into my hip and injected my inflamed bursa with the magical stuff I call Cortisone. Sure, the Good Doc and Good Nurse thought I was a complete weirdo for asking if I could take a picture of this ginormous needle but after telling them about my blog, they were happy to oblige. The Good Nurse even held it against the light wall so the metallic luster of the needle would really show well. They are so good to me there.

I had looked forward to this moment for the last 2 weeks. I could tell the benefits of the first shot were wearing off and I could not wait to get the relief this one would be providing. There's just one catch...and one that I had forgotten about: The pain.

I was cheerfully yapping to the Good Doc and Nurse about my training progress and how I could not believe I had done five miles. As I began to lay down on my left side I happily went on about why I was wearing knee high, bright red reindeer Christmas socks (I'm sure they also found me a complete weirdo for that one but they're the only ones that go up high enough with my knee high boots so I have to wear them).

Before I knew it, the Good Nurse yanked my pants down on the right side and covered me with one of those paper sterile cloths. Hmmm, I don't remember this part, I remember thinking. I also didn't recall the sterile wipes cause I don't recall there being any blood last time.

So I'm caught mid-sentence by the Good Doctor saying, "Small stick," after which I felt a small stick. And just as I was thinking, Oh, that was just a small little stick, I then felt the needle slide through my bursa sack and begin to fill it with the medication that's supposed to hurt worse before it gives any relief. If I had to describe it, I'd say it felt like sticking a needle into a water balloon. Only the water balloon is an irritated, inflamed, angry balloon from which all leg pain radiates from that single, pinpoint area. And then one finds that exact, bruised, irritated area and jams a sharp needle into it.

The pain radiated all throughout my hip, thigh, leg, and butt. There was blood. It's like I wanted to punch the Good Doctor in the face but I also wanted to hug him cause I knew it was going to feel SO good later. All I could do was squeeze my eyes closed, make a fist, and bang it down next to me on the padded table. I had to lay there and take it until he was done moving it around inside my hip to cover all the areas. This was Friday and I spent the rest of the night Friday and all day Saturday limping around the house with strict instructions to take it easy.

Today (Sunday) I got back on schedule and got to the gym for a 40-minute cycle workout. This put absolutely no stress on the hip so it was perfect for getting in my cardio and my mandatory cross-training. I'm feeling much better today but will still be taking my anti-inflammatory meds before my runs this week.

More to come later! Hope I didn't gross you guys out too much!

YANKEES WIN!

O happy day, the Yanks win the World Series!!!

Just had to say it.

Channeling NYC

Another Halloween has come and gone...Around our house, Thanksgiving colors replace the glitter skulls and other morose things I consider "fun" Halloween decor. This weekend was not just filled with ghosts and goblins. It was not just about the Aggies whipping some tail at Kyle Field (thank goodness). It was also about me. Jogging 5 miles. The entire thing without stopping to walk.

---angels sing here---

Yeah, I don't know how it happened. I awoke at 5:30 a.m. Sunday morning and was refreshed by my early bedtime the night before and the extra hour of sleep (thank you, Mr. Daylight Savings man!). I checked the temperature outside: 47 degrees. Naturally, I put on my spandex shorts and a short sleeve running t-shirt. I chose to forgo the jacket and it's a good thing because after about 2 minutes I would have taken it off anyway.

Miles 1 and 2 are always the most difficult but at the end of mile two, I suddenly remembered something: today was the New York City Marathon. Then it hit me as I glanced at my watch: they are running right now just like me.

Now most of you might be saying, "Yeah, I don't give a flying flip about New York," but there's just something about that city that I love. I first went to the Big Apple at age 15 and instantly felt at home. It's a city of magic, a city of fun, a city of love--all the things that captivate me and my hopeless romantic imagination...I forever am indebted to it--it will always be the city that brought my husband and me together.

As I'm running I'm thinking about all of these things and started to imagine what it was like to be there..running in the mecca of all marathons. I kind of pretended I was there. The air was cold, just like I knew it was in New York. Instead of still houses and lifeless streets where I was running, I imagined Central Park with people cheering me on to the finish.

We all know good and well I will never complete a marathon (and for good reason) but that one simple visualization kept me going, foot in front of foot until...Shazaam! 5 miles done and I wasn't even out of breath! The hip is another story but I don't want to ruin a good thing here so we'll just forget about that for now.

Never in a million years did I think I'd be able to run 5 miles. And as I walked into my house to stretch when it was over I walked in the door and had to smile at what I saw:
The New York City skyline framed by an autumn branch in our living room. Hey, I may never run the NYC Marathon, but these little goals make me feel just as good as crossing that finish line in Central Park. I challenge you to set a goal for yourself and work hard to reach it...nothing is impossible!