on why physical therapy does a body good

I admit that I was a little skeptical on going to physical therapy when it was prescribed to me. Why? I'm really not sure. Maybe because it's something new to me and I feel like why partake in something that I've lived without these past 27.5 years? And to be honest, it made me feel weak, which I wasn't expecting. I WAS weak - my knee was screaming like a mother at me - and yet, I couldn't come to terms with that fact that I was injured.

Sure, I got by those first 27.5 years...but these past 4 months of knee pain? Yeah, I can do without that. And if (since) I want to continue pounding pavement these next 3 decades, I decided it was time to really get down to serious, real-runner business and figure out this body of mine.

And I am so glad I did. Because my physical therapist? Is the bomb. I've only been twice and already I feel like a new, better runner.

At my first appointment, she had me show her the strength-training exercises I do at home. Now, that was a tad embarrassing given that I've done a little number called "The Mini-Skirt Workout" since it came out in, ohhh, 2009. (Maybe. Maybe it was actually 2007. The fact is, it works! Mini-skirts are like magnets to these thighs.)

As soon as I got to the lunge part, she was like WHOA, girl, there you go. That's your problem. Your knees are sneaking inward, when they should be going in a straight line downwards.

The oh-so-accurate diagnosis? Weak hips. Which I really should have known, since my hips are constantly telling me they're weak and my hips don't lie. She also magically determined that my right tibalis anterior (ohh, fancy name) was "stuck" so to speak, and that it needs to be worked out a little more.

She gave me exercises for both my hips and for me tibalis, and va-voom, 5 days in and I feel great, albeit sore. It's weird to feel my muscles and form shifting after just a few short days of trying a new routine. It's sort of weird to imagine all the different things the body secretly does underneath all this skin and stuff we carry around. And with that, how easy it is to modify those by certaian exercises - who knew ankle circle could un-stick a stubborn tibalis?

My physical therapist-gone-goddess  has me steadily increasing my mileage (so long as it doesn't hurt anything), by instructing me to run one mile/day for three days, then two miles/day the next three days, then three miles/day the next three days, etc. If my knee does start acting up like the attention-seeking child it is, then I am to divide that day's mileage in half and run that. Pretty doable, I say!

I hereby dedicate this lovely Tuesday to weak hips! Oh, and for coming in third (cough, out of four teams) in Beer Olympics 2013 this weekend. Now there is an athletic accolade worth boasting about.

Cheers for beers!

thoughtsday :: 6.6.2013

1. First and foremost, can we all just agree that these shorts are the bomb? I don't know if it's the reusable grocery bag material or the serious creases, but I need to buy these in bulk like Hanes socks.

I sported those at the doctor's office yesterday, where I got an actual diagnosis for this knee biz. After having zero pain with all the pulling, pushing, (hit it! Bop it!), the doctor seemed pleased to say that it's just inflammation. SCORE.

I'm going to have two weeks of physical therapy, followed by another doctor's visit, followed by rest, followed by...run? Yeah, let's hope so.

2. In the meantime, I'm trying to adhere somewhat to the "anti-inflammatory diet" to try and heal up from the inside out. This has involved a large amount of smoothies, cherry juice, almonds, and dark chocolate.

Yes, there's a hunk of life-changing bread in there. Carb me up, baby.

Something you might already know that I wish I had known when green smoothies were first born into the universe as nature's cure-all: tart cherry juice 100% cancels out all vegetable taste, making your smoothie taste like dessert, and sometimes almost too sweet. The first time I got a little heavy-handed with it and ended up not using any milk, which was a little too much for me. I get mine at Trader Joe's every week and drink it pretty much every day.

3.  I'm the co-co-chair of a little event my friends (AKA my fellow co-chairs) and I are hosting on Saturday called BEER OLYMPICS. So what if this makes me sound like I'm still a sophomore in college - there's beer and sports and sun involved! Bring on the debauchery!

Oh, and I plan on bringing this little guy to really get the party going. There's nothing like a good fruity shark to get everyone wanting that W.

Courtesy of Taste of Home

What do you typically put in your smoothies to make them oh-so-delectable?

North Olympic Discovery (cough, Disappointment) Marathon Recap

First off, let me warn you that this post will be brief and succinct due to the fact that I'm still in mopey, frustrated phase of "failing."

I had to drop out at mile 8 of the marathon yesterday, due to another flare up of "runner's knee." It was (and still is) really discouraging, and I'm angry with myself for letting me get so worked up about it. As my sweet husband said, there's nothing you can do about injuries. I mentally prepared myself for a potential disaster, but there was definitely a feeling of denial that I could still be dealing with this knee of mine.

With the obvious knee issues being the poignant source of my frustration about having to quit, it was also incredibly annoying that I had such a good pace and felt great in every other aspect. I was going about 7:50/mile, kept a good eye on my form, and it was a beautiful day. Seriously, 68 degrees and gloriously sunny. It was one of those times that I felt like I could go on forever. With someone else's knee.

The past 20 hours have been filled with me trying not to mope, making the best of the situation (meaning going out for two lunches and having a nice walk in the sun) and reminding myself that there are always worse things. In this case, much worse.

I made a doctor's appointment with a local sports medicine provider, and will do what needs to be done to fully recuperate. While I have 7 weeks until Ragnar, I highly doubt this issue will be resolved by then. And I will come to terms with that, hopefully sooner than later. What I really need to do is stop being so stubborn and commit to the fact that I'm injured and that appropriate steps need to be taken in order to properly heal.

Nope, no fun. But here are some pretty shots I took yesterday in the first 8 miles - I'll get miles 9-26 another year. ;)

I have to admit...

...I'm a little unsure of discuss in this space that's typically reserved for all things running, when I'm not doing any of that these days.

Scratch that, I DID manage to run from the front door of work to my car. Any spectators most likely believed this to be due to me, well, leaving work...but it was more just my legs needing to feel some sort of stertching and freedom. Short distances like this don't hurt it, but give it a mile and the pain starts to set in.

I've tried running once a week since this runner's knee set in, and each time the disappointment sinks even lower. Being injured sucks. It makes me realize how much I took running for granted when it worked for my body. Never again!

How about I do a little photo montage of what's been preoccypying my time as of late. Warning: none of it is altogether excisting, but pictures are cool.

Rhubarb (fresh from the yard!) and apple cobbler. Sans ice cream. I recommend ice ceream.

Local Natives at The Neptune - awesome show. Please go see them!

Seattle's Pizza Pi

talent show TALENT

sunny softball games

strength training for the injured

Since getting injured with the dreaded runner's knee, I've had plenty of time to work on my strength. After doing a lot of research, it appears that the blame for such a nasty condition can be places on over-training, increasing mileage too quickly, and weak hammies/glutes/hips.

Since hindsight is 20/20 and I can't do much about the first two, I've decided to take the third point and run (figuratively) with it. Here's what my muscles have been up to, which is no way, shape or form "boot camp," but these exercises definitely kicks my booty so it has to be doing some good.

1. As mentioned before, I downloaded an app called SworkIt, which is the neatest. I try to complete at least 10 minutes of a workout before and again after work. It can also be a good warm-up for any other kind of cardio or exercise because it seems to gradually get my heart rate up.

2. The Fitnessista's tabata workouts.These suckers are gut-busting, muscle-soring monsters that get your heart rate and sweat glands going in a matter of 4 minutes. I love doing one before work because it totally energizes me and gets me pumped for the day. Even on Mondays, whaaaa?

3. I've also tried to be a good little runner and complete sciatic nerve stretches, such as these. Stretches could not get any more boring, but I know it can do some good for this cranky body.

4. Walking! Which can be really depressing when you're used to cranking up the pace and zipping around town doing 7 mph instead of 2, but it's been surprisingly nice to just slow down and take note of the world. Also, this weather with this view isn't too shabby:

Do you have any good exercise app recommendations?

I KNEEd this runner's knee to disappear

I apologize for being so quiet lately, but I don't have much running to discuss when there isn't much of it going on in my real life. I took two weeks off, hoping that would decrease the pain and inflammation so that I could run more than 50 feet without wanting to cry fat baby tears. I did attempt a 3 mile run yesterday on my "2 weeks of boring" anniversary and made it a whole 2.2 miles without any pain. And then it kicked in and I got to walk the rest of the way home.

It's really easy to get upset about not being able to do the one form of physical exercise I rely on - not only to stay in shape, but to stay sane. It also doesn't help that I have a marathon on June 2nd that I was really hoping to PR on.

But then, when I start to think those thoughts, I think about how selfish that sounds and how one week ago there were people who were injured and killed who will never run again. Perspective helps.

So for now, I am going to soak up this week's glorious Seattle sunshine (sunny and mid-60's all week!) and bask in the fact that I have my family, my health, and even my stupid knee that will (hopefully) end up working for me again.

What are your injury-coping mechanisms?