Showing posts with label yoga. Show all posts
Showing posts with label yoga. Show all posts

Sunday, February 4, 2024

Life and a Race

My anxiety level was high this week and it wasn't just due to my impending half marathon. 

There was last week's sad news that my young patient had passed. This week, my parents asked me to fix their computer again. Like many of us, they are struggling with many passwords, however, their solution is to keep creating new user names and passwords, which eventually gets them locked out of their accounts. I arrived with new solutions and was greeted by my mom, sporting a black eye. My sister had warned me that on the day before, my mom was on her treadmill when the phone rang. She forgot to stop the treadmill and fell on her face. It looked pretty bad, but she seemed ok when I got to their house. 

It was also her birthday and when I set her up for a Zoom call with her high school friends, she asked me what happened to her face. I calmly told her, and my dad and I exchanged worried looks. The next day, I called him to check on her--he thought she was fine, but I urged him to take her to be checked out. I was worried about a brain bleed, and she had a head CT which was clear. Whew. 

My sisters and I have been worried about my mom for a while now. She always took care of everyone, including my dad. Trying to get him to step up after all these years has been challenging. I'm the only one who is local, which is also another challenge. We'd like to see them downsize and move somewhere that would provide more support, but my dad isn't ready to give up his garage and his old cars. I get that.

Saturday, January 6, 2024

Starting the New Year on the Right Foot

I've been reading a lot of posts about goals, 'word of the year', 'ins and outs', and resolutions. I think most of you know that I kind of just roll with what the year hands me. Already, I've signed up for a Chicago half marathon that takes place next month. My youngest son is going to join me and I know several other local runners who are doing it as well. I hoped that our mild winter would continue, but it is Chicago, and it looks like we are going to get some winter weather in the coming weeks. To prepare for this race, I'm going to do more running on the roads and focus on consistency. I'm a little less focused on my time. I want to feel good when I cross that finish line!

Sunday, December 10, 2023

I Need A Run!

On and off the road, this was a tough week. 

The cold virus that took me down last weekend slowly improved. I was pretty fatigued early in the week and didn't get much movement in. That in itself was a stressor and reminder of how much running and sweating help my anxiety.

By Wednesday, I was feeling pretty good. I was literally walking out the door for a run when my youngest son called me. He was getting ready to leave for work and he realized he forgot his keys. He was locked out of their yard, so he tried to climb over the fence. His pant leg got caught on the top and he fell 6 feet to the concrete below, landing on his face and hurting his wrist. He did not sound good. So instead of driving to the forest preserve for a run, I drove to the city, taking him to the ER to be evaluated. Fortunately, he 'only' had a concussion and a wrist sprain.  If you've been following me for a while, you know this kid has had his share of injuries over the years. I really think I should wrap him in bubble wrap! I'm so glad he is ok.

I also learned that I didn't get a bib for the 2024 Chicago Marathon. I read that over 120,000 runners applied to the lottery. Yes, you read that right. 😳 To put it in perspective, the first time I ran Chicago, in 2011, I just signed up. Not getting in this time hit harder than I expected. Even though I swore off marathons after my diagnosis with RA in 2016, after spectating this year, I wanted to run Chicago once more, to prove to myself that I could. And no, I don't want to pick a different marathon. I'm going to take this as a sign that I need to follow a different path. 

No matter what, I will continue to run. Running is my therapy. I also love the feeling of running. Now that I know I don't have the marathon on my calendar, I can decide what, if anything will be next. You know there will be plenty of trails, though! 


Saturday, October 21, 2023

Hello, My Pretty!

Disclaimer: As a member of the Brooks Run Happy Team, I received a complimentary pair of the Brooks Ghost Max in exchange for social shares. I really do love them!

So much prettiness again this week! My sister and I wrapped up our trip to Banff and headed home on Monday. Luckily, we had decent weather in Chicago, which helped ease the landing. Work was insane, but I was still riding the wave of a nice trip with my sister. Even better, our fall colors are peeking right now, so there's plenty of beauty right here at home. We headed up to the lake on Saturday where the colors are spectacular. There was a little bit of sunshine, but the clouds blew in and kind of dimmed the glow. It was still pretty for my run!

Sunday, July 23, 2023

On the Road Again

No, not that road. I'm still sidelined from running, nursing my sore foot. But as you read this, I'm in Alabama with Holly, spending a lot of time on the water. It's always great to reunite and we always seem to pick back up as if we just saw each other yesterday!

I hate to admit this, but since Leadville, I've struggled to bounce back. Besides feeling fatigued, on Monday I woke up with severe pain on one side of the base of my head. I'm not sure if it was due to my sleep position or the virus I've been fighting, but the pain made me feel queasy. I took ibuprofen and used a heating pad and by the end of the day, it was down to a dull roar. I still had residual neck stiffness on Tuesday. So for the second time this week, I bailed on CrossFit and took to my yoga mat.  

I'm also concerned about my left foot, which was bothering me prior to my race. I knew that I would pay a price for running on it. My second toe is stiff and swollen and my third toe won't bend unless I do it manually. There is pain in the ball of my foot. My differential diagnoses: stress fracture vs neuroma. Hopefully, I'm wrong with both. I had my annual joint ultrasound at my rheumatologist's and all she could tell me is that there is no inflammation in the joint. Seriously not helpful, so I made an appointment with the foot ortho for next week. 

Meanwhile, there is still no running. I think I poked the bear enough and I'll wait to see what I'm dealing with. It's a good thing there are a lot of other things to keep me active!

Sunday, July 16, 2023

Post-Leadville Recovery

After what was an incredibly fun but also incredibly active weekend, I promised myself no running this week. That was not a hard promise to keep as I was exhausted after I arrived home. It didn't help that on Monday night after I got home, Cocoa made friends with a skunk. Ugh. The hubs and I were up late scrubbing her fur with Dawn, baking powder, and peroxide. We were able to avoid most of the stink in the house, fortunately. I had trouble sleeping that night and the next day, had a very challenging day at work. 

As the week went on, I started sleeping better but still felt really fatigued. The hubs noted on Saturday that I told him how tired I was about "10 times". I guess the race and the altitude really took a toll on me. I'm not regretting the race--it was definitely worth it! I feel no guilt about taking time off from running. I'm not sure if I'll run at all next week either, but I will be active. I'm heading to Alabama for a long weekend of waterskiing with Holly! 

To be honest, I haven't missed running at all this week. Sometimes, a little time off is a good thing. Running will be there for me when I get back.

Sunday, April 2, 2023

The Slippery Slope

I woke up Monday morning feeling tired, achy, and queasy. Was it a bug? Or was it an RA flare? I'm pretty sure that RA was the culprit as Sunday's run felt harder than it should have. I blamed the rain and the cold, but I didn't feel great when I started. That run probably pushed me into the red zone. I probably should have turned around and gone home. But you know me. 

RA is a slippery slope.

I scrapped my plans on Monday to go to CrossFit and did a yoga class that focused on flexibility. While the yoga felt good, I still felt icky and spent the rest of the day taking it easy. Sometimes you have to listen to what your body tells you. Thankfully, this flare was short-lived and did not require steroids to calm it down. I felt gradually better as the week went on. It's been a while since I've felt like that. It was a good reminder to stay on track with my diet and sleep as well as my activities.

Weekly Rundown
Sunday: run 11 miles
Monday: Yoga with Adriene
Tuesday: pool running
Wednesday: trail run 5 miles
Thursday: strength training, lunch with Marcia
Friday: run 6 miles
Saturday: rest day

March miles 106.6!!!

Sunday, April 26, 2020

And I Ran, I Ran So Far Away

Shhhhhh.....

I know I said in last week's Runfessions post that I wanted to run away but there was nowhere to go. As it turns out, there was.  I runfess that this weekend, my husband and I took a ride up to the lake house in Wisconsin.

Just a quick comment on the contrast we felt in Wisconsin compared to what we are experiencing in Illinois. The small little lake town where we were isn't seeing anywhere near the cases of COVID we are and people were pretty laid back. No one is masking and while some are social distancing, it isn't to the degree we have gotten used to. That doesn't mean we let down our guard. We brought all our masks and our own food from home, didn't go to any stores, and socially isolated ourselves in the cabin. So no judgment, please.

While my husband had some spring prep to do on the house, I had another reason to travel: my virtual half marathon. My plans to run it at home, using the same looping route I did for that virtual 19 miler, were thwarted by the weather. With a forecast predicting a 90% chance of rain, strong winds, and temperatures in the 40s, the last thing I wanted to do was to run a half marathon, and virtual one, in those conditions or on the treadmill. So off to Wisconsin we went.

The change of scenery felt good and the weather was decent.



Sunday, April 19, 2020

I've Got the Quarantine Blues

Cue the riff...

When I sat down on Friday to flesh out this post, I started writing lyrics to a blues song. "I woke up this morning feeling really down". That would have been my first line. I'm sorry, but after 4 weeks of quarantine, the uncertainty of where this is all going, and yet another dumping of snow, damn right I've got the blues--apologies to hometown boy Buddy Guy. He's alive and well, by the way. After listening to some of his songs, I felt a whole lot better. In spite of being called 'the blues', his songs aren't sad at all. I do love me some good tunes.

It's been another week of working from home, working out at home, and sheltering at home. Except going outside to run. I've enjoyed another week of good running. Looking at other people's social media accounts and reading blogs, it seems that a lot of us are enjoying our runs more than usual. I wonder if it's the lack of pressure, not training for anything, or just the relief of being able to be free and outside. I don't think I've ever been so grateful for running as I am right now. Nothing else is helping me shake off the blues as much as running. Running has gotten me through a lot in my life. What a great tool to help manage stress, sadness, and anxiety!

I have to balance my need to run with my need to avoid injury. Then I'd really be singing the blues!



Sunday, April 5, 2020

More Challenges

There are so many challenges right now. Most of them aren't fitness related. Every morning, I wake up feeling down, but running and working out is definitely a bright spot in my day and a mood lifter as well. Another perk of exercise is that research shows that working out boosts your immunity. I am happy to have my fitness challenges to take my mind off the real challenges, at least for a while.

In spite of the ample availability of virtual challenges to keep us moving and active, the Road Runners Club of America (RRCA) came out this week with a strong recommendation that no more virtual races be scheduled between now and the end of May. The concern is that since the stay-at-home recommendations have been implemented, at least in most of the states, there has been a big increase in people using paths and trails, which compromises social distancing. In the afternoons by my house, the sidewalks and trails are clogged with people out for a walk or a run. One of my favorite fitness paths, the retention pond where I do a lot of training, has been closed for this reason. I hope that all my favorite trails don't get shut down. I'll continue to go out early in the morning with the hope of avoiding most of the crowds.


Sunday, March 29, 2020

All the Challenges

Does it feel like this was the longest week ever? Every day seemed to bring some new challenge, be it adjusting to working from home, working out at home, and managing anxiety with the spread of COVID-19. I don't know about all of you, but I need my runs and my workouts more than ever. I'm still trying to figure out the whole working at home thing, although I had a major technological victory on Friday which made me feel like a boss. Social distancing hasn't been a big issue for me, as I get out the door very early for my runs, but I'm feeling the isolation. By Thursday, I was really down. I'm grateful for video chats--it was nice to see some familiar faces and have some laughs.

Besides the challenges off the road, this week, there were all kinds of fitness challenges happening! Thanks to everyone who tagged me to do the 10x10 push up challenge. With the 1000 burpee challenge being held by my CrossFit, I couldn't participate. It was just too much, trying to get all those burpees done and my shoulders thanked me. I don't think I've ever worked out so much in my life as I did this week!


Sunday, March 22, 2020

Running Away

“As this epidemic has progressed, we have had to make some hard decisions. To avoid the loss of potentially tens of thousands of lives, we must enact an immediate stay at home order for the state of Illinois, so that is the action that I’m announcing today.” ~ Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, 3/20/20
Most of us were already prepared for this. We've been staying home as much as possible, save for going to the grocery store and work. We've been running and working out, either solo or in very small groups. Those of us who can, and that includes me! are working from home. While many are complaining about the restrictions and inconveniences, most of us are grateful for the ability to continue our lives via technology.

These are challenging times but personally I've been impressed by the ability of so many businesses and people to adapt to the restrictions. Life hasn't stopped! Although on my walk this morning, it sure felt like it. There was no one out in my neighborhood. It was a little eerie!

Wednesday's St Patrick's day run

Sunday, October 13, 2019

I Haven't Got Time for the Pain

Carly Simon sang it back in the 70s. Kimberly "Sweet Brown" Wilkins updated it and is forever immortalized on a meme.  I tweaked it to fit my week. I had a rheumatoid arthritis flare this week. Fortunately, the flare was brief. Because I don't have time for pain!

It's been a busy week! Let's get right to it.


Sunday, September 29, 2019

It was a Week of Mishaps but the Running was Good

Returning from an escape away is always tough. If only life could be that much fun all the time, right? If only every day could be filled with blue skies and sunshine...friendship and wine...boating and laughter...

Reality bites. I rode the wave (pun intended) for a couple of days. The good vibes carried me through my first day back at work. But by Wednesday, life took over and once again my feet were firmly back on the ground. Even the weather took a turn, bringing blustery, rainy, cool conditions which lingered through the week.

I had a few mishaps during my workouts, too. I think my body was tired. Being the stubborn warrior that I am, I kept on moving. Was it the right or wrong thing to do? Not sure. I do love to move my body, though. Even when my body pushes back.



Sunday, September 15, 2019

Crushing the Backup Plan

This year, I've become all about the backup plan. It's hard to let go of what you were, at least for me. I always pictured myself as a goal crusher. This year, I've become a backup plan crusher. I'm not saying this is a bad thing--it means I'm listening to my body and doing what feels good. Crushing the backup plan has become a lot of fun. I'm not training for anything, so along with running, now I'm getting to do all this cool stuff.

Maybe the backup plan is becoming the plan?



Sunday, September 8, 2019

That's More Like It...

With cooler temperatures come better runs. It's true that those tough hot summer miles do lead to better runs in the fall. I had a fast 5k this week and I'm going farther. That is more like it!

I was running so well this week that I reconsidered running the race I committed to DNSing--the Naperville Trails Half Marathon on Sunday. Reality kicked in when I woke up Friday morning in a world of hurt. Sore from my daily RA stiffness coupled with DOMS from CrossFit, it made me realize that I'm nowhere near half marathon ready. I was sad but not stupid. I could run a half, but at what price to my body? Committed to staying healthy, I listened to what my body was telling me and made good on my promise to DNS this one.



Sunday, August 18, 2019

Can I Still Call Myself a Runner?

It's been a few weeks since I've posted a training recap. Summer's kept me hopping! As much fun as I've been having, the training hasn't stopped. I'm not training for anything official, though. I have a half marathon on the calendar in September but unless some sort of running miracle happens, that race is going to be a DNS.

For me right now, running is kind of a non-thing. I've been pretty much phoning in my runs this summer. As much as I consider myself a runner, the fact of the matter is that for the past 6 months, running has felt hard. God knows I've whined about it enough here on the blog. I've given up trying to figure out why. And you know what else? I'm not really bothered by it right now. I've been so busy staying active doing other things that the low mileage hasn't affected me. I'm sure that come fall when life slows back down, the running struggle is going to become real again.

Maybe the cooler temperatures will bring some kind of running miracle? A runner can only dream. Who am I kidding? With the almost non-existent mileage that I'm logging right now, can I even call myself a runner?



Sunday, July 28, 2019

'SUP!

This post contains an affiliate link.

Greetings from the north woods of Wisconsin! I'm up in Door County for a long weekend, taking a quick blogging break from all the activity to recap the week. It's really amazing how busy we are in the summer, isn't it? Maybe that's why winter is so long--it gives us time to rest up!

Anyhoo, it's been a full week with not a ton of running but lots of other activities. I also took advantage of Amazon Prime Day and bought myself an inflatable SUP. Over the weekend, I gave it a full workout. Spoiler alert: it was a great purchase!



Sunday, July 14, 2019

Hot Fun

The heat is on! This week was a warm one and looking ahead we've got more of the same to come. The weather this year has been wacky, from that polar vortex in January, to all that rain in May and June, and to this blast furnace we are currently enduring. What's a runner to do?

We adapt and make the best of it. There were early morning runs and late nights on the patio listening to music and hanging out with the boys. Lots of hydration. Summer is all about fun, right?



Sunday, June 23, 2019

All I Needed

Greetings from the north woods! I'm enjoying a too-short getaway to one of my favorite places in the world, Door County, Wisconsin. I've been coming here since I was a little girl and it's always great to return to all the beauty, traditions, and memories. Even though the weather has been cool and we haven't been able to get out on the water, the sun has been shining. Sometimes sunshine and nature are all you need.