Sunday, November 14, 2021

Digging Deep

I was tired and achy all week. Was it the time change? The dramatic shift in the weather? Work stress? RA? On Thursday, I woke up to a dark, windy, rainy morning. I felt unusually achy and even after my cup of coffee, was unable to shake it off. It's been a long time since I have felt this bad, and all things considered, I guess I was due for a day on the couch. 

It's never easy for me to surrender, but I canceled my strength session with SJ and my haircut. With Cocoa by my side, I snuggled under a blanket, slathered my knees and wrists with my favorite CBD salve, and read a book. Sometimes the body knows best. I'm glad I listened.

Friday's dig deep empowering run
Weekly Rundown
Sunday: walk/run 6 miles
Monday: pool running
Tuesday: rest
Wednesday: trail walk/run 7 miles
Thursday: unscheduled rest-RA flare
Friday: run/walk 5.25 miles
Saturday: strength training

Walk/Run/Hike

Returning to running continues to be slow and at times, painful. On Sunday, I took my feet over to the Buffalo Creek preserve, which is all limestone. I started out at a local park, which is a mile from the preserve, and did my 1:2 run/walk intervals. It was slow, forward progress and when I finished, my foot was talking to me. Knowing that the fracture isn't healing with bone made me worry--and reminded me to continue to take it slow.


Wednesday could not have been more perfect for an outing on the trails. Clearly, the deer agreed as I encountered 3 bucks on the trail within the first 20 minutes! A little further down the trail and there was a group of does feeding in the meadow. It's mating season, y'all, and I felt like I was crashing the party. This gave me plenty of food for thought on the rest of my run. Mostly, I was glad I didn't see any deer hook-ups. The fall colors finally showed up and I was actually grateful for my slow pace, which allowed me to soak it all in.


I woke up Friday morning still feeling pain. What to do? Was it enough to send me back to the couch? I hated to call off work knowing that I had a full schedule. I didn't want to spend another day on the couch. That was enough to make me take ibuprofen, slather my knees with CBD slave, lace up my shoes, and head out with the promise that if I felt too much pain, I'd come home. That never happened. Instead, each interval of walking became shorter and I ran more than I have in months. Sometimes, you just have to push your limits. 

Pool Running

I was exhausted and sore when I headed to the pool on Monday morning. Don't ask me what I was thinking when I chose the Trifecta workout, which is probably the hardest one in the Fluid Running library. I started out a little sluggish but found my groove, finishing strong. 

Strength Training

On Saturday, feeling better, I made up for missing Thursday's strength session. It's always tougher to motivate myself to work out at home, but I'm determined to continue my return to running. I did a glute activating sequence, starting with mobility work: banded side steps, around-the-clock weighted lunges, and 90-90s. I followed this with strength: 4 sets each of deadlifts, weighted Bulgarian split squats, and weighted box step-ups. I was sweating after this one!

Off the road...

My Badger traveled to Chicago with his rugby team for the Big 10 conference finals. They kicked off the tournament against Northwestern, winning 70-10. It was cold and blustery but I was so proud of him and his teammates for a decisive victory. We stayed for the Ohio State vs Indiana championship match, a really exciting match which ended with a close victory for Ohio State. After that, we met my oldest at District Brew Yards for some beers and LilyQ BBQ. I drove my youngest back to Madison, driving through snow! on the way home. Already?



How was your week? Do you make up for an unexpected day off? When do you decide it's time for a day off? Have you seen snowflakes yet? Do you use CBD for pain? BTW, ChilWellness is having a 30% off sale, ending today. Use the code HONOR to save. Link is in my sidebar.

I'm linking up with Deborah and Kim for the Weekly Rundown. 


38 comments :

  1. Sorry to hear of your RA resurgence...but a day on the couch doesn’t sound too terrible considering the nasty turn of the weather. I woke up to crazy wind & freezing temps...so I’m opting inside for the time being, courtesy of Sebbe. Blogging & (indoor) biking for breakfast!

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    1. I'm supposed to meet up with the local Trail Sisters for a run this morning. Who wants to bet that I'm going to be alone? :o

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  2. We've been back up in the 90s the past couple of days. 72 at 5:30 AM? Ugh. But if we couldn't complain about the weather what in the world would we talk about??

    I still feel an occasional twinge in the ankle I sprained 3+ years ago. Hope that RA flare goes away ASAP and you continue to enjoy your return to running.

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    1. I'm feeling better every day. Still not 100%,but definitely an improvement.

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  3. I'm really sorry to hear about your RA flare. I'm glad you were able to log some miles on Friday.

    Thanks for the reminder on the ChilWellness sale - I'm off to stock up!

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  4. Sorry to hear about the enforced day of rest. Mr Lyz has had a cold this past week and I woke up with it yesterday morning, I spent the morning in bed and the rest of the time I've been trying to rest - a) I have a massive work day tomorrow, with two urgent jobs booked in to arrive and need doing right away, and b) We are supposed to be going down to see my cousins and aunty next weekend. Gah!

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    1. I'm stuffy too, but I think it's allergies. I hope you feel better!

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  5. I hope you're feeling better now! I always think the reason why we get out there day after day, even when we don't feel like it, even if we didn't sleep well, or have a headache, or it's too hot, etc. etc- we do it anyway on those days so when the day comes along where we truly, truly need to rest, we can do it and not feel guilty. You needed a day on the couch, and it won't impact your fitness at all.
    Sounds like other than that, you had a good week! Glad you got that time with your sons. It must be fun to see your youngest play rugby- I'll never have that. I go to band concerts instead :)

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    1. Haha! Coincidentally, the rugby team is planning a spring trip to Texas and hope to play Baylor!

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  6. I am so sorry you had such a tough week, Wendy. Cocoa does make a lovely nurse, though. Bandit tends to watch me from afar -- although he seems to sense when something is off, and apparently slept against me rather than my husband one night this week. Of course I was asleep . . .

    Mostly I do know when to take an unexpected day off, and there were several for me this week. I know what feeling run down feels like for me, and I know if I ignore it I will get truly sick at some point. Thankfully I am not in pain, though. I'm glad you have something that helps with that!

    Still no white stuff here, thankfully, but it's turned cold again.

    Here's to a better week, Wendy!

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    1. That flare really hit me hard! I'm still recovering, but definitely better. I thought initially that I had COVID--but it was joint pain, not myalgia. I've got nurse Cocoa by my side as we speak.

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  7. Sorry you had a flare up but you still had a great week of workouts! It can be hard to be motivated to strength train, especially at home. I need to have it on my schedule so I don't skip it.

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  8. Yes, Exciting Week For You - And Dig The Live Sport Action Shot There - Keep Up With That Pool Routine As Water Play Works Magic - Speaking Of Magic, Been Making My Own CBD Salve For Years Now - Highly Recommended Without The Pun Intended - Stay Strong My Friend & Extra Treats For Cocoa

    Cheers

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    1. Love the CBD salve! Good stuff and it kept me moving on Friday. Cocoa is right by my side as we speak.

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  9. that glute activation series sounds pretty great. You are so diligent with your pool running! I've been surprised that I've been sticking with Peloton strength classes (and am saving so much money vs. the Discover Strength training I used to do) but honestly, I feel like my relationship with strength changes a lot whereas my running relationship is bit more constant...You're contact with both! Impressive.

    Sorry about the flare, but glad you still were able to have a good week! Love all the deer sightings.

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    1. Somebody asked me recently why I'm still doing pool running workouts now that I'm back to running. Umm, because they work? It's like a 4th day of running for me, no impact, and there is strength in there with the water resistance. It's been a big part of my rehab. I'm going to continue it through the winter and reevaluate where I'm at in the spring.

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  10. Sorry to hear that you had a rough patch this week. I knew you would not be down for the count for long. Way to rally back and finish the week smiling

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    1. I'm pretty happy with how things ended up! Heading in the right direction.

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  11. I'm so sorry to hear that you had a rough week with RA. Glad the CBD oil gives you some relief. OMG, I cracked up on your comment on deer hookups. :D

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  12. Sorry to hear RA did not play nice this week. Glad to hear some couch time helped. There've been no deer in sight around here lately. I suspect all the hunting has something to do with that.

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    1. That's what my hubs said--he can't believe how friendly the deer are at the FP, but there are no hunters there!

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  13. I also had an unscheduled rest on Thursday for a bad cold and I spent all the day on the bed.
    Sorry to hear the problems with RA but I am glad that you succeeded in running/walking more than 5 miles on Saturday.
    Nice photo of the deer. Here all the local newspapers told about the escape of some bulls who have walked among the houses that are on a street where I usually go to run.
    Rugby: wonderful sport!

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    1. Yikes on the bulls! I don't worry about the bucks hurting me, but a bull?

      Yes, we love rugby at our house!

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  14. Sorry to hear about the RA flare . Hope it was short-lived and that you have something to help. CBD did not help my foot...wish it did.

    Flurries predicted for today...not ready yet.

    Love your adventures on the trails. What a beautiful place.

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  15. Glad to hear you listened to the signals your body was sending! It's hard to do that sometimes. I'm also happy to see the pics of you run/walking out there on the trails!

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  16. So sorry that your body wasn't feeling the best this week. I think the change in the weather and the time can definitely throw our bodies out of whack for a little bit. Glad that the CBD salve, and Cocoa :) , helped you feel better.

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    1. Thank you! I'm grateful it was short lived too. Although it's still lingering a bit...

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  17. Bummer your body wasn't feeling it's best this week. I don't try to make up for lost time on my workouts. I think I'd be paying for it if I did! Rugby looks like an awesome sport. That looks like a big win over Northwestern!

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    1. I only strength train once weekly, so I wanted to get one session in!

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  18. I feel like we might see snow this year. It's been consistently colder earlier here and I bet we see what might be an actual winter. Wouldn't that be amazing?

    I'm so glad you were able to get in your trail runs, even though you're hurting. It's so frustrating to have that pain, but i love that you keep moving. <3

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    1. I have to feel pretty bad to skip a workout and that's exactly what I did on Thursday!

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  19. I'm glad you pushed through when you were able, but listened to your body and rested when you needed to. Congrats to your son and his team!

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