Life is a Wild Ride

Life has sure been interesting lately with lots of ups and downs! Read on...

Weekly Rundown:

Sunday: Ice Age Trail Lodi Marsh Segment 7 miles/1100ft

Monday: unscheduled rest

Tuesday: Fluid Running

Wednesday: Trail run/walk 4 miles

Thursday: 10-3.5-30 treadmill workout plus 10 mins warmup/cooldown

Friday: run/walk 5k

Saturday: rest/work

The fog and cooler morning temperatures were so inviting! I had just been to the Lodi Marsh the night before for the Full Moon Hike, so I didn't repeat that part of the segment, instead focusing on the rest of the trail. I loved seeing the full moon still up high in the sky. The fog made everything feel moody and soft, and I took a ton of photos. Still recovering from this virus, I felt pretty good, but I had to stop and walk a few times. No complaints--it was a beautiful morning to be on the trail!

For the past couple of days, I've been battling whatever upper respiratory virus is going around, and on Monday, it seemed to settle in my chest, causing me to cough and feel short of breath. Maybe I pushed myself too hard on Sunday? Who me? I figured I should listen to my body, and I skipped the gym.

Wednesday's trail run/walk was in the rain. I wanted to get outside; I wanted to run, and so I did. Easy, slow, and uneventful. No deer sightings--just a few squirrels. 

It was still raining on Thursday, and with my knee injury, I played it safe (sort of) and took to the TM for the 12-3-30 workout, modified. My TM only elevates to 10%, so I increased the pace to 3.5. I also did a 5-minute warm-up and cool down. 

Off the trail...

As you know, I have been struggling with pain in my right knee for some time now. A few weeks ago, I had a steroid injections in both knees. The injections didn't help much with my knee pain and did nothing to help the main issue--pain below my right kneecap. The only thing that has helped so far is wearing a knee strap. On Monday, I had an MRI of the knee. I learned that I have a partial patellar tendon tear, along with tendinitis and cartilage loss. I attempted to schedule with an orthopedic specialist at Rush in Chicago, and got an appointment in 5 weeks. Not wanting to wait that long and to start on the road to healing, I self-referred to a local PT practice that works with athletes. I also scheduled with a local sports med ortho this upcoming Monday to evaluate my injury. I also want guidance on what I can do while I heal--both on the trail and in the gym. As you might have noticed, I'm still doing some running, but mostly have been walking.

On Wednesday morning, I got incredible news. My son texted me that my daughter-in-law's water broke and THE BABY WAS COMING! I worked that afternoon; he kept providing me with updates, and a little after 4 pm, my grandson was born, 6 pounds 12 ounces. Yes, he came 4 weeks early, but he was healthy and perfect. I had to work that evening, but my last 2 patients canceled, my manager closed my schedule, and I went to the hospital to see him. What a little love! Everyone says he looks like my son. He definitely has Tom's eyes!

The plan was for the baby to go home with his mom on Saturday, but unfortunately, he developed jaundice and bought himself another night in the hospital to be monitored. Fingers crossed this passes quickly!

How was your week? Did you have a lot of rain this week? Do you run when you're injured? What is the best thing that happened to you this week?

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

Stormy Weather

Wow, did we get rain this week! Along with the rain, we had severe storms every night. This week alone, we've received almost 4 inches of rain locally — some areas had much more —and there is flooding everywhere. It's been wild. After a final round of storms on Friday night, the summer-like conditions moved on out, and we're back to cool, calm weather again. 

After being off the past 3 weeks to care for my mom (and dad) and prepare for her return home, I resumed work this week. I thought I'd be starting with a full schedule, but we are in a brief seasonal lull and a break in the high demand for appointments. It was the perfect way to return after the recent period of high stress. Was it nice to be back? Yes and no. I found it difficult to focus completely on the job. Despite some really good runs and workouts this week, I still have a lingering unease that I can't shake. Oddly enough, after seeing 3 patients on Saturday morning, the power went out, and we had to cancel clinic for the rest of the morning.