At the crossing of 4 trails in Devil's Lake State Park Which way to go? |
Friday, October 22, 2021
I'm Going on an Adventure!
Sunday, October 17, 2021
RA Checks In
Friday's walk/run |
Sunday, October 10, 2021
Can I Start Running Again?
Saturday, October 2, 2021
I'm Walking, Yes Indeed
Another month without running, but September saw continued steady improvement on the healing and more crosstraining. I did have 66 miles of walking--not bad, all things considered. This month, I am participating in the Ice Age Trail Mammoth Challenge, which requires 41 miles, all on the IAT. As I mentioned in my Coffee Talk post, the biggest challenge for me will be finding time to get up to Wisconsin and on those trails! I'm happy to have this on the calendar since I won't see my ortho until the end of the month. Hopefully, then I will be cleared to run.
Saturday, September 25, 2021
Adjusting My Expectations
Sunday, September 19, 2021
You Can't Hurry Healing
I saw the orthopedic surgeon this week. It's been 10 weeks since my injuries and while he's pleased with how I'm feeling, the x-rays didn't show much progress with my healing. Remember, the x-rays always lag behind what is happening in real time. I also had to remind myself that healing isn't linear. I'm not worried that my fractures aren't healing, but still, it wasn't the news I was hoping for.
I did runfess to him that I've been trying out some short bursts of running. While he didn't tell me I couldn't do that, he did tell me that too much activity can slow down the healing process.
So no, I'm not cleared to return to running but I can continue to keep active with restraint. Patience is not one of my strengths. Between the overwhelming stress I'm feeling from work and my expanding waistline, I need to break a sweat. I'll go back in 6 weeks for repeat x-rays. In the meantime, I have plenty to do to keep myself active.
Sunday, September 5, 2021
A Little Bump on the Road to Recovery
I've been doing so well on the road to recovery that I was surprised to hit a little bump this week. On Saturday I woke up in a world of hurt with a full-blown RA flare. Actually, I had trouble sleeping because I could not get comfortable. I thought about getting up for some ibuprofen but it seemed like too much work at 2 am.
The last time this happened was 2 weeks after my second dose of the COVID vaccine. Two weeks ago, I received my 3rd dose of the COVID vaccine. Coincidence? I'm sure not. I'm just hoping that this flare will be short-lived. And that it doesn't interfere with my recovery.
Timing is everything and with the not-so-great weather this weekend, we stayed home from the lake. That gave me time for guilt-free rest on the couch, watching the Wisconsin Badgers play football, catching up on blogs, and reading.
Cheesing |
Saturday, August 7, 2021
Adventures in Injuryland
Disclaimer: This post contains an affiliate link.
Time flies when you're having fun, right? I must be having fun because I'm almost five weeks into my injury. It's hard to believe. I am in a better frame of mind now. I've been able to settle into a new workout routine and have found some activities that help me break a sweat, burn some calories, and make my heart pound. I also went back to work this week after 3 weeks off.
As much as I like my job, I'm not so sure it qualifies as fun. It is never dull and more often than not, very entertaining. The kids were all fascinated with my boot.
I won't deny that I miss running. One of my fellow Deer Grove trail runners posted on FB in our group that he thought her heard the deer whispering: "where is Wendy?" Which made me laugh out loud! I really miss those trails. Speaking of trails, I contacted both RDs from my two fall trail half marathons to ask for deferrals and was granted a deferral to one and a guaranteed entry to the other. I am grateful for this. Plus it gives me something to look forward to in 2022!
Friday's Assault Bike Ride |
Sunday, July 11, 2021
I'm Broken
The week started off really well with a long run on a beautiful day in the forest preserve. I was eagerly anticipating my upcoming Saturday trail race in Devil's Lake State Park. It's a race I've wanted to run for several years. In this strange year that is 2021, registration just opened up about a month ago. I decided on the 10k distance as a way to check out the race and the trails, which are notoriously hilly. If it went well, I planned on doing the half marathon next year. Heck, I even had a blank recap post waiting in my draft folder.
You know what they say about making plans, right?
Once again, all my plans are on hold. Is the universe sending me a message? Or does someone have a Wendy voodoo doll? If so, please remove all the pins because...
Sunday, July 4, 2021
Getting Wet
Maybe it was the strawberry moon--did you see it?--but things kind of flip-flopped this week. We got a ton of rain--the drought is over! Everything is green again, but yep, the mosquitoes and biting flies have come to life in the woods. My insect repellent doesn't seem to be holding up to the challenge.
On the plus side, my wrist responded well to the steroid injection that I received last week. I am so grateful for that! While I know that my wrist isn't healed, it's been interesting to see what I can do without pain. I wear the brace most of the time for comfort but have stopped wearing it when I run and work out. Oh...and I tested it out behind the boat this weekend!
Monday's rainy run |
Sunday, June 27, 2021
Shake it Off
If only I could do a better job of shaking things off!
I've always been a ruminator and I have trouble letting go of my worries. If you read my runfessions from Friday, you know that I received a yellow light from my ortho: proceed with caution because you might feel pain but it's ok and it will probably fix your problem... and yeah, if you find that confusing, so do I!
Even with this unusual advice to get out and test the limits of the tendon, I didn't immediately get behind the boat nor did I run to the gym and do cleans and jerks. The steroid injection itself caused me some pain. Dare I say that my wrist is feeling better since the injection? I haven't tested it out yet. We'll see how the upcoming week goes.
Friday's rainy run |
Sunday, June 13, 2021
Sort of Sidelined
Sunday, June 6, 2021
Are You Ready for Summer? and I Tried it! Odlo Summer Running Gear
Disclaimer: I received gear from Odlo in exchange for my unbiased review. This post also contains an affiliate link.
After an underwhelming Memorial Day weekend--cool and breezy--as the week went on, Mother Nature turned up the thermostat! The heat is on--is it ever! and it looks like it's here to stay. Time to adapt and adjust the training plan, I guess!
Sunday's trail run was steamy! |
Sunday, May 30, 2021
A Lot to Unpack!
Giant pinecones in Alabama! |
Sunday, May 16, 2021
Smarter, Not Harder
I don't know if it's the cooler weather or allergies or what it is, but on Thursday this week, I was commenting to Sammy Jo about how long it has taken me to recover from that race I ran a few weeks ago. I'm definitely not bouncing back as quickly from a hard effort like I used to, that is for sure. Even though this week I felt really good on Wednesday's trail run, when I got home from work in the evening, I had dinner and I was asleep by 9 pm.
I guess it's like the old cliché, I have to train SMARTER, not harder. I know that I've still got some speed and strength in me, but I can't waste energy doing activities that don't have any value. For now, I don't have anything planned, running-wise, until the fall. I'm looking forward to continuing to explore more segments of the Ice Age Trail and running my local trails as well.
Changing my mindset and not pushing myself so hard--this may be my biggest challenge yet!
Saturday, May 8, 2021
Recovery Week plus I Read it! Racing the Clock
Sunday, May 2, 2021
Blown Away
Literally and figuratively, this week I was blown away.
Spring weather in the Midwest is always a wild ride. We often joke that if you don't like the weather, wait a minute and it will change. Sometimes it feels like you have all 4 seasons in one day--a few years ago at the CARA Lakefront 10 miler, we started out with sun and 70 degrees, only to finish in the wind with temperatures dropping to the 40s.
Oh, that wind! Even though the Windy City got its nickname from its windbag politicians, Chicago is known for its fierce winds that blow off Lake Michigan. We've had our share of wind this spring and this week was no different. Apparently, any large body of water will do as I battled winds at my race around Lake Monona on Saturday in Madison, Wisconsin.
But the wind wasn't the only thing the blew me away this week--there were some good runs, including another live race and a hike to one of my favorite spots.
Sunday, April 11, 2021
Whew!
It's been an overwhelming couple of weeks for me! Between Cocoa's surgery, working on the lake house, my continuing education conference, and some other family issues, something had to give--and that was blogging last week. With falling readership, I have been considering shutting down the blog, but I really do enjoy our little runblog community here. In a year of virtual races and isolation, the interaction with other bloggers and readers has really been a lifeline at times.
So here I am, sharing a brief update of running and training from the past 2 weeks. I'll also share a Cocoa update at the end of the post. Long story short, she's doing great! So am I.
Sunday, March 28, 2021
Twisted Logic
Flying on Friday |
Sunday, March 21, 2021
Motion is Lotion
This week, RA didn't play nice at all. I don't know if it was the cold, blustery weather we had early in the week or a post-vaccine immune response, but I was achy AF. It doesn't really make sense to blame it on the COVID vaccines, because I got the second dose over 2 months ago. But something triggered my immune system. I'm writing this on Saturday and my hands are still swollen, inflamed, and achy. Joint pain woke me up in the middle of the night a couple times this week and I had to take ibuprofen, something I try not to do very often. I have avoided steroids so far, but I am considering taking a short course, just to shut this thing down. Thankfully, I'm not experiencing much fatigue as I have during other flares, so in spite of the pain, I've able to run and work out.
Running and working out during a flare might not make sense to some people, but as we RA warriors like to say, 'motion is lotion'. I know that I'll feel better once I get those joints moving. That was the case all week. I did have to modify my workouts a little bit, though, to accommodate for the pain.