Monday, October 4, 2021

Mini-Book Reviews: September 2021

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. I received a copy of Three Sisters, Damnation Spring, and Running is a Kind of Dreaming from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

September was full of good reads! I was lucky to get my hands on a bunch of library holds. In fact, so many books came off my hold list that I had to let some of them go. I also vowed this month to work on my NetGalley shelf. 


Saturday, October 2, 2021

I'm Walking, Yes Indeed

"I'm walkin', yes indeed,
and I'm talkin', 'bout you and me,
I'm hopin', that you'll come back to me...yeah..."
~Fats Domino

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. 

Thursday, September 30, 2021

Coffee Talk

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. 

Let's catch up over coffee! Did you know that yesterday was National Coffee Day? Every day is coffee day at my house! Anyway, I just love this monthly coffee date. I'm having my usual Dunkin with a scoop of GLG collagen and a splash of half and half. What are you having? What would you tell me over coffee?

Happify sets a positive tone to my day!

Monday, September 27, 2021

Anxiety: Using an App to Help Manage Your Symptoms

Disclaimer: This post was sponsored by Happify and all opinions expressed in my post are my own. Happify is not meant to be a substitute for mental health services. If you are experiencing a mental health crisis, contact your healthcare provider or call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline 1-800-273-8255.

I don't know about you, but 2021 feels more stressful to me than 2020. In 2020, I had all the optimism that there was an endpoint to all the turmoil. I had the expectation that things would be better in 2021. Instead, we continue to battle COVID-19 and deal with all the fallout from 2020. According to the CDC, the percentage of adults with anxiety and depression increased to almost 42 percent by February of this year. The largest increases were in young adults ages 18-29. Access to mental health services has been stretched and it is estimated that only 37 percent of adults with an anxiety disorder are actually receiving treatment. 

Anxiety is a very treatable problem. There are a variety of options for anxiety sufferers besides psychotherapy and medication. Relaxation techniques, meditation, yoga, exercise, and acupuncture are some alternative options for the treatment of anxiety. 

Earlier this year, I shared my own struggles with anxiety. I also shared some of the tools I've been using to help me manage my stress and anxiety. Recently, I had the opportunity to try out Happify, an app full of science-based activities and games to help manage stress and anxiety. The Happify app aims to help people build their well-being skills and develop positive life-changing habits. Optimism, resilience, gratitude, positivity... these are some of the skills that can be learned to lead to a more happy life.

Can an app do that? 

Saturday, September 25, 2021

Adjusting My Expectations

As promised, I nixed the running and cut back on my walking miles this week. Work continues to be busy and I am spending the entire day on my feet, seeing patients. I won't lie, in spite of wearing supportive shoes--Danskos and Alegria--my foot throbs at the end of the day. My ankle is mostly quiet, but at night, I have to position my leg just so, otherwise, it hurts. 

Sigh. When people ask me about it and I express my frustration at the slow healing, the response I usually get is: "What did you expect?"

At 3 months post-injury, I fully expected to be back running again. I'm not running and it will be a little longer before I can. I'm adjusting my expectations, continuing my alternative workouts to maintain fitness and build back my strength. I've pulled out the new running shoes that I was saving for my return to running and wearing them on my walks.

Running, I'm so ready for you.

Thursday, September 23, 2021

I Miss Running and other Runfessions

Well, here we are again at the Runfessional. That was fast! It seems like I just posted last month's runfessions. Soon the snow will be flying--ok, I'm getting ahead of myself. Even though I'm not officially running, I do have runfessions this month. Thank goodness Marcia opens the runfessional. I need some absolution and an injection of positivity because, yeah, I runfess that this being unable to run thing is wearing on me.

Sunday, September 19, 2021

You Can't Hurry Healing

I need to run, run, to ease my mind. I need to find, find, some speed of some kind...
Oh, you can't hurry healing, you just have to wait...
Oh, healing don't come easy, it's a game of sit and wait...
You can't hurry healing, you just have to wait,
You gotta trust, give it time,
No matter how long it takes...  
~Adapted from You Can't Hurry Love. Apologies to The Supremes and Phil Collins and the songwriters

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 12, 2021

It's Still Summer, Sort of

This is my favorite time of year and so far I am not disappointed with the weather we are having. Cool mornings and warm afternoons make for perfect running conditions. Oh, right. I'm still not running. But I have been walking and this weekend, I was able to get out for one last ski around the lake. 

My foot and ankle still aren't completely healed. When I push myself a little too much, they let me know about it. This week, I have a follow-up appointment with the ortho. I'm looking forward to getting another x-ray and evaluating just how much healing is happening. I know I'm not ready to start running again--although I may have tried a little bit. Getting closer!

Thankfully, I have a lot of alternative activities to keep me fit!

Ice Age Trail hike

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

Thursday, September 2, 2021

Coffee Talk

Disclaimer: This post contains an affiliate link.

Let's catch up over coffee! What are you drinking? I'm having my old favorite, Dunkin original with a scoop of GLG collagen and a splash of half and half. It's always a treat. I can't believe it's been a month since we last shared a cuppa.

Monday, August 30, 2021

Mini-Book Reviews: August 2021

Disclaimer: I received a PRC of Beautiful Country from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review. This post contains affiliate links.


Thanks for all the great feedback on last month's book review post! I didn't know if it would be pretentious of me to post my reviews like that, but everyone seemed to like it! I have a few favorite book bloggers that I look to for recommendations, so I hope you will find something that you might want to read here. This month, I continued to heal from my injury and had plenty of downtime for reading. I read 6 fiction books and 1 non-fiction book this month. There was also a running book and I'm sharing my thoughts on that below. 

As always, feel free to share your thoughts with me, either in the comments section or privately. Thanks for reading! By the way, if this post looks oddly formatted to you, I've had some issues with Blogger. Sorry about that!

Sunday, August 29, 2021

Life is Better On or In The Water

As you might already know,  I was out of town last week, visiting my former Weekly Wrap cohost Holly. We were joined by our friend Teresa for a really fun Camp Hoho girls' weekend! I shared all the details on my IG. There wasn't any running but there was a lot of water time and a lot of laughs. I came home on Monday with a smile on my face and rode that wave (pun intended) into an extended weekend getaway with my hubs in Wisconsin. 

Because truly, life is better on the water! I have to take advantage of every opportunity to get out there and get wet. The season is way too short for us in the Midwest. 

Friday, August 27, 2021

Recoveryfessions

Disclosure: While I am well aware that Alabama is a high-risk area for travel, let me assure you that I, along with Holly and Teresa, am fully vaccinated. I wore an N95 medical-grade mask on the plane and in the airport, the same masks I wear at work. We did not attend any large group activities. If you'd like to see some of my vacation photos, check out my Instagram!

It might be the last Friday of the month and the Runfessional might be open...but when you're not running, are your 'fessions even runfessions? You know I always have stuff to runfess. This month and last month...not so much. I am on the road to recovery (pun intended) and so instead of runfessions, I have a few recoveryfessions...

Because I've never been very good at sitting still...

Monday, August 16, 2021

Injured and Can't Run? Fluid Running H2Go Product Review

 Disclaimer: Fluid Running H2Go system was kindly gifted to me from the company. All my opinions are my own.

Earlier this summer, I broke my ankle and foot after falling from the climbing rope at CrossFit. After I fell, I initially thought I just rolled my ankle, but the x-rays proved me wrong. I was sentenced to at least 6 weeks in the boot and told that it would probably be 3-6 months before I could run again.

An avid runner, I went through all the emotions. Sad, angry, anxious, fear of gaining weight--you name it, I felt it. After a couple of weeks of a full-blown pity party, I made up my mind to find activities that I could do. The last time I had an injury that kept me from running was over 5 years ago. Back then, I did stationary cycling and pool running, but it was all on my own. With this injury, I discovered that my local park district has pool running classes. I also learned about Fluid Running. 

Sunday, August 15, 2021

Just Keep Swimming

As I continue to heal and feel better, this week I upped my cross-training, adding rowing to my injury recovery regimen. I tried walking again this week, but this time, out of the boot. I couldn't move too fast, though. And I got out on the lake on my SUP, on a perfect summer day. It sure would have been nice for some waterskiing...sniff sniff. While I am so happy that are so many activities I can do, I had the realization that it really is going to be a while before I get back to running. That is a bitter pill to swallow. 

I see the orthopedic surgeon next week and I'll have more of a plan after that. For now, I'm taking Dory's advice from Finding Nemo--Just Keep Swimming.

Monday's Fluid Running session

 

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

Thursday, August 5, 2021

Coffee Talk

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links.

Let's catch up over coffee! What are you having? I've got some Starbucks Spring Day Blend that was on the clearance at Target last week. If you remember, I had it last spring and loved it! It tastes just as good on a summer day, especially with a scoop of GLG Collagen and a splash of half and half. 

It's been a pretty eventful couple of weeks for me, and if you haven't read any of my other posts, you might want to check them out. 

Yep, I bought this shirt, lol

Monday, August 2, 2021

Mini-Book Reviews: July 2021

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links.

Starting this month, I'll be sharing my mini-book reviews in their own post! I've been kind of hijacking my coffee talk posts and squeezing in my reviews.. My mantra has always been "so many books, so little time", but laid up for the past month with a broken ankle and foot, I've had time to read a lot of books this month. I have a few new releases and some backlist reads from my Kindle app. It's been a good reading month. I hope you enjoy the new format! As always, you can follow me on Goodreads to see what I'm reading currently.

Sunday, August 1, 2021

My Injury Bingo Card

Coming home after a fun vacation away is tough, wouldn't you agree? I also had this past week off work, but with the broken leg, there wasn't a whole lot that I could do. I did my best to get some activity in almost every day. Mentally, that helped a lot. On Thursday, I saw the orthopedic surgeon for my follow up.

He was fine with everything that I'm doing and agreed with the strategy to let pain be my limiting factor. He was also pleased with my progress and re-xrayed my foot and ankle. There wasn't much change in the images because it is early in the healing process. 

However, the orthopedic surgeon thinks I may need surgery on my foot.

Surgery was not on my injury bingo card this year. Of course, neither was a broken leg. Actually, I don't remember signing up for injury bingo at all. I must have clicked on one of those phishing emails or something...

The fracture in my foot is displaced and he says it's unlikely that it will heal on its own. If I wasn't so active, he said he would allow more time for it to heal before deciding on surgery. He said healing could take up to 6 months and that doesn't come with a guarantee. Even if I have surgery, it will be a minimum of 3 months before I can think about running again. In the meantime, I can continue to do non-weightbearing exercises.

As you can imagine, I was pretty devastated by this news. After seeing the ortho, I needed some time to process this information. I spent much of the day on the couch, foot on a pillow, and Cocoa by my side. As the day went on, I was feeling better and ready to move forward. I do have my moments of melancholy, though. I sure miss running!

Wednesday, July 28, 2021

Non-Runfessions

Can I runfess if I'm not running? I mean, I was running for the first week of July...then I had to go and climb the damn rope at CrossFit. Damn. Rope. Anyhoo, I'm sidelined, but I have plenty of things to 'fess about. Probably more than usual. Thank goodness Marcia opens the runfessional the last Friday of every month. I hope she won't mind these non-runfessions. I hope you don't either.

Monday, July 26, 2021

The Wackiest Olympic Marathon in History

Last weekend, my son was sitting at the kitchen counter, laughing. When I asked him what was so funny, he told me that he was reading about the 1904 Olympic Marathon. Soon, I was laughing along with him. Since most of us are caught up in the summer Olympics, I thought it might be fun to share highlights from the 1904 Olympic Marathon, unquestionably THE strangest Olympic Marathon in history. 

This makes a story I heard about a woman slipping on the banana peel at the 2011 Chicago Marathon, dislocating her hip, popping it back in, and crossing the finish line sound kind of tame, right?  Makes my worst race ever sound like a walk in the park! 

This may be the craziest marathon ever!


Sunday, July 25, 2021

How I Spent My Summer Vacation While Healing from a Broken Ankle

Greetings from beautiful Door County Wisconsin!! Before I broke my ankle and foot, my son and I had all kinds of adventures planned for our week away. While our plans were modified a bit, I was able to do a lot more than I expected, even in the boot. I won't deny a little bit of sadness about not being able to run on the trails up there. However, not lacing up my running shoes actually gave us time to do things we might not otherwise do. 

This trip was so good for me, mentally. I promise that I didn't do anything stupid, although there were a few times that I came close...

No filter on this photo!