A day that starts with this delivered to your front door can't end badly:
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It just can't. It's science.
I was really looking forward to today. Spring Break was a nice reprieve from the hustle and bustle of the school week, but after days and days of being stuck indoors, I think we all needed a little bit of breathing room to call our own. So Ryan went off to work, the girls went off to school, and I went off to take care of business.
You see, I've been carrying this dirty little secret around with me for the better part of a week, and I couldn't wait to let the cat out of the bag. After feeling zero pain in my knee with daily activities and even some P90X for two solid weeks, I decided to make today the day I'd give this leg a test drive. After all, it is Marathon Monday. I was as nervous as one would be when meeting an ex after years apart. I put on my favorite sports bra and laced up my pretty new Brooks. I put on my watch, which I realized was frozen in time since the last time I ran:
The weather wasn't the 65 and sunny I envisioned our reunion to be, but instead a blustery 46 degrees and cloudy. I drove to the oceanfront and was greeted by 30 mph wind gusts and an angry ocean:
Figures. But I was so happy to be out there, and I had my sights set on the pier. There and back would have been around 2 miles, which I thought would be a respectable maiden voyage. After a good dynamic warm up, I hit start on my watch and headed north.
A block later, I walked. Much to my disbelief, that signature stabbing pain of IT band syndrome started just one friggin' block into my run. It's like my ex stood me up. How is that even possible??? How could it start hurting earlier into a run now - after five weeks off, courses of anti-inflammatory meds, and good old fashioned TLC - than it did at the height of the injury? Beyond frustrating. But better to test it out and see what happens while I'm still in the capable hands of Carl and company at physical therapy.
The pain stopped as soon as I stopped running, which I guess I can consider progress, and I quickly walked back to my car and out of the cold. I drowned my sorrows in jelly beans and headed to PT. It was really the perfect place for me to be at that very moment, as seeing other patients work to regain range of motion and strength for simple daily tasks wouldn't allow me to wallow in my nonsense of "boo hoo, I can't run." No other aspect of my life is physically affected by this injury, so I will not voice my frustrations in earshot of those people. Carl added a little manual therapy to my repertoire, and I left feeling as though it's not as bad as it seems.
Kids needed to be picked up from school, groceries had to be purchased, and soccer practice had to be attended, so it was on with my day with no time for self pity. I ran with Camryn from the playground to the spot where her practice was, and I felt no pain in the knee. Interesting. It was farther than the block that caused pain earlier in the morning, but it was on grass instead of the concrete boardwalk. Since I consider my body to be one big science experiment, I decided to try running a lap around the perimeter of the park. I grabbed Brynn and made her tag along, as I knew if she was with me, I wouldn't get as mad if things didn't go well.
One lap around, no pain. Not wanting to press my luck, I stopped after a lap. That didn't last long, so I tried another lap in the opposite direction. No pain. REALLY??? Did that just happen??? After another few minutes of rest, I switched directions for another lap. No pain. I don't really like odd numbers, so I played a little frisbee with Brynn and had her run my fourth and final lap with me. I didn't feel pain or even discomfort, really, but I felt something by the end of the fourth lap and knew it was time to stop. Since I was doubtful I'd be able to complete one lap, I was totally fine with stopping after four. Maybe I need to start out on softer surfaces while I continue to strengthen this hip...it means I'll have to be a little more creative when planning my routes, but I can handle that.
I'm not sure exactly how far each lap was, but Ryan and I guessed it could be almost a half mile. Four laps would be about 2 miles (don't be hatin' on my math skills now), which is what I was hoping I'd do as I set out at the oceanfront this morning. I suppose a cold, windy, solo run isn't what the running gods had in store for my first couple of miles back. Having my big girl beside me with a view of my little nugget playing soccer was a much better way to start.
Kids needed to be picked up from school, groceries had to be purchased, and soccer practice had to be attended, so it was on with my day with no time for self pity. I ran with Camryn from the playground to the spot where her practice was, and I felt no pain in the knee. Interesting. It was farther than the block that caused pain earlier in the morning, but it was on grass instead of the concrete boardwalk. Since I consider my body to be one big science experiment, I decided to try running a lap around the perimeter of the park. I grabbed Brynn and made her tag along, as I knew if she was with me, I wouldn't get as mad if things didn't go well.
One lap around, no pain. Not wanting to press my luck, I stopped after a lap. That didn't last long, so I tried another lap in the opposite direction. No pain. REALLY??? Did that just happen??? After another few minutes of rest, I switched directions for another lap. No pain. I don't really like odd numbers, so I played a little frisbee with Brynn and had her run my fourth and final lap with me. I didn't feel pain or even discomfort, really, but I felt something by the end of the fourth lap and knew it was time to stop. Since I was doubtful I'd be able to complete one lap, I was totally fine with stopping after four. Maybe I need to start out on softer surfaces while I continue to strengthen this hip...it means I'll have to be a little more creative when planning my routes, but I can handle that.
I'm not sure exactly how far each lap was, but Ryan and I guessed it could be almost a half mile. Four laps would be about 2 miles (don't be hatin' on my math skills now), which is what I was hoping I'd do as I set out at the oceanfront this morning. I suppose a cold, windy, solo run isn't what the running gods had in store for my first couple of miles back. Having my big girl beside me with a view of my little nugget playing soccer was a much better way to start.
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