Attempting a Run

Happy birthday today to my big 3 year old, Asher!

I was running late today.  As such, I thought today would be the perfect day to do a short workout and to run instead of ellip.  Since I have worked out every day for the past 6 days, my mind kinda set up a block against wanting to workout again today, the 7th day.  I try to get at least 1 day in a week to rest but it is hard to allow that and not want more days off.  Balance is not easy. (As Tara from The Biggest Loser would know because does anyone else think she answered that question about balance at the finale with gibberish?  Of course, I’d have said “Are you kidding me?  You don’t mess with ‘balance’ when you are training to win TBL.  I worked my ass off and then worked some more and forgot what all possibility of normal life even looked like.  There’s time for balance after I win.”)  Since I am not on the line to stand on a scale in front of a live national audience, I do actually want balance.  So I walked into the gym with a strong voice telling me to not push it.

So I was just going to run a mile.  I started walking and got up to a 5.5 MPH run before my heel started to hurt.  DAMN.  It didn’t hurt a lot, but since I’d like it to heal and not hurt forever I slowed it back down again.  I was stuck at 4.3 MPH and I couldn’t run much faster or my heel would hurt – I think because then I’d have to take wider steps and the kicking my foot out in front of me was pulling on that tendon.  That means at least 3 more weeks of not seriously running and I was really upset with that.  Well, I still am but I was down right mad there in the gym.  It also means that I probably injured it in the first place that time I tried running a couple weeks back.

After two days at 177, I was really hoping for a 176 today.  We stopped at Cold Stone last night to pick out the cakes for Jessie and Asher’s birthdays  (I was going to do ONE cake and split the decorations in half  but I couldn’t really visualize a half  Spider Man half ballerina cake so I just got two small round cakes.) and everyone but me got to pick out some ice cream to eat while there.  I got their fancy health-kick frozen yogurt thing they were advertising instead of the double chocolate peanut butter thing I wanted to get.  I came home and ate green pepper slices and string beans instead of the treats I wanted to get.  Over lunch yesterday I did NOT go eat at the restaurant for the free ‘going away’ lunch for a co-worker and instead ate my raw fruits and vegies in my bag from home.  I was going to get 176 on Friday no matter what it cost me!!!

I got 178 today.  At least I’m wearing a pair of jeans from pre-pregnancy that I haven’t worn since I was only a few weeks into the twin’s gestation.  I’m wearing a nice loose shirt so no one can see the hideous muffin top effect that these jeans are having but that is not important.  The important part is that they are buttoned and zipped and I am able to sit down with only slight blood flow restriction issues to my lower half.

Achilles’ heel

Apparently, I have one.  Not so much in that I was shot by a poison arrow in my heel and am thus in the process of dying.  Also not so much in that I have a specific weak spot in my otherwise superhero-like flawless strength of both person and character.  No, that remains, as such, flawless.  My Achilles’ heel is, in fact, my achilles heel.  Literally.  My achilles tendon is suffering from a form of tendinitis that my podiatrist doctor flatteringly referred to as “something that normally only hits people over 50… I’m not sure why it is getting YOU.”  Thanks.  After that he muttered something about pregnancy hormones which I’m certain have the tendency to mimic ‘over 50’ in everyone so I’ll accept that as a perfectly good explanation.  I first noticed this pain while I was doing my hamstring stretches after a workout and thus whenever I forgot that it hurt like Holy Fucking Hell to hold my leg out straight and flex my foot upwards, I would do so and yes, it would hurt.  I first saw a neurologist thinking it was nerve related as the actual area on my heel or anywhere else didn’t hurt or feel tender, only the movement caused shooting pain.  The neurologist was so shocked to hear that it only hurt to flex my foot upwards when my leg was straight and not while it was bent that he insisted on pulling my leg out straight and flexing my foot. Then getting kicked in the face because DAMMIT, I TOLD HIM, OW!**  He told me that he had no idea what it could possibly be and to make another appointment in 3 weeks to see if it goes away on its own.  As I left I distinctly heard him mutter ‘freak’ out of the corner of his mouth but he could’ve been talking about anyone really.** 

Later that day I called a podiatrist thinking that another specialty might have the answer and he seemed to agree and invited me in for an appointment.  It seems that my achilles tendon attaches up above the back of my knee and thus when my leg is straight, it is tighter than when it is bent.  When it is straight AND I flex my foot upwards, it is tight enough to feel like it is ripping fiber by painful fiber off of the back corner of my heel.  His answer?  Don’t do that.  There was ice mentioned but I’m not likely to take the time to sit and ice my heel so basically I need to not do the things that hurt and it should get better on its own.  This would be a lot easier if I didn’t keep forgetting that the things that hurt really DO hurt and then doing them.  Mostly my hamstring stretches and moving my leg/foot around when I’m in bed.

Thankfully, I don’t have to stop my workouts as I’m finally starting to get my old abilities back.  I’m able to do the 30 minute elliptical at lvl 10 and ~5.5 MPH so that has me feeling pretty happy.  I FINALLY got to 177 this morning which is totally suckily slow but hey, it is DOWN so I’ll take it.  I’d prefer 2 pounds per week and not 1 pound per 2 weeks but it seems my system isn’t ready to snap back to <25 BMI as quickly as I would like it to.  I keep saying I need to try running for real one of these workouts but I haven’t.

I’d like to leave you with a little story that is, sadly, real.  I was driving my two angelic youngest children home from daycare one day.  They were both talking about what they’d like to get for their birthdays.  Jessie said she wants a big new barbie car and Asher said HE wants a big new barbie car too.  Jessie told him he needed a BOY barbie car and I asked Jessie what made a boy barbie car for boys.  The answer from the psychotic whack job in the back seat?  “BOY barbie cars have pictures of GUNS on them.  And Boys.  And boys holding GUNS shooting Barbie.”  NICE Jessie.  So I asked her what girl barbie cars had.  “Girl barbie cars have pictures of Barbie holding guns shooting BOYS, Mom.”  (Total eye-roll sass included.)  I thus tortured her with my speech about solving problems without guns and fighting and how making up shit in your blog about them is a much better way to get revenge.  Now she is asking for a WordPress account for her birthday.**

 

**These 3 sentences are not actually true.

Slowly, very slowly

I know – not many blogs.  Sorry about that. 

I don’t have time for a long post now either.  Just wanted to post that I’m wearing a pair of my old pre-pregnancy size 12s today!  I was wearing a pair yesterday and the day before as well.  Yay me!  Granted, they are tight – but nothing is ripping as I move so that’s good.  The funny thing is that they are all really tight over my belly.  My waist in general used to be the area that all my pants were loose on.  I am glad as it means there are still some effects of the pregnancy lingering around – having something other than me to blame tight pants on is always a plus!  I also FINALLY got 178 this morning so I’m pretty excited.  What are the odds that I can make 177 by Friday?

I can feel my strength coming back, albeit slowly.  At my 6 week PP appointment they drew another hemoglobin blood test and I came back with a roaring 8.2.  Ya, that’s a bit on the low end.  I can manage to keep my elliptical speed up to 4.5 – 5.5 more often than not at level 9 now though so it is coming back.  At the gym this past weekend I brought all three kids to the kids’ play place.  This was the first time I’ve ventured back with Asher for well over a year.  He did great!!  No crying or anything.  Jessie had fun as well.  I did get paged back to the childcare area about 20 minutes into my workout because Asher had a potty accident even though I TOLD them as I was walking out to remind him and bring him to the bathroom as it was a new and exciting place and him would probably forget.  It actually sounds from Jessie and Gavin that he was up inside the tunnels and couldn’t find his way out and was scared and calling for help.  OMG I hate their childcare quality.  When I was paged I was walking back from the elliptical and being very angry that OF COURSE they wouldn’t be able to deal with all three for a full 30 minute workout.  Hearing it was just a potty accident was good though because I could run out to the car and get his extra clothes and keep working out.  Since I only had 10 minutes left I decided to try out running for the first time.

Running:  I  AM  S L O W!

I finished off 10 minutes at 4.5 MPH.  That is frightening.  It was hard even and as much as I wanted to keep going and get in at least 1 mile for my first run I would’ve been on that treadmill for way too long.  Then I was sore.  Very sore.  Thankfully, not specifically my knees although they were sore too.  I need to keep stretching, especially that left leg, and I do need to get new shoes if I’m going to run more.  I don’t think it matters on the elliptical but the shoes I’m using were purchased in fall of 2007.

Yep, it is slow, but normal is creeping back up on me.