With a gym membership, I feel more complete.

Yeah! Finally scored an outstanding deal at Planet Fitness in Northville. The start-up fee was $20 and after that it's $10/month. There is no fee to opt out and no contract. I hope I like going to the gym as much as I like the prices. I was there at 6:30 this morning. Ran two miles. Attempted a PT-like routine with the leg press, squats, lunges, stretches and balance exercises. I'll see how I feel tomorrow!

What a fiasco!

I was prepared for the race on Saturday. I ate the requisite pasta the night before. I did not indulge in more than two beers. I tried to keep my plans for Friday night down to a level less than crazy. I set my alarm for 638 am, which was actually horrible for a weekend! Ugh.

My alarm went off. I stumbled out of bed, cursing my running self and wishing I could be content to be a lazy person who didn't care about the race or getting into the lottery for the Bridge Run. But all complaining aside, I ate half an English muffin, made my personal iced cafe au lait concoction and set off. I still had to pick up my t-shirt and get signed up and figure out where everyone was and so I was out the door shortly after 7am. Well, I got to the area where I thought I was supposed to be and I was the only person in the parking lot. What? That seemed odd. I sensed something was off. I drove around a bit, but it was a festival with blocked off streets and I felt that I should stay put. Except I didn't see any other runners, no signs, no life at all! Did I have the starting point wrong? Should I be somewhere else? I was starting to panic. It's getting closer to 8:00. Was I going to pay the entry fee and miss the race? Miss my opportunity to get into the lottery? Most importantly, could I have actually slept in? What do I do? Panic easily gave way to tears of frustration. Why does that happen to me? Why can't I "freak out" and remain calm and focused? Instead, I just shut down all rationality and lose it.

I call Jason knowing full well that I am waking him up before 8am on a Saturday morning. He says hello? and I immediately start bawling and babbling about how I'm gonna be late and I must be lost and I'm so mad at myself and I feel so stupid and I don't know what to do. Wah. Wah. The frustrated baby in me explodes into an emotional fury of helplessness.

I'm sure this is every guy's nightmare: being woken up at an unreasonable hour by a crying girl, totally confused as to what is really going on and then being expected to come up with some perfectly sound advice. Thankfully, Jason is always good for that. He logged on to the internet to see if maybe I was in the wrong location and then delivers the unexpected news Uh, Alex, the race is on Sunday.

As simple as that. I had the date wrong. I figured I was already awake and ready to run so I decided to drive out to Kensington like in the old days when I was training. I hadn't run 3 miles in about 3 months. Not even sure how long it's been but way before physical therapy, way before the tendonitis diagnosis. Part of the reason I wanted to run this race was to push myself a little bit further. I wanted to challenge myself and see if my hip could handle the slight increase in mileage. And so I drove out to Kensington and pulled off the 3 miles and felt a little bit better.

Conclusion: Yes, I still woke up before 7am on Sunday to run the real race. Everyone was there that morning. I ran the 3 miles in 30:38. I was thrilled with that time. I was also incredibly pleased to run 6 miles in one weekend and not feel any pain, discomfort or soreness in my hip. Looks like I am well on the way to a successful recovery!

I love my personal trainer...

too bad I really don't have one! It's just that physical therapy makes me see what it would be like. I love being pushed and encouraged to work harder and bring my body to the level it should be operating at. If I were rich, I'd be going to physical therapy 5 days a week. Alas, at $10 a session (my insurance copay) and 2 sessions a week, I've been shelling out $80 in the last month. I simply cannot afford to keep this up. Yes, it breaks my heart it really does. I mean there are so many lazy sloths out there who never exercise that you'd think the ones who want to could get a better deal to stick with it. Just one more problem with this country.

Looks like I am inching closer to snagging a gym membership for $10 a month. Now THAT is something I can live with. In the meantime, I think I will take my PT to only one visit a week.

Last night's PT was brutal. I had a 540 appt time instead of the early morning 730 visits. What a difference. First of all, it's a lot easier to push out a 30 minute run when it's 50 degrees as opposed to 80. Blech. I could feel the heat literally reverberating around my face. 10 minutes after I finished, I'm sitting in the office's a/c waiting to be called back and I'm still sweating!

I completed the usual circuit of brutality. I must really be getting stronger because I'm not sore at all this morning. That's sort of a bummer but yet I want to be able to run tomorrow so maybe I'll beg for the more fatigue-inducing exercises next week.

Saturday looks like a most exquisite day for an 8am run!

Signed up for the race!!

I just paid $21 for my race entry fee. I'll be running this Saturday at 8am in a non-competitive 3-mile run sponsored by/for the Livonia Spree. The most I've been running is two miles at a time and I think the increase will be a healthy challenge. Plus, this race happens to be a qualifying event to get entered into the lottery for the Mackinaw Bridge Run over Labor Day weekend. I still am in the 'healing' stages of recovering from tendonitis. I have no inclination to burst out of the starting gate or break any records. Not at all. I'll be happy to finish in 40 minutes and just get in a run for the weekend. Cheers!

More booty busting PT

Today I finally found the time to get in a two mile run before PT. They have been encouraging me to do this. They say they really want to fatigue my muscles in these sessions, so getting the run out of the way helps. Of course, I brought my i-pod armband and headphones but forget my i-pod. DOH! Then it started rainy and was quite windy. Grrrr... Well, it was just more motivation to grind it out and find some satisfaction in my outing and determination.

• 10-minute warm up on elliptical
• hamstring and calf stretches
• 3 x 20 calf raises
• 3 x 12 (each leg) single-leg squats
• 3 x 12 squats with bar + 30lbs
• 3 x 8 walking lunges with 8lb dumbbells
• 3 x 12 double leg press at 100lbs
• 3 x 12 (each leg) single leg press at 65 lbs
• 2 x 20 (each leg) balancing board passing a medicine ball
• 3 x 15 kick back machine
• *NEW* leg press single leg on different machine for FIVE minutes straight

YOWEE ZOWEE!!!
I feel I am gradually getting stronger but it's a slow painful process. On a positive note, I think I'll get a gym membership soon for an affordable price. Awesome!!

Physical Therapy: Grinding the Buns

Back at boot camp early this morning. I continued the moves from last week plus some additional ones. The routine took well over an hour and looked like this:

• warm-up: stationary bike for 10 minutes
• heel raises on platform (3 x 20)
  
• *new* one-legged squats (each leg, 3 x 10)
• squats on smith machine with 30 lbs added to the bar (3 x 15)
• leg press machine, 100 lbs for two legs (3 x 12)
• leg press machine, 70 lbs for single legs (3 x 12) *hard as hell*
• kickbacks on weighted machine (each leg, 3 x 15)
• walking lunges with 8lb dumbbells (3 x 8)
• one leg balancing on wobbly board while passing a weight (2 x 20)

Intense! Grunting and panting like a water buffalo in quick sand. I think that even when I was running 7+ miles, that I never hurt like I did today. It's fascinating the science behind getting strong as opposed to developing endurance---well, not opposed to, but rather, as a complement to. The PT instructor I was with today told me about a woman who did 21 mile training runs and yet she could not balance on one leg for more than 30 seconds. Wow. Guess one can deduce why she ended up in PT herself.

Just more proof for why so many components of your body need to be functioning optimally so that you can achieve your strength, endurance and racing goals. Now I need to do some arm weights and ab work so that I don't look like a stick figure perched atop tree trunk legs!!

Stronger everyday

My physical therapy is really proving to work. I feel that my legs are becoming strong, toned, healthy. They are becoming the sturdy solid base that will be my foundation for a new running program. Last Friday before leaving for my cottage, I had a PT session that was more like boot camp. I was doing

• squats with weights on the bar,
  
• walking lunges holding barbells,
  
• leg presses with both legs and single legs, and
  
• balancing moves on a wobbly board.
  

It was grueling, intense. I was sweating like a bull dog and, of course, I loved it.

I didn't get a chance to run while at my cottage but Jason and I did go on a 20 mile bike ride, which was fairly easy actually.

After work Wednesday was the prime opportunity for a detox run. I set up the ipod and ran for 22 minutes. It was still about 75 degrees at 7:00 and it was exhausting but I forced myself to push on through 6 songs. After that I did plenty of stretching and then my circuit of stretches/exercises for my at-home days of PT.

Today I feel refreshed. I am pumped for physical therapy Friday morning. It's a great way to start the weekend!

When everything clicks

Here I am back at the beginning of the line again. Those months of long runs are fresh in my mind but my body senses they were much longer ago. Was I a different person when I was running 25 miles a week? When 6 miles seemed effortless? I guess I can't pine for that person too much. After all, that was the runner who ran herself right into tendonitis. So, while the accomplishment of building up the miles was gratifying; it simply wasn't being done wisely. Now, I am starting over. I hope very much to run another half marathon. I have my sights set on The Detroit Free Press marathon in October. I do know it won't be real until I pay the money and sign up. That will seal my fate, so to speak.

Right now I just want to reacquaint myself with the joy of running. I don't want to feel tied to a training plan. I don't want to feel that my mile is slacking if it takes me 11 minutes. I just want to enjoy my body. I want to dwell in the harmony of my muscles and bones cooperating seamlessly, without pain. My tendonitis is on the mend. I am becoming stronger with my physical therapy. My heel lift provided the relief for my back once again.

All I ran yesterday was 15 minutes but it was wonderful. The sun was shining and pushing me on. The road was smooth beneath my shoes. My playlist was revamped. It was a glorious 15 minutes.

Prayin' that my feet don't fail me now.

I attempted to go for a run on Saturday and within the first 20 steps, I could tell that my back would not cooperate.
UGH!!
How severely frustrating.
I know the pain well. It's the same pain that I used to get before I realized one leg was millimeters longer than the other. A doctor at U of M's spine clinic fitted me with these $6 foam heel pads and ever since, I've been fine. I just need to get new ones every so often. I am prayin' that my back hurt because it was a sign my lift is worn out. Hopefully, a new lift will put me back on track. It's always something, isn't it?

So anyways, I'll continue doing what I have been doing. Plugging along. Readjusting my expectations. Healing myself. Figuring out new strategies. Taking it one day, one step, at a time.

Hubba hubba. Lovin' PT

Today I had my second session of PT. Basically, a physical therapist leads me through a routine of strengthening exercises. I like to think I am in pretty decent shape and I figured the exercises would just be pretty simple. I was wrong. Sure, anything is simple for 5 reps, but by the time you do 45, your muscles are shaking. Being the fitness freak that I am, I of course love it! Here's my routine of what I have done in the last two sessions.

Warm-up
---------
10-15 minutes on a stationary bike

Workout
--------
heel raises on bar 3 x 15
squats with 6lb medicine ball 3 x 20
leg press (both legs) 3 x 15
leg press (alternating single legs) 3 x 15
kickbacks with weights 3 x 15 (each leg)
leg abductor chair 3 x 15
leg adductor chair 3 x 15

Holy hurtin hammies!!! My calves were so raw after the first session and barely recovered for this one. My inner thighs were screamin like Halloween demons.

Ahhh, gotta love it :)