February's news

Here we are at the end of February. Apologies for the lack of blog lately. Had a minor mishap with my laptop. It broke. I was so disappointed in it. I've had it for ages. Literally. About 8 years. I was sure it would get me to the end of my dietetics course. But no. It left me up a certain creak with no paddle, right at the start of my last placement. Still, I have a new one now, and I've had it 2 days, and it's not broken yet.

My last blog said I could run 8.5 miles, and I'm happy to say I can now run 15. The Manchester Marathon is 8 weeks today, and I am sure now that I will be able to do it! Been running 4 times a week and gradually building up my long run, and keeping up with the stretches, and it all seems to be working out OK.

Really enjoying my running right now. Feel very lucky to be able to do it. Yesterday I wasn't sure whether to do my long run or not, as have been a bit under the weather lately. I convinced myself to go out for a short run to start with, and to see how it went. Once I was out there I knew I could do it, and the thought of running further than I have in nearly 4 months made me want to keep going, just to be able to say I did it! That, plus I knew Andrew was running 18 miles today, and I don't want him to catch me on the Nike Plus Leaderboard. Competition. It's healthy.  

It was a cold day, and had been snowing in the morning, but it came out bright and sunny sometimes, and there were loads of people out and about. It was so muddy! Loved it! Had to have two showers and a bath to get all the mud off my feet!

Two nice sunrises once I got back. My Mum and Dad had got home and got lunch ready (mmm - thanks!) and my new pair of trainers had arrived. This was a perhaps slightly unnecessary extravagance. I already have a perfectly good pair of trainers. but as I travel around so much right now, I get fed up of carting them about every weekend, so I got a new pair to leave at my parents. But hey, they were totally worth it!

Ok. I take it back I like this new computer. It's just taken me an actual 15 minutes to work out how to upload that picture. Blasted computer. Why's everything all different on it! 

Up!

Been a couple of weeks of ups and downs. Again. My record has broken. Blah blah blah. Blah blah.

I thought things were getting better, I could run 10km two days in a row with no bother. Well, I say that, it was painfully (literally) obvious that I haven't been training for ages. And people overtook me. People who were out for a leisurely stroll walking their dogs were practically lapping me. So I refer to my hip, not pride or anything, when I say there was no bother.

Then I had an epiphany. I started Zumba and Body Balance classes with my Mum. Body Balance is like yoga. It stretched all the bits I had been trying to with my physio exercises, but better and deeper, and to be honest, it kind of hurt, but a good hurt. The next morning I woke up and did my physio exercises, and normally where I could feel the pull in my hip, there was nothing. It was as if the injury had completely gone! Should have tried this months ago, and saved all this time and money!

A few days later I went for a run at my new weekday home (Mel's house :-) ) in Halifax. In hindsight (that old friend) it wasn't a great idea to go running up and down steep streets in the ice. But at the time it seemed the right thing to do. I knew after a few minutes I could feel something, but decided it would probably go away (hindsight....again....). By the time I got back it was quite sore, and the next day it was sore. I think probably because it was icy I was running slightly differently and was all tensed up, and because my problem is inside all the muscley bits, that probably didn't do it much good. I went back to yoga with my Mum though, certain that this would help. Too much enthusiasm though, may not be so great, as I think I then overstretched everything and woke up the next day even more sore.

Back to square one then. Hello square one. I feel we are getting to know each other. We're like BEST FRIENDS, we spend so much time together. I wonder if you like me, as much as I like you??

I spent the weekend feeling down again, and worried about it. Although, I got to go for two great walks with my Mum in the snow (my Dad did come for one, but he ran off - literally, now he's a runner).
  


But I was worried about it, and my Drs appointment to get my x-ray results was still almost 3 weeks away, and I didn't know what to do. Fortunately, even though I'm a grown up (by quite some margin), my Mum can still rescue me in a crisis, and recommended that I email the surgery to ask if they could let me know the results before then. Sure enough, first thing Monday morning they called me back, with the all clear! Woo hoo, hurrah, woop woop!!!!!!!!!

So that set my mind at rest, and in the next few days, it all settled back down. Tuesday I ran 4 miles, Friday 8 miles and Sunday 8.5 miles. Sunday I was in London running with Andrew (although he ran twice as far, not that it's a competition, or anything, not really), it was sunny and really quite warm, and I saw a flower. Winter has been quite dark at times this year, but maybe spring is on it's way! 

I think this symbolizes a new beginning. I'm holding out that the frost doesn't come back and and ruin it all. When something happens to you, even something small and not serious at all, it just shows how delicate our bodies are, like flowers! We must take care of them!

On that note, Dry January is almost finished, and it seems like a small cocktail may soon be in order. 

The Super-Parents

For Christmas, my Dad asked for running clothes, as he had decided to give running a go. As he had been good during the year, Santa agreed to the request. 

Suitably attired, and looking very professional, my Dad set off doing some runs around the local area, building up to 5 km of running and some walking. 

This morning, we went out for our first run together! Age 65, my Dad ran 5 km, none stop (his longest run in 50 years), on a hilly course......in 33 minutes! He's a natural! Look out for him (near the front) at a race near you. For his birthday (in 2 weeks), I am going to enter him in a race, although he doesn't know that, till he reads this. 

Unimpressed by all this showing off, my Mum went for an 8 mile walk, and came back less than 2 hours later, having also decided to do some running. 

They are machines, the pair of them. 

But in a good way, of course. I am very proud of them! 

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year to you all!

Long break from running....but, just in time for a bright and shiny new year, things are looking up!

5 weeks of complete rest from running = longest ever! During that time, I forced myself to swim and gym it, and walk around a lot, and do the stretches.

Christmas holidays to Scotland and stayed in a log cabin in Avimore for a couple of days. Andrew went for a 7 mile run around Loch Morelich, and I went along, and tried running/ walking a shorter route, to test if anything had changed since a few weeks ago. The last few days had been quite mild and most of the snow on the ground had melted, and there had been lots of rain, so there was lots of flooding on the ground. Distracted by the beautiful scenery I hopped over a big puddle. High in the air, I remembered I wasn't supposed to do things like that - I've read that to test a stress fracture, then you should do the 'hop test' by hopping on the stressed leg, and then waiting for pain. Unless you suspect a stress fracture in the hip, in which case you should never do this, as it might make it worse. Oh. Anyhow, nothing happened and I didn't feel anything, and I finished off the run/walk combo with no probs. 

A few days later I tried a run with Andrew and his brother, doing 5km in Inverness, and it felt OK. 

A few more days later back in London I went for part of Andrew's run along the canal and did 5 miles with no problems, and a few days later, today, I did the same and it was OK again. Although I got overtaken a lot, which is annoying. But then I was so excited or my leg to be feeling OK that I didn't care.

Having x-ray on Monday, as I saw the nurse at my doctor's surgery who thought it was also a good idea to get it checked out, although she thought it was unlikely to be a stress fracture, as if it did happen when I fell then it wouldn't be a stress fracture but an actual fracture, which would be causing a lot more trouble than I'm having. And she thought it was more likely to be ligaments or muscular. So that was quite reassuring. And now it seems to be getting a bit better. But still want to check it out. Although, earliest Doctor's appointment I can get is 26th Jan, so there will be some time before I know for sure!

To end, it's resolution time:

Broken :-(

Well after more than two weeks of total rest, lots of stretching and icing, I laced up my trainers and skipped out the door, surely that will have sorted it!

Nope.

Still the same old problem.

Been back to physio. She thinks that it might be a stress fracture, so need to get referral from GP to get a scan to find out, or rule it out (what I'm hoping for, obv).... soooo ....rather than being at the end of the road of this, it seems that I'm still at the start! Gutted doesn't even come close.

Naturally having being told this, I immediately fired up Google and became an expert on stress fractures within minutes. I don't even know for sure that I have one, but now I know all about them, and I have confirmed that even if I don't have one, I am definitely at a high risk, as http://health.ucsd.edu/ says "runners, women and people with a low BMI are at highest risk of stress factors".Tick, tick, tick. So, there's another thing to add to the list of things that I might need to worry about.

A hip is a bad place to have one. Continuing to run on it is bad and can make it into a proper fracture. So just as well I haven't run anymore marathons since then, or any long weekend runs. Oh, apart from that other marathon I did last month where I fell over again (but at least on the other side), and then those two weekends when I ran 30 miles each time along Hadrian's Wall. Oooooh. Ooops. Not ideal that.

On the plus side, it's December I suppose....and I am uncomfortably remembering back over who knows how many Decembers, when I have cursed (loudly) of having to run in this weather, this cold, this dark. Oh! To be running outside even in this storm, in fact, especially in this storm, I LOVE storms - I would give anything! 

But I can't because it would be stupid, and I am many useless things, but I won't be that. My physio said it's OK to cycle, because I've been doing that without any pain, and to try swimming, which should be OK too. So, there you go. Maybe I could even be a triathlete by the end of this.

Also spent a lot of the last couple of days working on the orthopedic ward, which seems like some kind of a premonition.

But basically, I currently feel like this: 

Frozen peas, dreams and philosophy

No running at all since my last blog...

Exactly 2 weeks today!

I know, that lots of people think that I go on about running a lot, and really who cares, it's not that big a deal? There are loads of other things to be doing. And they are right! Of course there are. But I did some quick calculations, which once having realised the answer I wished I hadn't thought about it, at all - but anyway, I worked out that running has been a part of my life for 19 years (HOW OLD AM I?!?! yikes), and so when it's not a part of my life, it just feels WRONG!

I've had a few sports massages now, have sat for many evenings with frozen peas strapped to the bad hip, spent lots of boring time stretching (although this got a lot better once I realised I could do it at the same time as brushing my teeth - love a good multi-task), took anti-inflammatories for a few days, and bought a foam roller, which I used a few times, but I've gone off it because it's too painful, so if anyone wants one, there is one going free here.

All for some bruised ligaments and/or psoas muscle.

At the last beating up session from the physio, she said that it all felt a lot looser, which I think is a compliment, and tomorrow I'm allowed to try a short run to test it out! Feeling nervous! At all other times apart from running time, I don't feel anything wrong with it at all, so no idea if it's any better or not. Have had two dreams the last two nights that I have been for runs and everything was fine, so I'm hoping I've become psychic, and not just hopeful.  

Well, if there's one thing I've learnt from this it is to stop taking things for granted. I never think twice about being able to do something I love pretty much whenever I want to do it, but actually when you stop and think about that, that's a pretty lucky thing to be able to say. But I'd never really thought about it before. And the next time that I do lace up my trainers and hit the trail, I'll remember that I'm lucky to have a body that lets me do this, and to live somewhere that I can go out and do what I want, and have the time to do it, and friends and family to share it with.

 xxx

Coast to Coast along the Wall of Hadrian: Weekend #2

A picture says a thousand words. I will convey this weekend through the medium of contemporary art.

That's enough. Let's use photos.

House for the weekend: The Secret Garden

Fuelled up on Friday night with lovely homemade lasagne made by my Mum, which she found time to do even though has been away all week looking after my Granny and Great Aunty. Quite amazing.

Saturday: from Harlow Hill to Housesteads Roman Fort, 21.3 miles
The weather was misty, so nothing to report until we found a tea room. It's the last weekend that it's open before winter, and if that's not a sign that you should stop and partake in some light refreshment, then I don't know what is.

During the tea break the mist cleared and we soon saw the first part of the proper Roman Wall, hurrah! 

Saw a lot of cows and sheep. Some of them quite confrontational. Also saw my parents after about 14 miles, who were not confrontational, but who were walking in the opposite direction (this is planned, they're not lost).

Hip is sore on and off. But lots of scenery to distract.

Getting quite hilly towards the end of the day. Happy to (finally) see Housteads Fort come into view

Although if think about the hills in the background we will have to do tomorrow, my face feels like this

No matter. Back to the house for beef goulash al la Mum, apple crumble, vino tinto and a tense game of cards. 

My Dad has fallen down a stile and now has his finger in a splint. Exercise seems to be dangerous.

Sunday: Housesteads Roman Fort to Roman Army Museum at Greenhead, 9.4 miles
Hip hurts and I have a hole in my shoe

But going to do it. Start

So so beautiful up on the wall! Worth sacrificing Sunday morning lie in, for sure.

 

 

 

Nice and hilly all the way. Proud moment of the day - some American tourists called us brave for running! Fed up of hip pain. Stupid hip. Looking like will have to replan next part and take an extra weekend to get to the end of the wall. Going to get there though! Oh well, suppose it just means an extra weekend away. Not such a bad thing then.

Thanks to all for fab weekend :-)