Apologies for the delayed blog post but I returned late Monday night from Vegas and then it was hell day in the office yesterday as I attempted to play catch up!
So much to update you on that I'm not sure where to start...hmmm....so let's start with Vegas.
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| A hop across this crevice may not seem like much, until you looked down in it! |
What a fantastic trip! I had the opportunity to stay at both the Bellagio and the Vdara and from both rooms we had a fabulous view of the fountains. It really was a glorious time, that however, did not require me to wear my new bathing suit! Oh the sweet irony! I did have an opportunity to get my run on though in the Vdara fitness center. It was only about a 1.5 mile run but I really felt the need to run so I did. But the physical activity didn't stop there! On Saturday we traveled to the Hoover Dam AND the Grand Canyon...and it was jaw dropping. Absolutely stunning. At the different areas there was opportunity to get adventurous and climb atop some of the rock inclines. I normally would have NEVER attempted to climb...and as our small group of four walked by the first pile of rocks and ridges, I turned to the mister and said "I'd like to try to climb that." And I did...and much to my shock and awe...so did he, and then so did the other couple we were with. My original intention was to just climb the ridge and then climb back down...but instead it resulted in atleast an hour long ridge hike up and down and all along the Grand Canyon (far removed from the edge...I'm brave, not crazy! ha!). I KNEW that I wanted to do it, and then I KNEW I could. The courage it took to say it was honestly the hardest part. I knew that the courage and confidence came from my new found confidence from the healthy, active lifestyle i've been living since last summer. And I knew much of that confidence, the "i can do this" came from my running. Something that I'm realizing is really a part of who I am...which is WHY this next part of the blog post pains me...literally...
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| Me & the mister...was so great to climb with him by my side! |
Now, I'm not sure if the injured left knee is legitamite runner's knee OR if its something that happened as a result of my Jillian intense work out last Monday night. A week ago Saturday (this past Saturday) I ran a pretty darn good PR for the St Pat's 5K, the very next day I ran my 6+ mile long run which includes various steep and difficult inclines (aka monster hills). When I finished my 6+ mile run, I was NOT in any type of pain. At all. On Monday, I did my Jillian Michaels workout after work and when I went into a lunge pose, I felt a pain in my knee. Two days later, I ran my 3 miles and the knee hurt. So...after trying not to freak the hell out and read as much as possible on the internet and runner sites...the pain sounds like runner's knee. Ibuprofen, icing and elevation seem to help quite a bit...which is what runner's knee responds to. However, the pain didn't happen until I did the deep lunges in the video on Monday. It seems every time I do a Jillian workout...I injure myself. I do NOT blame that on Ms Michael's - I blame it on the fact that I prob have horrible form and instead of taking my time to complete each move, I force myself to go break neck speed to keep up with her. Ugh. So now, here I am with a knee that I can not, should not and will not run on. Each day is filled with ibuprofen and ice. Workouts for the week are all core and upper body. I am trying HARD to not freak out and my mood is clearly impacted when I can not run. That said, I'm determined to learn how to live through this bump in my runner road. And the truth is, from everything I've read, its rare NOT to have a bump. So if this running love that I have is going to last me a lifetime I will have to put on the "big girl runner panties" and deal with this sometimes sucky reality. The hope is that by the weekend I can test out the knee with a 1 mile run around the block. Am I going to lose progress (mileage/pace) - probably. Am I going to freak out about it? Going to try not to. I AM A RUNNER. Booboo knee and all - I will find a way to get through this. And, as for the Jillian workouts? I'm going to continue with her core/ab exercises that do NOT require intense moves that might have flared this problem up. My gut tells me it was poor form and intensity compounded with incline runs that did this. I WILL recover...but I will make sure I pace myself. Healthy living is my lifestyle, so reality forces these moments and that's ok!
Lastly, it looks like as soon as the tax return arrives, I'm OFFICIALLY going for my Personal Trainer certification!There are so many wonderful things in the works and the fear of success (yes success, not failure) has always held me back. Not now though. Not ever. Time to put myself out there in the world and follow the path I know that is calling out for me. And it feels wonderful!
So, that was a big huge post...but I told ya I had to catch up!
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| Me atop the Grand Canyon after a brave little climb (and after a little gift shop shopping...LOL!) |
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