Taking Care of Your Body

Jacki is a wealth of information and knowledge, but she's also inspiring. She isn't full of those cheesy quotes that, I'll admit, I like, but sometimes are annoying. She keeps it real. For example:  

"Please, friends, take your health seriously! Fix your diet! Exercise! You are NOT super human!"

I'd been boo-hooing to myself about my ankle and making all sorts of excuses to not workout. I mean, really, c'mon. I have the dang TV on. I even have it on the free OnDemand section, more often than not. I just need to scroll on over to the Exercise section and get moving. But NOOOoO! I want to run. I want foot to hit pavement and log miles. I like seeing the distance. I like the running endorphins. Who is this crazy person talking in my head? Oh, yeah, it's that tiny voice inside of me that was quivering with emotion because just 3 short years ago, I was in New York running a marathon!

I made a promise to myself that I would run, no matter the pain on Monday. Even if it was just a quarter mile, I just needed to get moving and get back on track. Luckily for me, I had some things going for me. Redbox sent me a code for a free movie. HOORAY! I weighed myself earlier and somehow managed to break the threshold that I haven't broken since 3 years ago!! REALLY! 3 years since I was last in this weight category!!! My little goal of 1lb per week is working! I wanted to keep it at, so a run would only help that.

And then it started sprinkling.

My head was pounding, dinner was ready when I got home, I needed to edit photos, visit mom, catch up with a friend, all of this nonsense that is my typical evening. My nephew was playing his final football game and I really wanted to be there, but with the girls schedule (or lack thereof, but I'm trying to get them on one), I wished him good luck and he understood. Even better when my sister told me that it may be cancelled because of lightning.

I snuggled Tesla-bug in our bed and she nursed for a bit. I was totally zapped and ready to nap, when I looked up. Don was dressed to go for a run. He had Mari ready and was preparing the stroller. So, I too got dressed. I threw on my shorts and my old marathon long sleeve tech shirt. It was humid. I thought, "Quick run, Bianca. You have to run fast to beat this rain. It's a short two miles!" I set the timer and off we went. And boy howdy did we take off! I logged that first mile in under 9 minutes! We had a short break at the stop light and at Redbox. (After all, they were the reason we were running to begin with.) It started sprinkling, but I didn't pay any attention. It felt GREAT! While we were waiting for the light to change, I did some squats and air squats with jumps. Mari had a wonderful kick out of it, commanding me to do more jumping. She's such a hardcore trainer, that one!

On the trip back, though, my lungs began to catch fire again. My throat was feeling it, but I pressed on. As we trekked across the concrete, though, I slipped a bit. My ankles were fine, but I swore I had mis-stepped. No worries, my initial body check still felt normal. I kept running, even though my pace had slowed dramatically. That was until we ran past crazy homeless man who was shouting Jet's "Cold Heart B!tch" song. Um, no thank you crazy dude. Keep those lyrics to yourself and out of earshot of my 3 year old who wants to repeat everything. I sensed Don speed up and his uneasiness. I kicked it in gear and my fight or flight response really kicked in. I don't know, but when I passed him, I got the super-duper willies! Yikes! Then, I really kicked up the run, and was running alongside Don. I was steady at an 8:30 mile pace uphill in the wet grass (the sidewalk wasn't wide enough) to get away from him. And then my imagination took me to The Walking Dead and all I could think was us desperately fleeing hungry zombies. What a horrific thought! But it got me going!

An hour after the run, my ankle started to swell, but it wasn't in dramatic pain. However, my back....ugh! My poor, poor back. I wanted to say I was suffering sympathy pains for my mother, but no, this was my doing. I somehow tweaked it and it became painful to sit, stand, or walk. Don ran off to the store to buy a new heating pad (mine finally bit the dust after, oh, 15 years). While he was gone, I took a hot bath with a Calavera Lush bath bomb and Anthony Bourdain's Kitchen Confidential. Yeah, I know, I've been reading that book for over a year now. Whatever. It takes that long when you only read two paragraphs every other week! I think I only have 3 chapters before I'm done, though! yaay!

At work, my back was still screaming, despite taking an Advil. I scurried down to the little bodega on the first floor with hopes they would have a Thermacare heating pad. WHAT LUCK! Of course they did! They have everything in there, including Silver Oak wine, cigars, pregnancy tests, ice cream bars, lottery tickets, Hallmark cards, and well, any thing else you may need. I tore open the package and put it on. Within half an hour, I had some much needed relief! I made it through the rest of the day, but I will definitely be icing it before my next run and scheduling an appointment with my chiropractor to get adjusted!

All that to say, take care of your body. Listen to what it says! Maybe mine is telling me to give the running a rest and get back into yoga with intermittent runs.