I thought before I update you on my weekend I’d take a look back at a post I wrote a couple of months ago about the what if’s that come with injury. I thought it would be interesting to show how some of those played out:

what if update

“What if the MRI doesn’t reveal anything” Well it sort of didn’t. Only showed a neuroma which isn’t where my pain is and edema (swelling).

“What if I don’t get answers” Well i didn’t really. I still don’t know what happened although I’ve recently begun physical therapy and they feel pretty strongly that my pain is from bone and not ligament/tendon.

“What if the MRI reveals that something is in need of repair surgically.” Luckily it didn’t

“What if I have to wear a boot” I didn’t but wondering if maybe I should have. It boggles my mind how long this pain has lasted. It’s like walking on a black and blue for 4 months.

“What if I need crutches” I didn’t but wondering if maybe I should have.

“What if I gain too much weight from being less active” well I’ve managed to keep my weight stable. It did go up a few pounds but came back down recently. I’m about 142-144 pounds which is my “normal” range.

“What if I can’t run again” well I healed enough to run for a couple of weeks before the setback so I’m confident that I’ll be able to run again. Just gonna have to take it even slower to return to it this time around. I keep setting a new date to strive for but really it doesn’t matter what I want. It’s what my body tells me. And at this point I doubt I’ll be running for the remainder of the summer.

“What if I can’t run the New Jersey Half” I couldn’t. I cried. I survived.

“What if I can’t wear heels to Barbara’s wedding”. Luckily I was able to wear heals and made it through most of the night.

“What if I can’t run the Brooklyn Half” I couldn’t. I cried. I survived. I had a donut.

 

weekend update

Friday, one of my clients let me know how appreciative he was of my hard work keeping up with his assignment turnover. It left me smiling and going into the weekend with a smile.work-week

I went to yoga on Saturday morning. strength-within-yogaI’m finally able to do Wheel pose but my crow seems to have stagnated. Hrumph! But I’m determined to keep at it. We joked in class yesterday about how we’re all going to be able to go into a head stand from crow soon and I said….yeah #2018goals ! But just like olympians I guess practicing for years to get to a goal isn’t such a bad thing 🙂

I took my bike to Mr. SOTSS’ this weekend so I could go for a ride while he did his long run.bike-10-miles It’s been nice to not clock a time or distance to my workouts these days. I ended up curious when I got home so I mapped out my course online and saw I had biked about 10 miles.

We hit up the movie theater Saturday night to see The Big Sick. It was a really great movie. I laughed a ton and forgot how funny Ray Romano is.movie

Sunday was such a beautiful day that we drove to the beach and just walked along the boardwalk, stopping for a bit to sit on a bench and just take in the views of colorful beach umbrellas and the ocean. jersey-shoreSome of my favorite times with Mr. SOTSS are those unplanned, easy and quiet days. We continued the theme with some backyard chillaxing. He strummed his guitar and we sipped some frozen daqueris.

I love how Chester is waiting for one of us to toss his football

I love how Chester is waiting for one of us to toss his football

IMG_1594Life can be so hectic and #AdultingCanBeSoHard that just taking those few easy hours felt like a week’s vacation!

When you get jealous that your boyfriend is cudding his dog and you ask for the same treatment....you get it!

When you get jealous that your boyfriend is cudding his dog and you ask for the same treatment….you get it!

Chillaxin

Chillaxin

PT

I just got back from my 4th physical therapy appointment. In addition to the e-stim and ultrasound I got my first scraping treatment. We also worked on stretching my calves which have been tight from all the limping. Scraping sounds so scary right?

How was your weekend?

What is your favorite kind of weekend? Busy with lots of activities or relaxing and low key?

A little of this and a little of that

Hi there.

Happy Friday!

This photo popped up on my Facebook memories page. Baby Duncan! 8 years ago. He was only about 7 months old.baby-duncan

I’ve been home from Block Island now for over a week and trying to stay active without running as the toe slowly heals. I’ve been doing a little of this and a little of that. I made it to yoga 3 times in the last week and am loving it still. I’m working hard to hold that crow for a full 3 breaths. And I really think we all need to spend a few minutes every day inverted. (no pictures 🙁 I tend to shut my phone before I enter the studio.)

I live in a development with a community pool that I hardly ever use. I bought my home 17 years ago this month (I really can’t believe it’s been that long) and for the first 14 years I think I literally went once and only dipped my feet in. Then, in 2014 when my friend Jane talked me into doing that triathalon, I went twice to see if I could swim.

swim skirts are the bomb.

swim skirts are the bomb.

Well, this past week I have already gone twice and am discovering that it doesn’t matter that I’m not really a swimmer, I can stay afloat doing a doggie paddle/breast stroke hybrid and got 10 laps covered my first swim and 16 laps covered yesterday.

I have a silly shorts tan :)

I have a silly shorts tan 🙂

I definitely love to set goals and while I don’t love being out of my comfort zone, it feels great to get my heart rate up. If only the pool were deeper I’d try pool running. But it’s only 4ft 3in deep.

Dear toe: take your time healing. It's ok.

Dear toe: take your time healing. It’s ok.

I’m now 3 sessions into physical therapy and optimistic that this will help me heal faster.physical-therapy

I took my bike out once this week and it wasn’t until 10 minutes in that I realized I never reconnected the front brake after coming back from Block Island (the way the bike went into the bike rack meant removal of front wheel and that required the disconnection of the brake). OOpsie! Good thing I really use the back brake more than the front.biking-brake

I also managed one “power walk” this week. My toe felt really good on Sunday so I walked briskly for 3 miles.

Rocking the "shorts creep"

Rocking the “shorts creep”

And I went on a hike with my hiking group this past Wednesday.

we heard lots of frogs in this bog

we heard lots of frogs in this bog

IMG_1463

Getting ready to hike

Getting ready to hike

I keep fantasizing kayaking. I miss it. I wish I lived on a lake.

So a little yoga, a little swimming, a little walking, a little biking and a little hiking have helped me to Sweat Out the Small Stuff through the week.

Oh and I drove out to Pennsylvania to visit my dear friend Stef. We’ve known each other for 30+ years now! She has a labradoodle too—Bella. It was a great day of catching up.IMG_1430

And Duncan got a haircut!

I never grow weary of his before and after side-by-side photos

I never grow weary of his before and after side-by-side photos

I’m gearing to be back to running in the fall but for now I’ll keep doing a little of this and a little of that 🙂

How was your week?

How to Sweat Out the Small Stuff Block Island Style

I spent 5 days on Block Island. It small island off the coast of Rhode Island. And Mr. SOTSS’s daughter K-Corn (my nickname for her) drew it so accurately here. It kinda looks like a duck.block-island-chalk

We were there to celebrate Mr. SOTSS’s dad’s 70th birthday and the 4th of July.

J-Beans (my nickname for Mr. SOTSS' other daughter) wearing her patriotic blue cat ears.

J-Beans (my nickname for Mr. SOTSS’ other daughter) wearing her patriotic blue cat ears.

The one thing I can say for certain is that there are no bad views anywhere.

adorable houses with flowers and picket fences

adorable houses with flowers and picket fences

There is only beauty out of each and every vista.

Heaven

Heaven

I would go for walks and take in the view only to turn around and see something even more beautiful.

I want to marry these flowers!

I want to marry these flowers!

So I figured since this blog is supposed to be about running and stress relief (and doing any exercise that makes you feel less stress really especially when unable to run) I would design this post to highlight that stuff. More »

I’m so sorry to have disappeared from blogging for the last 10 days. I was under the gun to get work done before going away on vacation and then was away with limited wifi for 5 days. If you ever want to see what I’m up to I’m ALWAYS posting on Instagram. For some reason that’s just the easiest social media channel for me. Pictures come easier than words for me. 🙂

I just got home from Block Island (an island off the coast of Rhode Island here on the East Coast) and have to unpack and dive back into some major work projects so this will just be a short post.

I took my bike on vacation and enjoyed cruisin' around the island with iced coffee in tow. Didn't keep track of mileage or speed. Just inhaled and exhaled :)

I took my bike on vacation and enjoyed cruisin’ around the island with iced coffee in tow. Didn’t keep track of mileage or speed. Just inhaled and exhaled 🙂

I haven’t even shared the news that I started physical therapy for my toe! After having the set back a month ago I kept thinking i’d bounce back quicker this time around but it became apparent that my body really needed a push. Due to insurance/referral/authorization stuff I’ve only had one appointment so far but hopefully I’ll start going twice a week starting next week. The PT said the pain is coming from my bone and not my ligament. He feels confident we can mitigate the pain and also work on exercises to get my balance back and my normal gait back so my compensation aches will go away. I trust him because he helped me with my ankle tendonitis twice!

Block Island was stunning! I was there 2 summers ago for Mr. SOTSS’ dad’s wedding and this time around was to celebrate his dad’s 70th birthday. Living in the Northeast I’m lucky to be able to spend time at so many beach towns but this island is special. It’s so beautiful. It didn’t hurt that the house we were staying in had access to this large pond and we were able to go kayaking right from the dock in the backyard. IMG_1169It also gave me the perfect vantage point for sunrise. IMG_1166And there were hydrangeas at every turn…IMG_1017

I’ll be back soon to tell you more about physical therapy and Block Island.

In the meantime can you fill me in on what’s been going on with you?

What’s your favorite flower?