Let's Get Weird

I don’t have a ton to report on the running front, aside from the fact that my PT worked on my tight left calf on Monday night and left it feeling like there’s a baseball it. Can’t wait to limp back there tomorrow and see what he has in store.

Let’s get weird really quick, I have a few things in mind.

I watched Pitch Perfect twice this past weekend. Is that sad? I’m not sure. What I am sure of is that it made me wish (again) that I could sing better. So for the past few nights I’ve been practicing in the shower; the acoustics are really quite beautiful in there.

We have this baby pool up on our deck and I don't know what to do with it. I originally got it back in June thinking it would be fun to fill with ice and put beer in it for a party… but that never happened. And now it’s just sitting there. Come October it will probably just go in the garbage, but if we have any suggestions for great uses before then please let me know.

This.

I hate to be a materialist B, but Under Armour makes some pretty awesome underwear.

Worth every one of my $12, I LOVE them.

This gem popped up on my phone on Tuesday morning after a crucial Starbucks stop:

 On Monday afternoon we had a water main break at work, and were told that the water wasn’t going to be drinkable for the day… AKA… no making coffee at the office. So I grabbed myself a blonde roast, and BOOM, two stars away. I don’t even know what Starbucks Gold Level means, but it sounds awesome. I will probably go around letting everyone know that I am a Gold Member.

Hi I'm Kait, I'm a Gold Member.

Hot yoga is on tap tonight, and then I’m going to try to knock out 15 miles tomorrow before Kar & Les get into town for the weekend. After that, it may be a few days until I get back on here. You know the deal.

The bottom line? We most likely will not meet again until my September my friends. Do you know what September means? The start of pumpkin everything. EVERYTHINGGGGGGGGGGGG.

I will leave you with this link: An awesome guide to pumpkin beer. There are so many brands out there – I already grabbed a 6 pack of Schlafly Pumpkin Ale this past week. Can’t wait to try it come Sunday.

Hope Labor Day Weekend treats you well – we have shenanigans planed in Baltimore, Ocean City, and Annapolis.  Always a good time when I’m with my wolves.

Cheers!

Lessons Learned

Typically I keep my posts fairly short. This one, not so much. There's my disclaimer.

I wrote this in my head on a run a couple weeks ago. I got home and jotted down everything that was bouncing around in my brain on the first thing I could find, and have been scheming the publication of it ever since.

i'm a dork.

Being the somewhat superstitious runner that I am, I told myself I wouldn't post this until I was able to run 10 miles again without any issues.

Today that happened, with the help of 4 slow warmup miles followed by a 6 mile race at a 6:53 pace. I don't feel like talking about the race though. I'd rather talk about my IT band.

I realize that injury is something that very often comes with the territory of being an athlete. I had my fair share of injuries throughout my volleyball career in college, yet my IT band/hamstring issues in my left leg was my first big challenge as a runner.

Iliotibial band injuries are super common for us crazy runner folk - almost too common. During my extensive time spent at with my awesome Physical Therapist, Sean, this was something we often talked about. He was seeing SEVERAL other runners struggling with the same issue, all desperately trying to get it under control before their next big race.

If I had one word to offer to any one currently fighting with their IT band, it would be Patience... something that certainly isn't my strong suit. But I think patience has made me a more intelligent runner, and taught me a A LOT about my body.

You see, Sean and I went through just about every option possible as to what was making my IT band freak out. I am extremely inflexible, I have a fractured L5 vertabrae, I have a job at which I spend long periods sitting.... I don't didn't lift very much at all.... AKA I had poor muscle strength, specifically GLUTE strength. I also had recently switched into a more 'natural' running shoe prior to getting injured.

my babies. aka my brooksconnects

I think transitioning from a collegiate volleyball player who lifted pretty hard 3-4 times per week to occasionally playing with 10 lb weights in the gym mirror affected me a lot. I also think having a crack through  my lower vertebrae played a part.

I don't think my shoes were the issue. I think switching into them too quickly was stupid. But I still run in two pairs of the BrookesPure line today, and I love them.

Bottom line, I had to go back to the basics. Lateral movement/exercise was something that hadn't been present in my workouts for a couple of years, and that combined with a whole lot of sitting on my @$$ presented me with some pretty pathetically weak glutes, and even a weak core.

indoor skating. loved this thing.

Those muscles essentially had to be 'reactivated'. So I started 'skating' at Physical Therapy. I jumped around like a buffoon, and I had a long talk with the weight rack before deciding that we had to be friends again.

Outside of my physical therapy, I had to find other options. P90x plyos are great although I hate them. I also began to lock myself in my gym's empty raquetball court to shuffle and dash around like a wild woman. I have to keep all of those butt/hip/glute muscles guessing in order to keep rebuilding them.

my own personal crossfit box.

I have to give Sean a lot of credit. I spent a lot of time in that Physical Therapy office being bossed around instructed by him, but he also spent a lot of time outside of my appointment times studying the videos of me running on the treadmill, breaking down my every movement and pronaton. I owe him big time, and am grateful to have been paired up with him.

I don't think there is a quick fix to taking care of an IT band injury. ART may help it, it helped me to a degree. And I know for a fact it helps others more quickly and effectively than it did for me. But from what I experience and learned and research, that's not the permanent fix.

Lift weights. I'm serious. I'm not saying you have to get a weight belt and throw around 30 lb dumbbells. But take the time, at least twice a week, to give those glutes, quads, calves etc. some love.

Mix things up. I LOVE running, and there were periods of time when running was my only workout. 6 days a week, between 40-50 miles. I'm not saying high mileage weeks are bad... but you've GOT to throw some curveballs at your body.

That's why right now, during a 'non-training' period I'm making it a PRIORITY to not only run several times a week, but to swim, spin, lift, do plyos, and even drag myself to yoga. Because to quote my ever-wise PT, "The healthiest, most balanced runners that I've seen maintain a combo of running, some kind of strength training, and yoga."

Sidenote - I would also now consider my foam roller to be my best friend. In the entire world.

Getting back to a 'pain-free' place wasn't easy. It wasn't quick. It most certainly didn't go as I had envisioned it. From October 1st, the day I got hurt it took me 3 months to be able to run 60 minutes again. Add three more weeks to that and I'm back up to 10 miles.

OK, wrapping up... 

Getting hurt sucked. But rebuilding myself has made me respect running SO MUCH more. I don't take it for granted anymore, instead I constantly remind myself how freaking blessed I am to wake up on any given day and fly down a beautiful running trail. Being injured brought a ton of tears but has also (slowly) helped to show me so much joy.

Cheers to running!

PT Graduation

My friends, I have some wonderful news.

I had a green tropical smoothie for lunch.

I officially graduated from Physical Therapy! (cue horns, confetti, high fives, etc.)

My initial reaction is to launch into a long sob story about overcoming obstacles and lessons learned, but let’s be honest here, that’s for another day. Why?

1.      Because I wouldn’t call myself 100% back to normal. My IT Band finally shut the freak up, but I continue to attempt to calm down my ever angry hamstring. Ya win some, ya lose some.

2.      Because I’m too excited about the impending holidays to write such a post.

In other news, 2012 New York Marathon runners (including myself) finally received emails today with notice as to what our options are regarding the race cancellation. Basically we can get a full refund come January, or we have the option run it in 2013, 2014 or 2015... but would have to pay the entry fee again.

Due to my poorness and hopes to run Chicago in the fall of 2013, I choose option #1. Boom.

Tomorrow is exciting for two separate but special reasons. Do you want to know them both? Ya I thought so.

#1. I go home tomorrow! (fingers crossed) My flight into Chicago is scheduled for 6 p.m., and I’m holding my breath that it’s late enough that my flight won’t be affected by the current atrocious weather in the midwest. 

Side note- I just checked in and snuck into the A boarding group somehow. THAT NEVER HAPPENS!
Southwest was just as excited as I am.

This event is particularly riveting because I get to MEET MY NEW DOG SISTER JANE for the first time, ever. Can’t. wait. 

she's excited too.

#2 reason why tomorrow is special. I will (hopefully) be running my furthest mileage to date post-injury. I am planning to run 60 minutes tomorrow morning before work. I’m super pumped.  More to come on that.

I think that’s all for today. If my flight is delayed tomorrow expect an explosive ranting post.

Cheers!

The Small Things

Have you guys picked up on the fact that when I get sad/frustrated/depressed I usually tend to get really quiet? Like no blog posts kind of quiet? Yeah…..

After having a full-on mental breakdown last night at PT, I realized two things:

1. I may need to try something else. Although PT is definitely getting me stronger, and ART seems to be ‘helping’.. I’m still not ‘fixed.’ It’s been a month, and I’m getting incredibly impatient. Some runners have suggested forms of acupuncture, which I’ve begun considering, expenses aside.

Any other suggestions are welcome, please!

2. My IT band is a tough, crazy bitch. Like super thick, and super strong. In efforts to console me last night, Sean told me that because it’s such a ‘thick band of tissue’ it essentially takes awhile to get it to cooperate again. So thick in fact, that when removed from a human body and tested on its strength it held over 1500 lbs without snapping. 

That’s both disgusting and intriguing in my book.

I’m ‘running’ an 8k this Sunday with Andrew and some coworkers. It is a ‘zoo zoom’ through the Baltimore Zoo and would will be a lot of fun if I wasn't injured. I suppose the responsible thing to do is take it slow and walk if and when I feel pain. I’ll try my best to do so… (sigh)

I’ve also been forcing yoga on myself although I hate it and want to punch someone it isn’t my favorite thing to do. I even committed to buying a $5 yoga mat to encourage more consistent attendance. Look at me go.

In the meantime, I’ve been focusing on the small things. Because as much as I have made it and perceived it to be, turns out that running isn’t life. (insert shocked face here) There are just too many other awesome parts for me to continue moping and being a Debbie Downer.

Awesome parts such as...

Doughnut batter pancakes with espresso frosting. Enough said.

Chocolate from Italy that my sweet sweet friends sent me. I may or may not have had it for dinner one night.

Forts. Yes. #winning

The Holidays! I honestly cannot say what a mood changer the upcoming holidays have been for me. Thanksgiving is definitely one of my all-time favorite holidays, and the fact that Christmas/Hanukkah (insert your holiday here) is just around the corner is super uplifting to me. Shout out to Starbucks for reminding me that ‘tis the season this morning.

Remember my last post when I shared my beautiful picture from violin camp? Well my creative coworker took the novelty of “improving upon it” and then proceeding to send it around the office. So, since it’s Friday and you probably need a laugh…. Here you have it:

mini gangster Kait

Cheers to a healthy weekend!

Facing the Facts

Once upon a time, about 10 years ago now to be precise, I fractured the L5 vertebrae in my back.

let's have an anatomy lesson, shall we?

 Does anyone else think that looks like an elephant?

That whole summer was full of a crap-ton of physical therapy, back braces and tears. It was me standing on the sidelines with my club volleyball team at the National Tournament down in Atlanta, half-cheering, half choked up. It was a hard summer.It also taught me a lot.

Also known as Spondylosis, a lower lumbar fracture such as mine doesn’t heal, ever. It’s always there. And so I was warned by my physical therapist at the time that my entire life would be a battle of keeping a strong enough core so that the fracture didn’t bother me. And I’m blessed to have made it through a collegiate volleyball career without it ever really becoming a problem.

Fast-forward 10 years, to about 2 weeks ago now. Day 1 of Physical Therapy with abusive Sean down in Baltimore, I was surprised when he randomly asked me ‘have you ever had any kind of lower back injury?’ 

Why yes, yes I have… and what does that have to do with my knee, and my IT band?

Funny how our bodies work, isn’t it? Actually, funny isn’t the world. Fascinating is more like it. And even in the midst of the lower back issues resurfacing early last week, I couldn’t help but be simultaneously fascinated along with frustrated. Sean called it, Day 1. It’s all connected. And as my weak hips/glutes (AKA ass muscles) slowly stopped working over the past 6 weeks, my IT band started overworking… eventually getting super angry, causing it to rub and cause that pain in my knee.

And my back? My back started trying to take over and help me where my hips and glutes no longer were. And today, as I sit here popping advil like it’s candy, icing my back and trying not to be bitter… I can officially say that I feel like I’m falling apart.

this came in the mail this week. perfect timing. i cried. 

So when I got home from my last ‘test’ three mile run last night, once again limping and in tears… I knew it would be nothing more than insane and irresponsible to try to run New York. And although the word insane has often been used on here to describe myself, and runners in general... well I’m just not that insane I guess. Because there’s too many other things I want to do than be injured for months on end.

who better to take advice from than Dumbledore.

Sidenote - whenever I'm sad, I often find myself turning to Pinterest for some encouragement...

You see, I have big plans. And at the age of 24, keeping the perspective that an IT band injury isn’t the end of my running career is what is helping me to keep my chin up. And after a long discussion with Sean this morning at PT, I know what it’s going to take to get where I want to be.  I 100% plan to run the Chicago Marathon next fall, and an abundance of halfs and even tris… possibly even a half ironman in summer/fall 2013.

Whaaaaaaat?? You don’t even know how to swim well Kait.

I know. But I can work on that.

I’m sad, but you guys already know that. And it helps me to do nothing but focus on forward progress at this point. I’ve been told coming back from an injury, if done the right way can be an extremely gratifying experience. That if I get strong where I need to get strong, and find some balance, that I can come back a stronger runner than I was say… this past September.

And I believe that, and will continue to tell myself that, even over these next couple weeks when running is completely out of the picture. (grimace)

So that’s the plan, there you have it. My evening will be full of putting together a ‘get strong’ workout plan for the time being, and getting creative with cross training options. That, and a whole lot of Taylor Swift's new album. Because let’s be honest, I’ll always be 14 at heart.

Would love some encouragement or any advice you guys. I’ll take anything I can get :)

Cheers to a chin-up type of week.

shut it.

Vent: I'm SO sick of people mouthing off on facebook. About politics, excessive bitching, passive aggressive comments that are both vague and annoying...

Stop it.

I wish there were a mute button for that kind of crap.

Moving on...

Because I know you desperately wanted another picture of my knee. Is it getting better? Sure is. Enough to run 26.2 miles in just over two weeks? That’s the million dollar question ladies and gents. A question that I don’t feel like addressing quite yet.

Let’s talk coffee. A beverage that I could barely stomach a year ago, that I am now extremely passionate about. I've heard arguments in both ways, but I strongly believe that the Dunkin Donuts pumpkin spice coffee that I tried for the first time yesterday is by the far the best that I’ve had yet. THE best.

I tried making my own this morning at work, with the tools that I had on hand:

Not the same, but still good. PS - that Ghiradelli chocolate is to die for. Definitely worth getting in a gang fight over.

Let’s talk about how I’ve been living out of my car. On how days like yesterday, when I wake up at 5:00 AM and go from the gym to work to PT and don’t get home until after 6 pm, how packing clothes/food for 12 hours is no small feat for a hungry sweaty girl like me. I realized that if any of my coworkers were to peak in my car windows and see my seats completely covered in bags, shoes, and dirty clothes, that they are likely to come to the conclusion that I’m homeless. Gotta do what you gotta do.

oh don't mind the half-wet swim suit sprawled out to dry.

Speaking of homeless, my attire to the health club last night was this:

Andrew and I had both had long days, and wanted to hit the hot tub for awhile. Since I already had my compression socks on post-physical therapy, I didn’t think twice about rolling over to the gym without changing. I got some pretty sweet stares.

Long hair, don’t care.

you love it.

I leave you with some motivation that I stole off of Nike’s facebook page. Because it’s Thursday, and Friday is just around the corner. Cheers!

On Fire

Did ya’ll hear? I have developed a southern accent.

Fall is on fire.

taken right outside my work

The fall colors are in full force out here on the East Coast and I gotta admit, the colors are rivaling the Rocky Mountain autumn that I went through last year. I think it’s too soon to declare an official winner yet.

In attempt to not get fired from my job from being out of office so much lately, I had to pull some strings for the scheduling of my physical therapy.

One of those strings entails me having a PT appointment on Monday mornings at 7:30 AM in B-more.

at least the sunrise was pretty...

I don’t think yesterday morning would have been so bad if Sean (my PT) hadn't made the executive decision to aggressively start preforming ART (active release technique) on my knee. I’ve mentioned ART in past posts… and when I had it done on my foot I really didn’t think much of it.

ART on my knee is a WHOLE different ball game. A whole new world of pain. I was literally sweating from trying not to scream/backhand Sean.

I figured you preferred pics of my bruised legs over my stupid faces. No? 

That being said, that kind of pain is good and necessary. It’s progress, so I’m all for it.

Bring on the Painnnnnn.

whether it's emotional or physical, this is too true.

Lately I've been sleeping in my cycling capris in order to get myself out the door for 6 AM spin class. So far so good; I’m actually started to enjoy the classes versus simply tolerating them.

And remember that pumpkin butter that I bought awhile back? I’m still putting it on just about anything, include my morning oatmeal. SO GOOD.

Let’s wrap this up with a closing thought: Tuesdays are the most worthless day of the week. By far. Does anyone else agree?

Cheers!

Kases & Races

 Where should I even start?

Let's start with something cool. The other day I got this in the mail:

A Kona Kase! The mindset behind the 'kase'  is that you pay $15 a month and then receive a different kase each month with an awesome variety of nutrition samples, of all different brands and flavors.

SO GOOD

I had the opportunity to hook up with Taylor over at Kona Kase who sent me a complimentary kase to try out. I LOVED it, especially because there were certain products in there that I have been wanting to try out for awhile, like that Picky Bar pictured above... which blew my mind.

All in all, I was really impressed with the variety and excited for the opportunity to try out new things. If you're interested in trying them out, here's their website:

http://www.konakase.com/

Switching gears...

Physical Therapy (PT) has been a real bitch. And when I say that, I mean it's been HARD, which is awesome because it means I'm working towards getting better. But it's still been a bitch. 

For one, my physical therapist (Sean) beats the crap out of me:

see those pretty bruises?

In seriousness, he does the Graston technique on me which supposedly is breaking up scar tissue and inflammation and helping me to heal more quickly. Which I'm all for. I've been through my fair share of physical therapy in the past when I fractured my L5 vertebrae and am well aware that this is going to take some sweat and probably even tears to get back to where I need to be. And I'm OK with that.

So in the meantime, I'm still doing a lot of spin class, pool running, weight lifting, all that jazz. All that jazz also includes taking pics of myself at the gym in my colorful outfits...

Making breakfast sushi at work...

Banana & PB rolled in rice krispies

Drinking my all-time favorite beer that has finally made its way out to MD...

Buying brightly colored sports bras to match my running shoes that are currently not being run in...

And finding fall around every corner.

I even ventured out to Baltimore this weekend to cheer on some of my coworkers who ran in the Baltimore Marathon Team Relay. I was a little sad because I was suppose to be running in it with them, but I decided to suck it up and force myself to learn how to be a fan as well as an athlete.

it was FREEZING

I didn't like it ... I may have even cried a little while I stood and watched the runners... but I'm still so glad I went and watched. Baltimore is a fun city, and the streets were electric with the thousands of runners and spectators.

Since I paid for the race and all of that, I still kept my race shirt/bag. My favorite goody from the bag was a SICK NASTY Under Armour sticker that I immediately stuck to my phone.

How was your weekend? What was the MOST fun thing you did?

Cheers to a great week!

Oh, and in case you didn't hear...

damn right.