Physical Therapy Week 3

By | March 3, 2019

This was the first running week that felt normal-ish since injury. Baby steps forward.

Before I get to this week, I had a very pleasant surprise in my inbox Friday morning: I’ve been selected a Skirt Sports Ambassador! Did not see that coming at all as my social media activity is typically way too low for any ambassadorship.  But pleased to be part of a brand I’ve really come to love wearing in the last few months. My code if you don’t have your own to shop with: 47CarSSA

Skirt Sports Ambassador

[bctt tweet=”Joining the ranks of #SkirtAmbassador and other workout antics this week” username=”travellingcari”]

The most exciting thing on the running front this was that I wasn’t dreading runs. Not that I didn’t want to run the last couple of months-I did-but I was dreading the ankle/Achilles pain. For the first week since early December I have almost no pain at all. I have faced the reality that there isn’t going to be a long run in this training cycle, but NYC Half plan was always to have fun, so I’m not too stressed. I’m getting healthy for training.

One thing I’ve known but truly realized throughout the course of PT is how weak my core is. First step is this manageable 14 day plank challenge. One day, when I remember to pull it up at the gym.

The nuttiness of this week, which was somewhat behind Tuesday’s post is clothes volume. I swear they multiply. Last week I went three weeks without laundry, although that was aided by some laundry when down in Florida. This week I had to drop off the laundry with just one week. Hadn’t put away the three week load, and I only ran out of pajama bottoms. I look at my winter closet and probably a third to a half of my shirts are still turned the wrong way on the hanger, aka I haven’t worn them. I just don’t do solids much any more. I really, really need to purge. Poshmark here I come.

Other posts this week: yes, this was a blogging miracle week!

Linking up for the first time with #Riots and the new incarnation of the Weekly Wrap, the Weekly Run Down with Deborah and Kim.

  • Monday: my hip was sore from Sunday’s sneaky lunges. PT wasn’t surprised, but also worked in a couple hip flexor stretches to improve that. Gym was two miles on the LateralX, which felt strong and solid.
  • Tuesday: I was antsy to try the treadmill and see how the Achilles was responding to the activity that had irritated it the most. I started at 5.5 for the first mile, inched up to 5.6 for the next .75 and then closed out at 6.0. Could I have gone longer? Yes.  Smart to? Probably not. No pain. Followed up with the PT exercises.
  • Wednesday: PT. Mostly more of the same exercises. Sneaky lunges still irritate my hip flexor a little, and he added a weight to the single leg RDLs. Coordination is not my thing, and that was definitely a challenge.

sweatin’ to the oldies? No bad pop & country

  • Thursday: office run group was a schedule casualty, but I really wanted to build off Tuesday to see if I could continue to run without pain. Verdict? Yep. First .25 at 5.5, then .75 at 5.6, one mile at 5.7, .75 at 5.8 and then 6.0 to close out the final .25. It felt hard, but a good hard. Note to self: investigate sweat resistant nose pads for glasses.

matchy matchy! For once in my life

  • Friday: As I mentioned on twitter, I matched! This never happens, but I also really don’t care. I rowed 2,500M (going for 5K, hip was irritated so I stopped) and one mile on the LateralX. This felt good. Followed this up with a limited slate of the PT exercises as I was sore and tired.

Snowy Saturday

  • Saturday: I really wanted an outdoor long run. Alas, this was my morning view. We’ve had more snow in two days of March than all winter. What happens when you want to run outside but are forced inside? A no good, very bad, can’t focus for two seconds half hour on the treadmill. I ran some, I changed speeds, I walked some. Nope. Audiobook? Nope. Podcast? Nope. I bailed at 2.5 miles and went to the elliptical where I could watch an SVU episode on my tablet. Once lost in that, I was good for three miles. So really good workout overall even if my head wasn’t in a treadmill run. I followed this up with the full slate of PT exercises with the exception of the clamshells and side steps as I didn’t have my band with me.
  • Sunday: ouchie! Not from the run/elliptical so much as from PT exercises. My poor hip. Plan was to run outside, now we’ll see and I’ll update this later if I get out. Hoping to at least get in a walk before Mother Nature’s overnight hissy fit. I got out for a run/walk. Really a walk with some bits of running when I got cold and wanted to move faster. Epsom salt bath and chilling on the  couch. PT tomorrow, but we have a snow day so I can come home and nap after.

Plan for the Week:

  • Monday: off, walk the Highline with Darlene
  • Tuesday: run
  • Wednesday: off, dinner with friends
  • Thursday: office run group
  • Friday: cross train
  • Saturday: off
  • Sunday: New Balance NYC Half Shakeout Run.

Race Calendar for 2019: finally starting to plug in some of this as my spring/summer calendar settles in. I am not going overboard like I did last June so probably won’t do Achilles.

  • NYC Half Marathon: March 17
  • NYRR Run to Breathe 4M: April 8
  • Italy Run 5M: June 2
  • Women’s Mini 10K: June 8
  • Front Runners’ LGBT Pride Run: June 29
  • TCS New York City Marathon Training Series 18M: September 15

#GoTheDist update:

It’s weird. I’m way less focused on steps especially as I’ve made sure to take some rest days in healing the Achilles, but I still end up stressing over steps. Luckily I just barely squeaked out a better month than February 2018.

  • 409,494 steps
  • 180.7 miles run/walked
  • 47.45 miles run

I am off pace, but as I mentioned I’m feeling healthier & stronger

 

19 thoughts on “Physical Therapy Week 3

  1. Kimberly Hatting

    Your Saturday adventure on the treadmill sounds ALOT mine (probably at about the same time). It was one of those “runs” where nothing felt in sync and I had to stop a couple of times (over the course of the two miles LOL) and give myself 15 seconds of “silence.” Hoping my treadmill runs will be tapering off soon….

    Reply
    1. cari Post author

      Yup! And I took solace in the fact that the guy two over from me who is one of those “I do half marathons on the treadmill” runners was also struggling. It was just one of those days
      I had no physical need for a walk break, but a psychological need to fiddle with buttons, apparently. Hope so for both of us

      Reply
  2. kookyrunner

    Congratulations on being selected as a Skirt Ambassador – so exciting!

    I also wanted an outdoor run on Saturday but I was stuck on the treadmill. It was definitely disappointing!

    Reply
    1. cari Post author

      Thank you!
      Mother Nature is mad at the northeast, clearly!

      Reply
  3. Wendy

    Congrats on the ambassadorship! I’m happy that all of my runs were outside this week. That won’t be the case coming up as the polar vortex is returning. Hopefully it will be for a quick blast and then that’s it!

    Reply
  4. Deborah Brooks

    I think we all have weeks where we dread the run. I am always happy that I did it afterwards though.. congrats on Skirt Sports i love their gear and was an ambassador for 4 years. Fantastic company. Thanks for joining us for the new weekly run down

    Reply
  5. Chocolaterunsjudy

    Welcome Skirt Sister! I see Darlene & I have corrupted you. 🙂

    Pain free is the most important thing of all. Thankfully not much snow actually made its way up here. Tonight’s not supposed to be too bad either.

    I have been purging away the last week or so (and yes, I can go without doing laundry a long time too). There are quite a few bags sitting in the garage to donate. Not to mention cat litter, cat treats, cat toys . . . I also know that after this there will have to be yet another round. I’m actually getting rid of a lot of things I like, but it’s also getting easier to see what I actually have!

    Reply
    1. cari Post author

      We had a complete and total snow fail, which luckily meant Darlene and I could meander along the water and talk Skirt. I think I said it to her on text, but yes — well and truly corrupted. I think it was official when I chose to run my recent Half in one (Lotta Breeze, Capri)
      Making it easier to see what you have is a great way to put it — also for me in a clothes situation, means clothes are less tightly packed and therefore less wrinkled

      Reply
      1. Chocolaterunsjudy

        They had at first said we’d get 5-8″, then downgraded it to 1-3, yeah, we got the 5″. But it was light & fluffy snow again and Mr. Judy was home to snow blow it — I just shoveled in the backyard.

        Reply
  6. Coco

    Congrats on Skirt Sports! They are a great company with great ambassadors — including you now. 😉 So, good news on the treadmill run but not so good news on the hip? Maybe you need to lay off those sneaky lunges. I’m surprised how challenging it is to do RDLs with good form. I have to concentrate or my leg goes sideways! Fun to be meeting up with Darlene this week!

    Reply
    1. cari Post author

      Yes! RDLs took me a surprisingly long time to manage. Once one of the assistants gave me the tip of knowing I was doing it right if I felt it in my hamstring, I had a good gauge. My knee does wobble in the third set, but it’s getting better. I think the lunges are getting retired. They’re hurting the hip more than they’re helping the achilles
      Can’t wait — even if we just have dinner tomorrow as NYC schools just closed. Haven’t seen her since before the holidays and we always have fun when we catch up

      Reply
  7. therightfits

    So ready for spring! Way too much treadmill time this winter…BUT at least it’s still running.

    Congrats on Skirt Sports, sounds like a perfect match!

    Reply
  8. Renée

    congratulations on your ambassadorship! I used to wear running skirts quite some years ago but cannot find any here that I actually like. Shipping to NL is just too expensive (and not all companies do it).

    I cannot do treadmill runs at all. Really. If I HAVE to do a run in crap weather I will just trudge through. Or not go hahaha!

    every time I read your blog I think “I really must make an appt with the PT for my recovery plan”. Maybe I’ll *actually* do that this week 🙂

    Reply
  9. Zenaida Arroyo

    Congrats on your ambassadorship!

    I am jealous of everyone running the NYC half this month.

    I am also ready for warmer weather.

    Reply
  10. runswithpugs

    Healthier and stronger is the name of the game! You’re doing great!

    Congratulations on your Skirt Sports Ambassadorship! That’s awesome!

    You have some awesome races coming up! I’m so jealous of the NYC Half! I want to run that so badly.

    Reply
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