Physical Therapy update

So, I finally had my first physical therapy appointment to address the diastasis recti or abdominal separation that I learned of back in December. Yes, it took this long to get an appointment.

I was skeptical of how much they'd actually help or know what to do... but man, I left feeling so impressed and excited to actually have some good, solid guidance on what I can do to help fix things! The therapist listened and asked lots of questions, and did several tests for specific strengths or weaknesses throughout the core muscles. She also carefully assessed my exercise routine (she even looked at my weight lifting log), and gave me pointers on things to avoid, things to modify, and things to do instead.

No-nos for now (😭):

• deadlifts
• squats > 50lbs
• twists
• crunches of any kind

Back on the "ok" list:

• pull-ups (whee!)
• planks (yesss)

Additional exercises:

• transverse abdominis activation
• single leg lifts
• clamshells with resistance band

The best part: she told me she could tell I would "do my homework" and didn't need to see me 2x/wk for 8 weeks. I get to go just once every other week! Hooray, being a dependable and accountable athlete has its benefits for sure.

She did say that the condition may never fully resolve itself, but at least in 8 weeks we can tell what kind of "recovery" I can expect, and now I'm equipped to continue to make improvements and strengthen my core for good!

Building consistency

Monday
Did: strength
This was a gooooood session. I decided to heck with taking it easy, I'll make changes and take instruction when I get it. The only thing I'm not doing right now is twists and pull-ups because I feel like those place extra strain on my abs. Otherwise, I'm just doing what I need to do.

I know this one was a good one because I had the jello arms & legs afterwards. Such a good feeling!

Workin' on that spring gun show. 

Tuesday
Did: 6.2 mi @ 8:06/mi avg, 4 x 1mi repeats
Treadmill today because of threat of rain (but it didn't actually rain, blerg). Turned #10kTuesday into some speedwork with 4x mile repeats at 7:30/mi on the treadmill. Did a 400 rest in between each repeat. I was tired after two, but pushed through and felt great, even kicked up the speed during the last 800 on the final repeat. Whew!

Wednesday
Did: 11.0 mi stationary bike @ 14.6 mph
With the prediction of rain, I resigned myself to the stationary bike at the gym. Turns out it would have been a gorgeous day to ride, just like every other day this week. ARGH. But got to listen to some tunes and sweat it out, so it's not all bad.

/mood

Thursday
Did: 4.06 mi @ 8:14/mi
Did intend for this to be so fast, but eh, what ya gonna do?? Also, why is it HOT in February?! Ran out towards USC Upstate so got in a few hills and a good bit of unshaded direct sunlight. Whew. Good run though.

Friday
Did: 2.5 mi treadmill desk walking
Opted for walking instead of yoga at lunch today. Walked 2.5 miles in an hour, which is faster than I usually go on the treadmill desk. Was good to get that walk in, and then later went outside for a brief walk around campus in the sunshine. What ridiculous February weather!

Saturday
Did: 18.3 mi ride w/ Megan + 2.65 mi group run
Did a hilly road ride with Megan this morning, and it was a beautiful day for a ride. Mostly overcast, but warm enough to wear just a short-sleeved jersey and shorts. So nice! Felt good on the hills, encountered lots of dogs (eek) but they were all nice... just very interested in bicycles. Great ride @ 12.7 mph avg.

In the afternoon, there was an event downtown for folks participating in the Ville-to-Ville Relay this coming April. It was supposed to be a 3-mile group run followed by "taps & tapas" and raffle drawings. The run was shorter than planned, and I was wayyy out in front of the pack of about 2 dozen runners. Ended up at an average 8:43/mi and it felt SO easy, even with the heat (almost 80F) this afternoon. The event was fun, though, and we won a free night stay at the Aloft hotel downtown! Woohoo, staycation!

Sunday
Did: 10.03 mi @ 10:50/mi avg
Met up with Robin, Dale, Megan, and Aubrey at Furman this morning in hopes of getting in some miles before the rain moved in. We were lucky and did just that! Only got a little sprinkle which was no big deal. Went south on the SRT and turned around at Blue Ridge Drive. Got back and said bye to the crew, then did another 2.5 miles around Furman before heading home.

Loving the rain cover on the Bob stroller!

Week ending thoughts:
Almost 23 miles running for the week, 2x biking, 1x strength... feeling really good and strong.

I also finally got a call that a spot for PT opened up, so I'm going in on Tuesday for my first appointment to address my abdominal separation. They said they typically schedule out 2x per week for 6-8 weeks... and I honestly cannot think of what they will have me do in the office 2x per week that they couldn't tell me to do otherwise and then just check it in a couple of months. I realize that's not how they make money, but ain't nobody got time for 2x/wk for 6-8 weeks. I'll do my own homework, thanks, I just need some direction.

AWESOME Week.

Monday
Did: strength
FINALLY got back into the gym and did an actual strength session, though I took it easy because whatever I did to my back is still hurting. It really feels like I just slept on it weird but I can't really predict/figure out which movements make it hurt. Anyway, it was still a good session and felt good to get back in. My back actually feels a little better after I stretched it some.

Tuesday
Did: 6.21 mi @ 8:22/mi avg #10kTuesday 
Actually had to do a lunch run at work today - been ages since I've done that. Kind of nice though, and the weather (low 40s) was perfect. Just got out and ran, didn't think I'd do much today, maybe squeak in under an hour... and ended up under 52 minutes. Well then. Guess I needed to just run.

Wednesday
Did: 10.6 mi @ 12 mph bike ride
Lunch ride with Robin today! We got sprinkled on a little bit, and it definitely was not the low-60s temps that the forecast showed (was barely 50!) but still a nice ride and great chance to catch up with her. Yay, one ride down for the week!

Thursday
Did: 4.64 mi @ 8:42/mi avg #speedworkThursday
Oof this was hard because:
outside speedwork (Not on a track)
end of the workday
windy
WARM (70+)
And my paces showed it, too. The idea for today was 4x800 with 200 rest in between. These are approximate distances since I was running a quadrilateral loop at work, and it's around .65 miles one time around. I did as best I could, but ended up with slightly less than 800 and slightly more than 200. In my head, goal pace was 6:30-7:30/mi for each 800. This turned out to be HARD.

I guess technically I met my goal, but it was much harder than I feel like it should have been. I mean, I could barely hit my 10k race pace on an 800 (the third one). WOOF. I knew I'd kind of phoned it in on that 3rd one though. Oh well, another day of work done. Finished up with the Big 5, and despite being too warm for my liking for a run, it was really a gorgeous afternoon.

Did I mention it was windy?

Friday

Did: #yogaFriday

This was needed.

It's been that kind of day.

Saturday

Did: 5.97mi @ 10:34/mi avg

Rainy run, slow run, stroller run, casual run. But a run with friends is the best run. (Especially with coffee and fooooood after!) :)

Love them!

Sunday

Did: 5.04 mi @ 8:14/mi avg
I wanted some more miles for the week, and needed a good push, so I set out early for a hilly Green Valley loop and really pushed the pace. I didn't necessarily want to red-line the whole way, just hold what felt like a solid pace for the full run, push up the hills, and make it count. SO happy with this run, because I did exactly that. Felt like I was flying (physically and mentally) the whole time, but not because of the effort... just felt free. SUCH A GOOD RUN.

Early morning fog layer over the valley

Saw this dude in a tree. 

Post-run bliss. Ahhhh.

Then did: 10.8 mi @ 7.7 mph avg mountain bike ladies' ride
Ladies' Riiiiiiide! Love these. We rode at Pleasant Ridge today, had a group of 10 ladies, and just great fun. Felt strong on the bike, consistently in the top 30% of the group, and just generally had an awesome time. Did two loops, first one the full JFA loop and the second we took Sassy's Pass (which cuts just about a half mile) just for some variety.

Social ride = lots of stopping. But tons of fun!

New gloves for my birthday. PARTY TIME!

Post-ride cocktails and brunch? Oh yes, the ladies do it right.
This was a cocktail of espresso, Patron XO tequila, and lemon. SO good.

Week ending thoughts:
20+ miles running, 2x biking, strength training... THIS WAS AN AWESOME WEEK. I'm feeling so much better mentally and physically just having this week go the way it did. Please oh please let this momentum continue. I needed a week like this. 

Rain, Rain, Go away

Returning from vacation, hoping for a little more "normal" week than last week to finish things out...

Monday
Did: 10,000+ steps walking through airports
At least I hit my step goal today!

Tuesday
Did: 6.24 mi @ 8:50/mi
Goal for today was 55-60 minutes for the 10k, so at a 55:55 I'd say I nailed it. I didn't want to go out too fast and it was far too soon after far too much lunch to try to push any kind of speed (oof, leftover airport pizza). I chose a hilly route in preparation for this Saturday's race (41st running of the Green Valley 10-Miler) but wanted to take it a little bit easy. Felt good after I finally got through the feeling of a brick in my stomach. It's a gorgeous day out, and I ran in short sleeves! I can't remember the last time my arms were exposed to sunlight.

Wednesday
Did: 2mi walk on treadmill desk
Blargh. I'm starting to think that if I don't get my first-thing-in-the-morning workout, it's just never going to happen these days. Thank goodness for conference calls and earbuds so I can treadmill desk while on the phone!

Thursday
Did: treadmill #speedworkThursday
Ahhhh yep, love getting the run done early. Treadmill today for some speedwork, and it felt good! Below are the speed (6:15/mi) vs. recovery (~9:45/mi) segments for today:
1WU
800/200
800/400
800/200
400/400

Friday
Did: #yogaFriday

Saturday
Did: 10.05 mi @ 7:59/mi avg
Race Report: Green Valley Road Race 10-Miler

Sunday
Did: nada
Rainy rainy day, tired legs, and slept funny so my back hurts. COOL.


I keep hoping for a normal week and it's a swing and a miss. Obviously it's mostly (entirely) my fault, though the rainy weather doesn't help. No bike ride and no strength training this week... boooo.

Race Report: Green Valley Road Race 10-Miler

I've always liked this race. It's one of the oldest races in Greenville (this was the 41st year) and there's usually a relatively small crowd (a couple hundred finishers between the 8k and 10-Miler). I like the unique distances offered, and the unique swag they always have.

Heyyy, got my GVRR gloves and sweet SCARF!

The forecast for today was upper 40s and rainy. YUCK. I've run in those conditions before and I do not enjoy it. Today, thankfully, was a different story! It wasn't actually raining (or just barely) at the start of the race, which made it much more tolerable to get out in it. The drizzle became gradually heavier throughout the race and really only picked up towards the very end. Quite tolerable, and actually kept me cool since I'd over-dressed thinking it would be pouring. 

I didn't have any goals for this race. I knew my previous course PR for this one was 1:23:xx and wasn't sure if that was in reach or not. This was only my 4th run over 8 miles since the marathon in November, so it's not like I've been distance training recently. I think the marathon hangover excuse is pretty used up at this point (3 months) so I need to get back into actually training with purpose. Maybe.

Anyway, race recap!

I woke up around 6:30 this morning of my own accord (alarm was set for 7, but OH WELL). The race didn't start until 8:45 and the start was only 2 miles from my house. I didn't have my bib yet, but still I was in no hurry to leave the house this morning. I casually made myself breakfast, had some coffee, sat around, did some laundry, and finally left around 7:45. 

Hung around and chatted with a few other runners that I knew, and eventually we were all just hanging around the doorway of the gym, peering out into the drizzle, waiting until the very last second to go line up at the start. 

Lined up and ready to go

We were off right at 8:45, and I struggled for several miles to settle into a good, comfortable pace. I hadn't warmed up at all, so that probably didn't help. The first 2-3 miles loop through Furman's campus and eventually you exit to cross Hwy 25 and head into Green Valley.

Keeping up the motivation was tough through this race because I had nobody within reach in front of me. There wasn't anyone I could slowly reel in and pass, nobody that I thought was running a comparable pace that I might be able to catch, so it was really just like me out running on my own. That, and the fact that I run this route ALL the time, made it a little hard to keep pushing.

By around mile 7 I was mentally done. I was tired and cold and hungry and was ready to be finished. Thankfully there aren't really any bad hills in the last few miles, so the worst was over. Just kept plugging away. 

I hadn't looked at my watch the entire race, so I had no clue how I was doing. I came around the bend to the finish chute and saw the clock tick over from 1:19 to 1:20, which was comforting. So I pushed to the finish and ended up with 1:20:11, 3 minutes better than my previous course PR. 

I hung around for the age group awards (5 deep in each 5-year group!) and was surprised that I got 2nd!!

Awesome socks!

When they were reading out the winners (starting with 5th and going to 1st), they got to 3rd and I thought "oh well, guess not this year". What a great surprise!

Awkward running & work friend selfie.
Bernard got 4th AG, George got 2nd AG

Socks for everybody!!!

And now, I can definitely tell that I have not run far enough to race 10 miles because my legs hurt. Whoops!

Busy / Vacation Week

Well, once again it's Wednesday afternoon and I'm just now starting the weekly blog. Oy!

Monday
Did: nothing
Planned for strength but meetings took over. It's that kind of week.

Tuesday
Did: 6.22 mi @ 8:00/mi
Ran with the early downtown crew because goodness knows I didn't want to risk not getting in my run due to work complications. I'm getting to the point where I'm afraid to run with the group because my speed isn't where it once was (or so I thought). This run was a great reminder that I CAN run fast, and the motivation of a group is so so good. I was in the front of the pack of about a dozen runners, and stayed well ahead of everyone. It felt really good, plus the motivation to stay with the other person near me was strong because I didn't know the route. Bonus was getting to see the super blood moon over the city as we climbed up Park Street. So cool! Followed up with Big 5 stretching.

Wednesday
Did: 14.4 mi @ 15.2 mph bike ride
Rode the Sherman College loop solo today and felt good, though a little disappointed that my speed wasn't faster. I guess the motivation to push wasn't there without someone faster riding with me, though I could tell my legs were a little tired also. Still, a solid ride and quite happy that I got out on the bike.

Thursday
Did: rest
Well, it seems the bug (whatever it is) has bit the Trenor household. We arrived at work this morning only to get a call from daycare 30 minutes later that D had a fever, so we had to turn around and go get him. By the time we got there, he had puked and was puking again. So pitiful! Scott and I both felt a bit "off" today too, so we're taking as much preventive medication as possible and both opted out of exercise so as to allow our bodies to have as much energy as possible to fight The Crud.

Friday & Saturday
Did: Travel & nothing
On vacation Friday and Saturday, no formal exercise. Not feeling 100% but nothing seems to have gotten worse, so we'll take that as a win. D has been ok, too.

Sunday
Did: 6.13 mi @ 8:49/mi avg
Ran with Scott in the morning while our vacation housemates watched D. Ran on the Cape Henry Trail in First Landing State Park in VA Beach. It was nice, and started to sprinkle rain towards the end. Felt good to get out after several days off.

Definitely not the week I had in my head, but as always, it's better than nothing. Hoping for a better week to come!