It's almost time!! I can't believe it is so close! We started planning this trip to Disneyland and the Tinkerbell Half Marathon back in August 2012!! Over 500 days to go! It was soooooo long ago! Now it's almost time, and we are all so excited to head to Disneyland!
Training is going....well....um not so good. I've been plagued by leg pain for the past few weeks. Ever since I did 15K on Thanksgiving in the Snow my lower leg has been giving me a lot of problems. I think it is just a very bad case of Shin Splints, so i've been using my KT Tape and bought a compression sleeve for my calf. Still limping. I've been resting and icing all this week to try and get the pain to go away, not helping. I'm extremely stubborn....but i gave up and scheduled a dr appt to see what is going on. I've got 3 races coming up.....I need to be sure I can run them!
Thursday, December 12, 2013
Tuesday, October 22, 2013
Lifes struggles
Last weekend, my 10 yr old fell while running around the yard with her cousins and fractured her leg. Who knew that tripping in a hole could be so dangerous??? She didn't cry when it happened, although her eyes were watery. She said she tripped in a whole and twisted her ankle. So we iced it and went on our merry way, which included sending her to Grandma's house to spend the night. Bad mommy never thought about it again, until we went to pick her and her brother up the next morning. Ankle wasn't bruised or red, and only slightly swollen. She could wiggle her toes and move her ankle slightly, but couldn't really point her foot or flex it upwards. And she still wouldn't put any weight on it and walk. I figured it was probably just a bad sprain and would heal with ice and rest. At her middle school, you have to have a signed Dr's note to sit out of gym, so we took her to Urgent Care so they could wrap it and get a note so she could sit out a few days.
So we get to Urgent Care, and the doctor comes in and asks a bunch of questions, did she hit her head when she fell, did she loose consousness, does she feel dizzy; those types of questions. Finally she takes off her sock and looks at her ankle/foot. She said it hurts on the top of her foot, and right at the 2 protruding ankle bones (she and I both have very bony ankles.....i don't like my ankles). Her heel feels fine, and the bottom of her foot is fine, and it is just slightly tender going up her calf. Then the doctor said she wanted to get some X-rays. Ugh, really?? For a twisted ankle? (can i just say that I am normally a really good mom and tend to err on the side of caution too much. I have often been called a Helicpoter Mom and accused of having the "apron strings" too tight. I'm just a really bad doctor) 4 X-rays later, the doctor comes in and says she would like a Pediactric Orthepedic Specialist to look at them. The ankle looks funny and she wants to make sure it isn't just the growth plate. (I had no idea at that time what a growth plate is.....I had to google it.) 20 minutes later she comes back in with sad look.........she has a fibular fracture right above the ankle bone. To say I was shocked would be an understatement! I have never broken a bone in my life, so have no experience with it. But I always thought you would just KNOW that you had a broken bone!! And a leg/ankle bone?? That's a BIG bone to break! you would think if she fell in a hole hard enought to fracture her leg, it would atleast bruise!! So she is in a boot and on crutches for possibly 4 weeks.
Let me tell you about my baby girl. She is a runner, like me. She just finished her first season of Cross Country in 5th grade. She has run about (7) 5K's with me the past 2 years. Over the summer, she was on the track team for our local parks deptartment where she ran 100M, 200M and 4x100M relay where she ran Anchor. Her 4X100M relay team is undefeated, and she took home quite a few 1st places for her 100M and 200M. The child is crazy fast when it comes to her sprinting. She slows down quite a bit to allow mom to run with her. LOL We had a 5K Zombie Run scheduled for this weekend, and a 10K on Thanksgiving to get her ready for the Tinkerbell 10K in Disneyland in January. Obviously the Zombie run is out, and the doctor is pretty sure she's not going to allow her to do the 10K on Thanksgiving, maybe the 5K depending on how well she has healed. Jackie has been a real trooper through the whole thing. She hasn't really complained at all about the boot or the crutches or what her limited mobility has done to her. She really is just an amazing little girl.
Mommy on the other hand is going crazy!! Remember where I said I had to google what a Growth Plate is? It's tissue/cartliage that basically helps your legs grow straight. According to the American Society of Orthepedic Surgeions...."Growth plate fractures in the ankle often require immediate attention because the long-term consequences may include legs that grow crooked or of unequal length." Have you ever wanted to un-read something you read on the internet? Whoever thought we needed to have access to all this information must not have been a parent with a hurt child! Now all I can do is think about "what if"...... What if she can't run anymore? What if she always has a weak ankle? What if she breaks it again 2 days out of the boot? What if 1 leg ends up longer than the other one?? She's tiny enough as it is, we don't need to do anything to make it worse!
Then I stumbled across a post in my Virtual Running group, about an organization called "Who I run for". iRun4 is a group of people who dedicate their runs/bike rides/swims/workouts to adults and children who are physically unable to do those same tasks. You go out and run your miles, and then post a little inspiration message to your running buddy, encouraging them in their life. I was inspired. My life isn't a struggle!! Jackie's leg is going to heal and she'll bounce back and be fine.........there are so many children out there who will never get the chance to run and jump like she can. I get home from work and complain that I still need to go out and run my 3 miles.......yet there is a guy in a wheelchair who has never taken 3 steps! I can run my 3 miles and dedicate it to them, hopefully give them a little smile, let them know that someone out there has their back. I signed up for iRun4 and am now patiently waiting for my buddy. I've already got 3 medals coming for him/her, and I can't wait to meet them.
So we get to Urgent Care, and the doctor comes in and asks a bunch of questions, did she hit her head when she fell, did she loose consousness, does she feel dizzy; those types of questions. Finally she takes off her sock and looks at her ankle/foot. She said it hurts on the top of her foot, and right at the 2 protruding ankle bones (she and I both have very bony ankles.....i don't like my ankles). Her heel feels fine, and the bottom of her foot is fine, and it is just slightly tender going up her calf. Then the doctor said she wanted to get some X-rays. Ugh, really?? For a twisted ankle? (can i just say that I am normally a really good mom and tend to err on the side of caution too much. I have often been called a Helicpoter Mom and accused of having the "apron strings" too tight. I'm just a really bad doctor) 4 X-rays later, the doctor comes in and says she would like a Pediactric Orthepedic Specialist to look at them. The ankle looks funny and she wants to make sure it isn't just the growth plate. (I had no idea at that time what a growth plate is.....I had to google it.) 20 minutes later she comes back in with sad look.........she has a fibular fracture right above the ankle bone. To say I was shocked would be an understatement! I have never broken a bone in my life, so have no experience with it. But I always thought you would just KNOW that you had a broken bone!! And a leg/ankle bone?? That's a BIG bone to break! you would think if she fell in a hole hard enought to fracture her leg, it would atleast bruise!! So she is in a boot and on crutches for possibly 4 weeks.
Let me tell you about my baby girl. She is a runner, like me. She just finished her first season of Cross Country in 5th grade. She has run about (7) 5K's with me the past 2 years. Over the summer, she was on the track team for our local parks deptartment where she ran 100M, 200M and 4x100M relay where she ran Anchor. Her 4X100M relay team is undefeated, and she took home quite a few 1st places for her 100M and 200M. The child is crazy fast when it comes to her sprinting. She slows down quite a bit to allow mom to run with her. LOL We had a 5K Zombie Run scheduled for this weekend, and a 10K on Thanksgiving to get her ready for the Tinkerbell 10K in Disneyland in January. Obviously the Zombie run is out, and the doctor is pretty sure she's not going to allow her to do the 10K on Thanksgiving, maybe the 5K depending on how well she has healed. Jackie has been a real trooper through the whole thing. She hasn't really complained at all about the boot or the crutches or what her limited mobility has done to her. She really is just an amazing little girl.
Mommy on the other hand is going crazy!! Remember where I said I had to google what a Growth Plate is? It's tissue/cartliage that basically helps your legs grow straight. According to the American Society of Orthepedic Surgeions...."Growth plate fractures in the ankle often require immediate attention because the long-term consequences may include legs that grow crooked or of unequal length." Have you ever wanted to un-read something you read on the internet? Whoever thought we needed to have access to all this information must not have been a parent with a hurt child! Now all I can do is think about "what if"...... What if she can't run anymore? What if she always has a weak ankle? What if she breaks it again 2 days out of the boot? What if 1 leg ends up longer than the other one?? She's tiny enough as it is, we don't need to do anything to make it worse!
Then I stumbled across a post in my Virtual Running group, about an organization called "Who I run for". iRun4 is a group of people who dedicate their runs/bike rides/swims/workouts to adults and children who are physically unable to do those same tasks. You go out and run your miles, and then post a little inspiration message to your running buddy, encouraging them in their life. I was inspired. My life isn't a struggle!! Jackie's leg is going to heal and she'll bounce back and be fine.........there are so many children out there who will never get the chance to run and jump like she can. I get home from work and complain that I still need to go out and run my 3 miles.......yet there is a guy in a wheelchair who has never taken 3 steps! I can run my 3 miles and dedicate it to them, hopefully give them a little smile, let them know that someone out there has their back. I signed up for iRun4 and am now patiently waiting for my buddy. I've already got 3 medals coming for him/her, and I can't wait to meet them.
Friday, October 11, 2013
Training Update
After a disastrous showing at the Women Rock 1/2 Marathon in Chicago 2 weeks ago, I took a week off. It wasn't really related to the race we won't speak of again, as I usually take a running break after a big race. But I was just really down on myself after the Women Rock event............I was all set for a great run and should have nailed that race with an awesome PR. Instead I attempted to run after being awake for 26 straight hours, which as you can imagine, is not a very smart idea. Thus the disastrous time that I was not at all proud of.
But we can't mope and sulk forever!! I've got 4 big events to begin training for. (Is it odd that I base how hard I train for an event based on how much money I spent on it?) I started training for Tink Weekend this week. Tink Weekend consists of flying to Disneyland in January to run the Tinkerbell 10K on Saturday, and then run the Tinkerbell 1/2 Marathon on Sunday. Then I fly home only to turn around 5 weeks later and fly to Disney World and do the exact same thing. And my 10 yr old daughter is running the Tink 10K with me in Disneyland. So.....i've got a lot of money tied up in RunDisney events in the next few months. Time to start training.
I've already done 3 half marathons, and 2 10K's, so distance wise I feel confident I can do them, even the January and February back-to-back thing. My very first half marathon was followed up just 3 weeks later with a 10 Miler, and I felt that I had recovered enough and was able to keep up the running during the time between. My biggest issue right now is how to deal with doing a 10K on Saturday and half marathon on Sunday. Rarely do I ever run on back to back days, even short 3 mile training runs have a rest day in between. So I started the Jeff Galloway training program he put out for Double Dumbo Dare. I don't know why RunDisney hasn't put out training plans for Tink and Glass Slipper Challenge (the Saturday/Sunday challenge at Disney World) yet. We are about 18 weeks out for GSC, training should be underway already. Anyway....the first couple of weeks are normal training, short runs during the week followed by longer runs every other weekend. I can handle that no problem. But eventually it'll get to a short run AND a long run on the weekend. And that will happen right about the time the weather here gets really cold and rainy and likely a bit of snow on the ground. I see miles and miles of treadmill running in my future. Yippee....who's with me!???
But we can't mope and sulk forever!! I've got 4 big events to begin training for. (Is it odd that I base how hard I train for an event based on how much money I spent on it?) I started training for Tink Weekend this week. Tink Weekend consists of flying to Disneyland in January to run the Tinkerbell 10K on Saturday, and then run the Tinkerbell 1/2 Marathon on Sunday. Then I fly home only to turn around 5 weeks later and fly to Disney World and do the exact same thing. And my 10 yr old daughter is running the Tink 10K with me in Disneyland. So.....i've got a lot of money tied up in RunDisney events in the next few months. Time to start training.
I've already done 3 half marathons, and 2 10K's, so distance wise I feel confident I can do them, even the January and February back-to-back thing. My very first half marathon was followed up just 3 weeks later with a 10 Miler, and I felt that I had recovered enough and was able to keep up the running during the time between. My biggest issue right now is how to deal with doing a 10K on Saturday and half marathon on Sunday. Rarely do I ever run on back to back days, even short 3 mile training runs have a rest day in between. So I started the Jeff Galloway training program he put out for Double Dumbo Dare. I don't know why RunDisney hasn't put out training plans for Tink and Glass Slipper Challenge (the Saturday/Sunday challenge at Disney World) yet. We are about 18 weeks out for GSC, training should be underway already. Anyway....the first couple of weeks are normal training, short runs during the week followed by longer runs every other weekend. I can handle that no problem. But eventually it'll get to a short run AND a long run on the weekend. And that will happen right about the time the weather here gets really cold and rainy and likely a bit of snow on the ground. I see miles and miles of treadmill running in my future. Yippee....who's with me!???
Tuesday, September 17, 2013
getting ready to run
This Saturday I am running in the Women Rock Half Marathon in Chicago. It's my 3rd half marathon. But it's the 1st one that i've trained for all on my own. I no longer have a gym and personal trainer waiting for me just 10 steps away from my desk. Now the gym is across town, and I have to go at 6am, and I have no one to tell me to run a little farther, or work this muscle group this week and that group next week, or how to properly stretch my incredibly tight hamstring!! To say that I'm nervous is an understatement. The "pre-race" jitters started over the weekend, the butterflies that make your stomach go flip-flop, the crazy race dreams, the panic of over-sleeping.
But worrying and stressing about it won't make it better. While the 6am training schedule doesn't always work for me ( I may have missed a short training run a time or two....or three......possibly four but certainly could be five.) I did manage to get all my long runs in and they were great. Times were consistent and I never felt like I "hit the wall" during them. Knock on wood, other than some stiffness from a trail run portion and silly zumba injury, I've managed to remain injury free this running season. I'm ready for this race.....because not only do I run this life....I ROCK IT TOO!!!
www.womenrockevents.org
But worrying and stressing about it won't make it better. While the 6am training schedule doesn't always work for me ( I may have missed a short training run a time or two....or three......possibly four but certainly could be five.) I did manage to get all my long runs in and they were great. Times were consistent and I never felt like I "hit the wall" during them. Knock on wood, other than some stiffness from a trail run portion and silly zumba injury, I've managed to remain injury free this running season. I'm ready for this race.....because not only do I run this life....I ROCK IT TOO!!!
www.womenrockevents.org
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