Doubling up

I'm trying to take a true day of rest each week but it's hard to work in. I run four days a week, try to hit the spinner two or three days a week and go to yoga one night a week.

Ran Saturday and Sunday. Yoga Monday night. And this morning, got a workout in on the spinner followed by a run this evening. All of it felt good. I should probably take tomorrow off, but I'm more inclined to do a workout on the spinner and some free weights before work and then take the rest of the day off.

Looks like if I want a real rest day, I'll have to ride the spinner and do yoga on the same days and then take Weds off. We'll see. Nothing is cast in stone. I'm trying to be more flexible with my workouts.

Good run today. Always feels good when the temps are in the 60s in March.

First time I've done two workouts in a day in 18 months. Shoot, I couldn't get myself out of bed for a morning workout for better part of a year or more. So it's all good right now.

On track

Woke up about 7:30 this morning and it wasn't raining as predicted. I knew it was supposed to rain most of the day with high winds and temps in the 40s. It was almost 40 degrees at 7:30, so I decided to get a run in while it was still partly sunny.

Walked to the track (1 mile), did 1 mile on the track and 1 mile on the road before heading to breakfast with family. By the time we left for breakfast it was already starting to rain. So glad I got the run in before breakfast.

I felt good during the run which is great since I don't run much in the morning and my body much prefers afternoon runs.

Two runs in two days and no problems. Happy, happy.

Good week.

I didn't even melt

So today was supposed to be a slow run day. Since I'm only increasing about a quarter mile a week per run, the plan was 2 miles on the soft track followed by .75 or 1 mile on the road. Because it looked like rain, I drove to the track. I don't mind running in rain but I don't like downpours when it's still chilly.

I didn't get through 1/16th of a mile when it started to rain softly, but it was cold. I thought about bagging the run outside and heading to the indoor track nearby but I hate that too. So I decided I'd at least get one mile in on the track and then head indoors if it rained harder.

It never got too much worse, so I ended up doing my full workout, which was pretty good since I had been on my feet teaching for 3 hours earlier today and I was already tired.

It was probably the rain that made me run faster (relatively speaking) than I wanted. I'd planned 12 minute miles, but I ended up at 11. I felt really good rain and all and wanted to go farther, but I am really restricting myself to just the workout planned. I don't want to do too much too soon (the story of my life.)

I'm glad it wasn't all that nice outside because I felt so good it would have been hard to stop at 3 miles.

Spring is definitely early

Running is going great -- slow but great. The big news here in my part of Ohio is that spring is a full two weeks early. The first sign of spring is the white flowers on my neighbors bush (actually, it might be a magnolia tree) which always happens in the first week of April.

Not this year.

The tree began flowering March 21!!!!

And then on Tuesday or this week, I was working up and down the river, and honeysuckle was in bloom, which usually happens the second or third week of April.

And then today, I saw the first baby leaf on our Bradford Pear tree.

For those of who put up with winter, the first signs of spring's rebirth are a big deal. Two weeks early? AWESOME!

Ran four times this week. Just inching up my mileage much slower than I normally would, but I'm protecting my back at all costs.

Feeling good

Got out semi-early (9:30) this morning for a 1.0 mile walk, 1.5 miles running and another mile walk home. The running right now is always at the track because of its really soft surface, but the last .25 of the run I did on concrete today and I feel fine.

Saw the chiropractor yesterday and everything held -- mostly. He's still needs to do a touch of work on my shoulder and recommended I see my muscle activation therapist to help the shoulder muscles start holding the new alignment. I have an appt. in a week or so.

I also told him about how my knees have been hurting and that they don't usually since I started ChiRunning. He noticed that my tibia bones were out of whack and fixed those, along with realigning the ankles and toes. Ran today with no knee discomfort during or after. Excellent.

Hope to run again tomorrow (trying to do 4 runs a week but very low mileage just getting started again). Supposed to be even nicer than this morning which was about 38 degrees and cloudy.

Are we on to something?

I don't want to get too excited, but I have to say I've been feeling really, really good since visiting the new chiropractor. I've been to yoga (and felt much more flexible), I've run four times and each time, I run faster and more comfortably. I've ridden the spinner 3 times with no problems, and today I lifted some free weights. So far so good.

I see the new chiropractor tomorrow to see if the adjustment to my collarbone and ribs held. Seems to have. I have a few questions for him and have had a few aches and pains over the last week, but I think that's just everything settling out after certain things were put back in place.

I'm excited that maybe just maybe I'm on the road to finally going somewhere with my running and workouts.

The weather has been typical March. We set a record on Saturday or Sunday of 76 and I ran because I couldn't not run in that kind of weather. Then today it was about 33 degrees and cloudy when I ran but felt colder. Tomorrow mid 40s and sunny and Saturday low 50s -- now that's more like it.

What a (good) day!

Wow, what a change in everything -- weather, my back and my outlook.

The weather is AMAZING today. It may reach 70. After being in single digits just two weeks ago, that is awesome.

I walked a mile to the track, then jogged 1.25 miles and then walked home. Before I tweaked my back about a month ago in the garage, I was jogging only about about a quarter mile and then walking an eighth of a mile, but today I ran the whole mile without any problems.

I haven't run a mile since I hurt my back in late November. And my back feels wonderful. There's a sensation in the disk, not pain, just a feeling. It's probably more in my head than in my back, though.

I saw a new chiropractor this week. I've been to several -- since my family is loaded with them -- but nothing like this guy. We'll see what happens, but I have to say, so far I feel great overall.The doctor said he doesn't believe the disk is a big deal at all -- he suspects it's been compensating for something else for a long time.

The doctor said my collarbone was messed up on the right side which has been making my entire right side do some hinky things, including locking up my diaphram on the right side and some ribs. He fixed everything. Now we wait to see if it holds. If it does, great. If not, then something else is driving the problem. So far, so good. Good God, I would love it if he has finally gotten to the root of the problem of my back issues of all these years.

I like my current chiro but my adjustments just wouldn't hold for more than 2 weeks, so I sought out this doc at the recommendation of a friend. It's a hassle to get there -- 45 miles away -- but if he can really fix the issue and I don't have to have ongoing treatment, it would be well worth the drive down a few times.

I'm hopeful and excited. We'll see.