Weekly Rundown- There’s Good News and Bad News…
Remember how I took a few days off a couple weeks ago because my shin was hurting? Well, the good news is, my shin is PERFECT! The bad news is I hurt my hamstring while doing some hilly running on vacation. I know- what in the world is going to happen next? Never a dull moment around here! Thanks as always to Kim and Deborah for hosting this weekly rundown. Let’s get right into it! Sunday Ah, yes- the day of the Great Hamstring Tragedy. It was my last day at my sister’s, and I woke up to rain. Nothing was going to stop me from running though- I was excited to tackle a hilly 5 miler. No pictures, because it was raining pretty hard and I didn’t take my phone. The first mile of that run was probably the best run I’ve had all summer. It was cooler than Florida, and I felt amazing. I was powering up the hills, and on the downhills I focused on pushing my hips forward so I was running quickly and not fighting gravity. Yes, my form was perfect! Who says a Florida girl can’t run hills? Ahem. Somewhere in the second mile I felt a slightly uncomfortable pulling sensation in my left hamstring, which I paid no attention to. I mean, obviously- nothing was going to ruin the best run of the whole summer. But by the time I got to the end of the third mile, it was too uncomfortable to ignore. I was right near my sister’s house, AND I saw a flash of lightning. Done for the day! Monday Woke up in my own home with a sore hamstring and tired from traveling. I did a quick core class and then a 10 minute barre class. (All classes were on Peloton as usual!) I felt like that barre class REALLY helped me. The small, controlled movements in my glutes and legs did not hurt my hamstring at all, but rather it felt like I was stressing the muscles in a good way and getting lots of bloodflow to the area. I felt hopeful for a quick recovery. Tuesday Since the 10 minute barre class was good, I figured a 20 minute one would be even better. But, I didn’t like this one as much. The ten minutes spent on lower body were good, but the other 10 minutes were kind of easy core and upper body moves- I would rather get that from a harder core class. So I did! a 5 minute core class and then an upper body strength class with Matty. Hamstring felt much, much better. Wednesday Sad day! I really thought I was going to run. I warmed up with a 10 minute barre class and then walked for 5 minute- my hamstring felt absolutely fine. But as soon as I started to run it hurt again and I had to stop. I did a 30 minute pool run. Bleh. Thursday Okay, now I’m mad at barre. I decided to take one of my regular glutes and legs strength classes. The problem area is the top of my hamstring, and I know from experience that area doesn’t get a lot of bloodflow, so can be slow to heal. I wanted to give the muscle some gentle stress- not enough to hurt it, but enough to speed up healing. I knew exactly what class to take! Remember how I love Matty’s “Lunge-a-Palooza” class? Well, he has a companion class to that which is all squats and deadlifts. It seemed like lunges would be a bad idea, but squats felt great, and I approached the deadlifts very, very slowly and cautiously. I also did a core class and upper body class. If I’m not running, I want to do as much strength as possible. Friday Okay, fine- I’ll do barre again. There are two barre instructors on Peloton- Hannah and Ally. So far I had only taken Hannah’s classes and well… I don’t want to be mean, but… her personality kind of grates on me. I’m sure she’s a very nice person, but I decided to take one of Ally’s classes instead. I think Ally comes off as a little less flaky, but honestly I’ll just take either one of their classes in the future. After a 10 minute barre class, I had an exciting (?) pool run. Saturday Another strength day! Core class, and then another glutes and legs class with Matty. This time I tried some lunges- it was okay, but seemed a little risky for my hamstring so I subbed split squats instead, and those felt great. And I finally tried one of Tunde’s arms classes! I was curious after hearing so much about her. I liked it. I had wanted to start her four week arm program, but in two weeks I’ll be traveling again (to Texas) and I don’t know what happens if you start.a Peloton program and not follow through consistently- will I get some sort of demerit? I don’t want any trouble! I’ll start her program later in the month. Sunday Sob. On tap for today… probably another pool run. Funny thing- I’ve always been such a cardio addict. But nowadays when I do cardio cross training, it sort of feels like a punishment for not being able to run. But when I do strength, I feel like I’m making some sort of progress and it’s more satisfying. What’s going on? Who am I??? Anyway, I know I need to mix things up so I’ll be in the pool! I’ve got some good podcasts to amuse myself with. That was my week… not what I wanted, but sometimes you just have to take the good with the bad. Have you ever taken a Peloton barre class? What did you think of it? If you can’t run, do you prefer cardio or strength?