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Weekly Rundown- Adding the Sparkle Back

In one of my recent posts I said that my life is a little less “sparkly” when I’m not running.  Well, this week I was able to add a little sparkle back!  Thanks as always to Kim and Deborah for hosting the Weekly Rundown.  Let’s just see how this week went from gray to sparkly…

Sunday

I started the day with a 50 minute pool run.  Finally, a slightly interesting pool running photo:

Cameo appearance by Muffin!

I’ve been doing exercises to strengthen my piriformis muscles, and I knew there’s a good one in Brad Beer’s book, You Can Run Pain Free.

When I dug the book out, I remembered that he has four hip stability exercises, including the piriformis one, and I decided to do them all.  I used to do them years ago, but then I stopped.  Why did I stop???  I re-committed to doing them on a regular basis.

Monday

I started the day with the Caroline Girvan deadbug workout,, and then did a 30 minute pool run.

Later in the day I did the four Brad Beer hip stability exercises again.  I’m on a roll!

Tuesday

I started the day with Caroline’s deadbug workout, and then a 40 minute pool run.

This is getting old…

Later in the day I had my second dry needling treatment on my calf, and then later I just did the Brad Beer piriformis exercise.  My hips were a little sore, and I was saving them up for leg day at the gym!

Wednesday

As planned, I hit the gym, and decided to do a full body workout, including (but not limited to) squats, bench press, and rows.  I knew it would probably be my only gym day of the week so I wanted to make the most of it.

Later in the day I decided to go for a walk.  In my running shoes.  And, well, guess what happened…

I RAN!

I walked two miles and then broke into a cautious run.  My calf has been feeling good, and I wanted to get some feedback before my next dry needling appointment.  I did run/walk intervals for a mile and my calf felt perfect!

Thursday

Ha, the result of my full body workout at the gym was that my entire body was sore today.  I knew I should do a pool run, but I just couldn’t- I felt like I would have a mental breakdown if I had to run around and around in the pool again.  I did the Caroline Girvan deadbug workout and called it a day.

Later I had my THIRD (and last?) dry needling treatment.  She gave me the green light to try a little running (er, oops- I didn’t mention that I already did that.) Hooray!

Friday

Okay fine.  I’ll get in the pool.  My calf was sore from the treatment- which is completely normal- so I didn’t want to do anything to stress it out.  40 minute pool run.

Weirdly dark photo.

Later in the day I did the Brad Beer hip exercises- everything was still a little sore from the gym, but these exercises don’t use weights so I figured it was okay.

Saturday

Run #2!  This time I walked a mile and then ran/walked for two.

I’m CAUTIOUSLY optimistic.  My calf didn’t hurt, but I’ve been down this road twice before.  I take time off, the first couple runs back feel fine and then the pain returns.  I’m not sure if the dry needling worked, or if my calf feels better because I took time off of running.  Only time will tell!

Sunday

On tap for today- sleeping in.  Later in the day I’ll do some strength, definitely including the hip stability exercises. I do remember why I stopped doing them now- they’re boring, and they make my hips sore.  But I’m determined to keep up with them this time and see what happens.

What makes your life sparkly?

Have you heard of Brad Beer or read his book?- It’s a good one!

Top photo by Alexander Grey on Unsplash

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Weekly Rundown- Everything is Awesome!

I don’t want to say this injury is behind me, because that would be tempting fate a little too much.  But let’s just say “Everything is Awesome” from The Lego Movie has been running through my head, and life seems good!  I’m linking up as always with Kim and Deborah for this Weekly Rundown.  Here’s how it all played out… Sunday I walked one mile and ran 3. Everything felt good! Monday I did lower body strength at home, including single leg exercises and squats.  One of the (few) things I’m proud of from my work this summer is the progress I made in the one leg sit-to-stand.  It’s one of the foundation exercises on Sally McRae’s app and also one of the hip stability exercises from Brad Beer’s book.  You start sitting on a chair or bench, and stand up using one leg, then sit back down, stand up again, etc. only on one leg.  When I first started I could only do five reps on each leg- now I can do 36 reps!!!  At least something has improved. I also did Caroline Girvan’s deadbug workout..  I’m really tired of it by now! Tuesday I walked 3 miles… … and then did a different core workout!  I did Caroline Girvan’s Standing Abs Workout, and I liked it.  At least, I liked doing something different. Wednesday Again, I walked one mile and ran 3.  Still feeling good! Thursday I did my single leg exercises, and another core workout.  This one Engie recommended, MadFit Standing Core Workout..  I liked this one too!  Then I had time for 20 minutes of walking. At night we watched the Dolphins game, which was a complete fiasco.  We lost, and our quarterback got ANOTHER CONCUSSION.  The poor guy will be out for… ever?  The rest of the season?  I feel really bad for him, and now our season is a shambles after only the second game. Friday Gym day!  It was a very squat-focused workout, because I skipped deadlifts.  My low back is nagging at me again, and deadlifts sadly make it worse.  After squats and Bulgarian split squats I did some core (abs and low back machines.) At night I planned to go to our high school football game, but it rained so much that the band couldn’t play (so I didn’t go.)  They did manage to play in the rain and our team won!  This was our homecoming, and last year’s homecoming was completely rained out.  September outdoor events just shouldn’t be a thing in South Florida. Saturday This was a big day- I walked one mile and ran 4!!!  I’m getting there! At night we watched the Baylor game.  FINALLY.  A game where it didn’t rain, no one got injured, and we WON!  At least the football week ended on a high note. Sunday Off!  Sleeping in and waffles will be involved (obviously.) So, it was a good week.  Moving forward, I’m going to cautiously try running every other day.  Running every third day was great to get me back from this injury, but I can’t do that forever! How was your week?  Were there any moments where you sang “Everything is Awesome?” Top photo by Stainless Images on Unsplash

Friday Coffee Date!

Hey, it’s Friday!  Pour yourself a beverage in your favorite fall mug (wait- you do have one, right?) and join me. Let’s talk about the weekend!  Tonight is another high school football game, and I will be there.  The last two weeks have been away games, so I’ve missed going.  But you know what that means- it’s time for Homecoming!  My daughter decided to go to the dance with a group of friends, and we started thinking about what she would wear.  But let’s back up for a moment… The high school concert band uniform is tuxes for the boys and long black dresses for girls.  When my daughter was a freshman last year, she said she would prefer to wear a tux. Now, I wasn’t entirely opposed to this, but I just preferred that she wear a dress… like all the other girls?  I told her that whatever she decided to do was fine, but there’s a reason boys usually wear suits and girls usually wear dresses.  Girls are more curvy, so dresses flatter them more.  My daughter is very curvy, and I thought a tux would just make her look kind of big all over. She decided to wear the dress, and I thought she looked lovely!  Then I was telling my friend about how well I handled that situation, and she thought I was VERY WRONG.  Why, she asked, did it matter how she looked?  Why did I make that the most important thing? Er- good question.  When it was time for New Year’s, my daughter wanted to wear a suit to the party.  I agreed immediately, and she actually looked kind of cute (not that it mattered!) Later I asked how she liked wearing the suit, and she said “I loved it.  I felt really confident.”  Okay then. Back to Homecoming!  My daughter said she wanted to wear a suit, and we got to work on her outfit (I was tasked with finding her some new pants, which was surprisingly hard.) Then yesterday she went to the mall to help her friend find a dress, and came home with… a dress, which she is now wearing to Homecoming. You guys, I can’t keep up!  Girls are so hard!!!  Boys are so. much. easier. Anyway, while my daughter is at the dance on Saturday night, my husband and I will be watching the Baylor game!  I have a fun fall-themed dinner planned, with some new things to sample from Trader Joe’s. One last thing- I’ve submitted my request for postponement of jury duty.  Weirdly, the request had to be submitted in writing, and by that I mean I had to write a letter and mail it through the U.S. postal service.  When was the last time you did that? I was so confused.  I couldn’t even really remember how to do it.  When I printed out my letter, my husband looked at it and said “You didn’t leave room for your signature.”  Oh yeah- I totally forgot.  Then I had to find an envelope and a stamp, and take it to the mailbox… I mean, don’t we have more modern methods of communication nowadays?  Anyway, I hope it gets there, and I hope I get my postponement (actually, I’m hoping they forget all about me, but if worst comes to worst I’ll take a postponement.) That’s it for this week! When was the last time you mailed a letter?  I don’t mean a greeting card or postcard, but like an official letter?   Do you think I was wrong to encourage my daughter to wear a dress?  How much does appearance matter? What are your plans for the weekend? Top photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

Reading and Eating

I finished Winter of the World, which will from now on be referred to simply as WOW.  It was so, so good, and I’m getting ready to start the third book in the trilogy!  It starts in 1961, where the second book left off. But let’s go back to last week- I had my trip to the used bookstore.  It was everything I hoped it would be (look away, Engie!  I’ve discovered that Engie does NOT like used bookstores!) As I hoped, I did leave with a stack of books. Some classic murder mysteries- I can never resist- and more Ken Follett.  I have no plans to read The Pillars of the Earth anytime soon, but I know I’ll read it eventually, and I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to get a used copy in good condition. Eating!  Once again, I did not do any meal prep on Sunday so we’re limping through the week.  The good news is, I think I’m training my husband and daughter to expect less and less in the dinner department.  I mean- we do eat.  It’s just not fancy. Sunday morning I made gluten-free pumpkin pancakes from Running on Real Food.  First, let’s look at a picture from the website: And here’s, ahem, mine. All that garnish aside, mine look really weird.  But they did taste good!  Chickpea flour is my new favorite flour.  By the way, if you’re making pumpkin baked good this fall, don’t forget the formula to make them really flavorful- double the amount of pumpkin spice, and add a pinch of cloves.  And whatever you do, do NOT forget the salt! What are you reading now? Top photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

Getting Back on Track

I wrote in Sunday’s post that I’ve been feeling like my life is just a little off track.  Then I looked around my house and realized one of the reasons is that I’ve been half-assing my beloved Pumpkin Palooza.  I had some, but not all, of my fall decorations out, and then a summer-y wreath was lying on the table.  Furthermore, I hadn’t had one special meal or snack to celebrate the start of football season. This was all wrong!  I needed to rectify the situation right away.  I lit a fall candle… …and got out all the rest of my fall decorations while watching the first half of the Dolphins game.  At halftime I put together a little charcuterie board… …and then we watched the Dolphins come from behind to win the game.  Fall is back on track! Let’s move on to running.  SIGH.  So far, my calf seems to be better, but my race plans are in tatters.  Back in May, I signed up for a race on November 9th.  It’s a trail race, and you run as far as you can in a certain amount of time.  I chose the 12 hour option. Hahahahaha.  Even if everything goes perfectly from now on, I’ll have no business running a 12 hour race in two months.  I guess the good news is, it’s a 4.5 mile loop that you run over and over again.  I can go and just run a couple loops.  That would be kind of sad- but maybe less sad than not going at all?  I’ve already paid for the race so if I can run at all, I’ll probably go. Now let’s deal with this jury summons.  I know it’s our civic duty, but I think it’s unfair that it creates more of a financial hardship for some people than others.  Additionally, some people never get called for jury duty, and some people get called all the time!  Luckily I’ve come up with a great solution. My plan is, all registered voters would be required to submit a form every five years, indicating the time they would like to do their jury duty.  That way, people would be able to pick a time that works best with their work schedule, and have time in advance to arrange for childcare, etc. Of course, if everyone chose July of 2027 it would be a fiasco.  But I have solutions for that too!  People who are retired, independently wealthy, or who have a very flexible work schedule could volunteer to be “swing jurors,” willing to be called at any time.  There could be incentives for people who serve in months like December (which I’m guessing would be the least popular)- like if you sit on a jury in December, you’re exempt for the rest of your life. I’ll be submitting my request for a postponement- do you think I should include my detailed plan for an overhaul of the entire system?  Haha, that might get me excused permanently (“Don’t let this woman near the courthouse- she’s obviously a troublemaker!”) Anyway, I’m starting to feel a little better.  As long as I can continue to run and nothing else goes wrong, I think I’m back on track. How do you like my plan?  Would you volunteer to be a “swing juror?” Top photo by Redd F on Unsplash  

44 Responses

  1. So glad the calf pain is gone (for now at least). Do you mind sharing the hip strengthening exercises? Maybe just the piriformas one? I’ve had piriformas issues in the past (actually, they plagued me for over a year) and I’d love to learn a good exercise to combat them.
    I hope your calf continues to feel better as you up your mileage. (Fingers crossed emojis!!!)

    Reply

    1. Yes, I’ll post it here- but in the meantime I’ll go over to your blog and leave it in the comments as well.

      Reply

  2. I am glad you were able to do a bit of running this week! I hope you can continue to keep that calf pain at bay. Glad the dry needling seems to have helped! Phew!

    I did my long run on Friday morning on my shouldless day and it went amazing! The humidity was low and the temps were cooler and I am sure caffeine + being properly fueled helped, too. I am relieved it went well because the previous long run was seriously so awful. I had to do a lot of walking in the final couple of miles.

    I think spending time with friends is what makes my life sparkly! My work trip last week was with a woman that I consider a good friend so we had a lot of fun together. And today we will see Phil’s high school friends. It’s a little ironic that I say friends make life sparkly because I am an introvert! But I guess introverts need social time, too! It just needs to be the right amount!

    Reply

    1. Yay! I knew that run would be a good run- all the ingredients were there. And, struggling through a bad run makes us stronger.
      Introverts definitely need social time- my mistake is not scheduling it because I THINK I just want to be alone- but too much alone time isn’t good for anyone.

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  3. Hooray. Glad the calf is improving.

    Yes running makes me feel sparkly.

    My sparkles were off this past week.

    Now it’s cooled down but I caught a cold in NYC. Boo.

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    1. ARG! That’s bad luck. Hopefully it’s mild and you can get back to your activities. You’re probably itching to run again in the cooler weather.

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  4. Love the cat cameo! Muffin is so cute!
    LOL on remembering why you stopped doing those exercises after only a few days of them. PT exercises are like that.

    I hope your calf is better for real this time.

    I think at this point I find sparkle in being able to workout hard in any modality.

    Reply

    1. Oh, I wish I could feel like that! Although, I guess a hard non-running workout gives me “mini sparkles.” Much better than nothing.
      Yes, PT exercises are not my favorite. i’m going to force myself to do them to see if it makes a difference- I’m tired of constantly putting out fires, dealing with one issue or another. If I could just run pain-free (as Brad Beer promises) it’s worth doing the exercises.

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  5. Yay, I hope the calf keeps behaving!!! I just woke up and honestly cannot pinpoint what specifically makes my life “sparkly” and now I’m concerned. 😅 I’ll have to report back once my brain is more awake and can decide.

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    1. Hahahaha… I would guess from your blog that you would say travel, time with your family, and Charlie. But I’ll be interested to hear what you come up with!

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    1. Nicole, your picture should be in the dictionary next to the definition of “sparkly.” I really think your whole life sparkles.

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  7. Glad to read that your calf is starting to feel better and that you have been able to run. With it being so hot, I ran less this week too. I am ok with it and I am finding ways to enjoy pool running and swimming. It is always hard for me to be patient when I have a nagging injury too. Hope this week is better for you

    Reply

    1. Thank you Deborah! Yes, it’s hard to be patient. I’m just trying to find ways to pass the time so I don’t get too insane!

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  8. I’m so glad to hear your sparkle is coming back! Fingers and toes crossed your calf continues to feel good. Hooray for getting in some good pool runs and yay for Muffin’s cameo! Haha!

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  9. Love the little glimpse of Muffin 🙂

    And yay for sparkle and the calf feeling better. I had to chuckle that you didn’t tell your therapist that you had already run (or maybe you did). Either way, hilarious and also so smart to listen to your body! I know it’s not easy to stick out the pool runs, but I’m sure that’s a big part of why you’re feeling better.

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    1. Ahem, no I didn’t quite mention that I had already run. I mean, she didn’t ASK so it wasn’t like I lied (right???)

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  10. I am cautiously optimistic as well! Welcome back to the sparkle! I hope that the only time that you’re in the pool next week will be for a post-run dip.

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  11. What great news about the added sparkle!! Whatever made the calf better – I’m so glad for you that you can run again! Really hope this issue is behind you now. Good work with the hip & piriformis exercises – I need to get back to doing mine too. I sort of put everything else (except walking) on hold when I’m into my heavy strength program.

    Reply

    1. Susanne, it is SO HARD to do everything! I feel like it’s a tradeoff between all the little things, like PT exercises, and heavy lifting. I guess in a perfect world we would do it all, but it’s hard.

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  12. Good to hear that the dry needling may have helped you out! I seem to be sore after the dry needling and then maybe a week later I’m feeling good. Running used to give my life a lot of sparkle, but running right now seems to be more of a chore and painful, so I haven’t really been getting much pleasure from it! And ironically, I haven’t missed it much. But as soon as I can’t bike anymore I’ll have a different point of view!
    Despite the boring nature of it, you have done a great job getting in that pool run! I have not been motivated to do mine this week.

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    1. I think you get a lot of pleasure out of your bike rides. I wish I had a cross training activity that I liked, but they’re all a chore to me. I hope your runs start to feel better so you can enjoy them again!

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  13. Here’s some mundane sparkle. Our dryer works. It dries clothes completely. For years we had a dryer that took forever and only sort of worked, but I just did all of our laundry for the week in four hours and it’s because our dryer is efficient. I get a jolt of joy every time I empty the dryer!

    I hope you’ll soon be able to get that running sparkle as often as you want it!

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    1. Ha ha, well that is a little mundane but I get it! Having a washer and dryer that work well REALLY make life better.

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  14. Positive news about your running, I hope that calf is finally better, third time lucky perhaps. I’m so curious, who/what takes all your photos? So many good action shots of running, yet you don’t mention a running partner.
    What makes my life sparkly is travel/exploring new places, and social catch ups with close friends and family. These days I don’t do either of those things as often as I used to, and sometimes I definitely feel in need of more sparkle in my life.

    Reply

    1. Sophie, I do not have a running partner! I have certain spots where I set up my phone- usually on a fire hydrant, and then I take a video of myself running, and then take a screen shot from the video.
      It’s hard to travel and explore when you have young kids, so I get it. You’ll get your sparkle back in time- it definitely gets easier.

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  15. I’m so glad your calf seems to be improving and you were able to run a bit! Hopefully it’ll stay happy and you can run more this week.

    Running definitely makes my life more sparkly as well! There’s been a little less of it the past two weeks as I’m tapering but I’m actually finding that I kinda enjoy the taper now — it feels good to cut back a bit after training hard for a few months. But I always get a little antsy during race week because I just want to get out there yet at the same time I’m anxious about the race!

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    1. Oh yes I know that feeling! Taper can be hard mentally. But it’s also exciting- I’m assuming your race is this coming weekend?

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  16. Yay for the sparkles! I’d be curious what those hip exercises are, as they’re probably something I should add to my routine. I lot of the Peloton Barre workouts have moves that include a lot of the PT stuff I was doing up until a year ago or so. They’re more fun doing them in a Barre workout than just on their own, LOL. A we all know, the PT stuff (and probably your hip exercises) are all things we SHOULD just do on the regular…but we don’t. You’d think we’d learn, right?

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    1. Yes I know! Those exercises are so boring, the minute I’m feeling better I forget all about them. Maybe I’ll learn this time? We’ll see…

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  17. I’m so glad to see that you’re easing back into running and it is pain free. FIngers crossed. I need to do some calf massage–that longest mile workout really did a number on them. I may even have to get a massage or dry needling…

    Reply

    1. Yes, get a massage! It will feel good. Hmm, maybe I can get a massage this week as well. Thanks for the idea!

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  18. I need running, reading and sleep – sadly the running is not great at the moment as I seem to have lost the impetus to do it. I hope that returns. We are sorting out That Room in the house where everything ends up and I should be able to get my recumbent bike / rower out again and use it which might help a bit. I’m just scared of my knee going painful when I’m somewhere inaccessible, then only get to run in boring places! Anyway, good work by you and lovely appearance by the kitty! Does she get bothered by you exercising in the pool? Mine came and shouted at me while I used the foam roller today …

    Reply

    1. Ha ha, my cats absolutely can’t leave me alone if I’m doing anything on the floor! I think they’re slightly puzzled and alarmed when I’m in the pool.
      Liz, I know that feeling- it is HARD coming back from an injury, not knowing if something is going to hurt or not. My calf is acting up AGAIN and I’m thinking of trying a run on the treadmill at the gym tomorrow- SO boring, but if it hurts I can just stop immediately and do something else. Sigh.

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  19. Glad to hear you’re feeling the sparkle again <3. I know how important that is…

    And all the AW-s at that cameo of Mx. Muffin!!

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  20. Eeeek! We are in it for the sparkle! I’m so happy for you! I fist pumped when I saw your title and my enthusiasm is going strong!

    Cautiously optimistic is good, but it sounds promising! Keep it up!

    Reply

  22. I have an awful feeling that the calf recovery was short-lived. Sigh. I hope that broadening your fitness perspective helps regardless of whether I am right or not! You are pushing through and doing the work – now your body just has to cooperate, darn it!

    Reply

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