Ah, this was a week of so many things- Strength, hope despair… well, maybe “despair” is too strong a word- it never got that bad! But there were some definite ups and downs. Thanks as always to Kim and Deborah for hosting… let’s get into the details.
Sunday
The week began so hopefully! I started with a 1 mile walk and then a 3 mile run… unfortunately my calf issue persisted. I tried some run/walk intervals, but it didn’t make any difference. That painful pulling feeling wouldn’t go away.
In the afternoon I was feeling pretty down, so I decided to do a lower body strength workout from the Sally McRae app. It made me feel SO MUCH BETTER, and I decided that since I wouldn’t be running this week, I would do a strength workout every day. The “Week of Strength” begins!
Monday
But I didn’t want to do ONLY strength… I need my cardio fix. I started the day with a 45 minute pool run…
… and then after work fulfilled my strength requirement by doing the Caroline Girvan deadbug workout.
Tuesday
Gym day! I did 30 long minutes on the stair climber, and then upper body strength. I haven’t done bench press in a long time, and it was immediately apparent.
Wednesday
In the morning I did a 3 mile walk, where I sadly did not set any new walking PRs.
Later in the afternoon I did an upper body “pull” workout.
Thursday
Leg day at the gym! All the usual moves, but I really focused on squats. I hate them.
In the afternoon, I had a dry needling treatment on my calf!!! The PT did a full evaluation first, and told me I need to stretch my IT band (or, more accurately, the muscles around my IT band- IT bands aren’t meant to stretch) and strengthen my piriformis on both sides. Yes, ma’am! Now please stick those needles in.
I’m very hopeful this is going to help me, and I made another appointment for next week. Meanwhile I’m stretching and strengthening those muscles!
Friday
I had been sleeping poorly for the last several nights, so I decided to switch things up. I slept later in the morning, then did the CG deadbug workout before going to work.
In the afternoon, I did a 45 minute pool run. A couple people asked about my flotation belt… you can see it here. I think I got it on Amazon? It was years ago, and not expensive. It works just fine though.
Saturday
Well, the “week of strength” fell apart today, unless you count the PT exercises for my piriformis. No? Then this was just a day off.
Sunday
The PT warned that my calf might be a little sore after the treatment, but not to worry as it was a good thing- in this case, pain=healing. But she recommended no-impact activities for the time being, so on tap for today- an exciting pool run! Sigh.
It was a hard week because I don’t like not running. But, the extra workouts helped my mood tremendously, and I feel like I’m moving in the right direction with the dry needling. So- onward!
How was your week? Any unusual ups or downs?
Strength of cardio? – I’m obviously a cardio addict, but I have to admit those strength sessions helped my mood this week.
Top photo by Victor Freitas on Unsplash
30 Responses
Oh we’re now the IT band twins. And piriformis twins. Deep joy, right?
Ha ha… getting needles stuck in your IT band is not fun! But I’ll do anything to fix things. Honestly I don’t think my calf issue is related to the IT band/piriformis, but I agree I need to some to get things back in alignment.
My ups and downs are more weather related. The relentless rain is putting a damper on my trail running (see what I did there?). I woke up at 5 to thunderstorms. It’s still raining, so it looks like I will take my shoes to the road once it stops. I don’t want to run in the mud.
Let’s hope for more ups than downs for both of us in the upcoming week!
Ha ha… putting a damper. Yes, that would be frustrating, and we’ll hope for a “week of ups” this time.
I know running is preferred, but it’s great to have options when you can’t. I hope the dry needling helps and know you will continue to enjoy the strength workouts!
Thanks Coco! I’ll definitely CONTINUE the strength workouts… “enjoy” might be a strong word here.
I hope the dry needling helps! It seems like a lot of issues come down to piriformus issues. That was a contributing factor to my torn labrum. But it seems like you do all the right things as you strength train quite a bit!
I’m about to head out for a 7 mile run. It stormed pretty much all day yesterday so I couldn’t run yesterday. And then we had a huge storm last night and lost power. It’s still off so I am hoping power is restored by the time I get back!!
Ack! I hope your power is back by now. And I hope you had a good run!
Yes, I do a lot of strength training (especially for the lower body) but I think the piriformis doesn’t get worked much unless you really focus on it and do specific exercises. And those exercises always seem to be uncomfortable, but oh well. I’ll do anything to be running again!
I hope the needling helps you-it has worked for me in the past. A week of extra strength always does a body good. I also did not run this week but mine was due to travel and now dealing with 100 degree temps. Hope this week goes better for you!
Thank you Deborah! Yes, you can never go wrong with strength training. That’s my motto anyway!
My fitness update for the week is that I am officially burned out on the treadmill and you couldn’t pay me to do the 30/12/3 workout. I did a couple of days of fast walking, but I just can’t get the intensity high enough so guess what I did next????
Jenny, I ran! For the first time since…I don’t even know how long it’s been besides over a year. I didn’t do much, just two miles of alternating 2 minutes run/1 minute walk. The real news is that I did not hate it, which has not been the case for a long time. Who knows how long I will keep it up, but I liked it and I plan to keep at it for now – as you know “for now” only means until I get bored/frustrated and move on to something else.
So anyway, now that I’ve had another taste of the goods, I really really really want you to have the same. C’mon calf get with it so that Jenny can run!!!!!
Thank you Birchie! AND, I’m excited that you ran! I sensed this coming up for you. Once you’re out there doing super fast walking it just seems like the next natural step to break into a nice, comfortable run! I’m very glad you enjoyed it, and I CAN’T WAIT to be out there as well.
Like Wendy said. Ups and downs related to weather.
You are very lucky to have a pool. Not the same but better than nothing.
The upside. Pool running is cooler than running in the heat.
I know- I have to remind myself how lucky I am to have a pool. If I had to GO TO A POOL to run, it would be a tremendous hassle (my gym doesn’t even have a pool so I would have to join a new gym? I probably wouldn’t do it.) And yes, I do have to admit that the pool is nice and cool, cooler than running in the summer heat.
You fit a whole lot of strength (and cardio) into this week! Hopefully that along with the dry needling helps you get back to running pain free!
My ups and downs are mostly about how HOT it still is. I know it’s summer but usually we don’t have this many days of excessive heat warnings! We did get some relief in the form of rain on Thursday and I was working from home that day due to the A/C being out at work and it was glorious to sit out on my patio listening to the rain and thunder. And I took my taper long run (10 miles) yesterday to the mountains where it was only 76 degrees at 11 am! It hasn’t been 76 degrees at any time of day in the desert for probably a month so it was a nice break from the heat, even though the steep technical trails kicked my butt!
Well at least you have the option of getting up into the mountains! I’m extremely jealous, although at this point I would take any kind of run, no matter how hot. Your talk about the heat is making me think about our upcoming trip to Waco- when we were there last August it was 110 every day. Ack.
When is your race?
My race is a week from this coming Saturday, eek!
Waco sounds very similar to here weather-wise. Hopefully it won’t be in the 110s for your trip this year!
I also vastly prefer cardio, although I do strength so as to not have crumbling bones in my future.
I hope the dry needling and PT work for you! Those things worked really well for me, so I feel hopeful for you.
Yes, I do strength so as not to have an entire crumbling body! But the bones are a big motivation for me.
As you’d imagine, strength week sounds like my cup of tea, but I also know that you want to run!
You hate squats? I had no idea! Why is that? I’m genuinely curious. I have a love-hate relationship with them myself (weighted squats, that is). Heavy squats are scary but afterwards, the feeling of achievement is fantastic. My biggest “up” this week has to do with squats!
I hope your calf gets better asap!
I think that’s what it is- heavy squats are scary for me. I know that’s so stupid- Wendy once pointed out that if worst came to worst, I could always just drop the bar down behind me. So it’s not like anything really bad is going to happen- they still feel scary though. Plus, my “heavy” is not really that heavy, so I have a secret inferiority complex while I’m doing them! I guess I’m making it way more complicated than it really is.
It’s not stupid at all! They ARE scary when you add more weight. There’s so much involved with squats in terms of stability, balance, core strength etc… Wendy is right that you could just drop the bar behind you, but I would feel awkward doing that! If there is a Smith machine or a squat rack with a good safety bar that helps! Could you do heavier squats with a Smith machine? Then the balance problem is out of question.
Also, you could try just adding a little more weight and see how it feels – maybe do fewer reps and more sets, I find that very reassuring now that I only need to do 6 at a time.
I don’t love squats, but I like them a lot more than lunges (though lunges are much less boring, LOL). I hope the dry needling works more magic for you! I’ve been down the piriformis road a few times, and it’s so UGLY.
The thing is, my piriformis doesn’t feel like it’s causing any problems- like it doesn’t hurt- but my PT thinks my problems are stemming from that muscle being weak (and my IT band being too tight.) So I’m doing all the exercises- but man, PT exercises are boring!
Sending lots of strength and hugs to you. Not being able to run sounds so frustrating especially as this calf issue is persisting. Well done for getting those walks, strength work and pool runs done though.
I did dry needling for my glute issue for a while. It was crazy because I would feel immediate relief and then it would be tight again within a half hour.
I’m not going to lie, Jenny. With my husband’s rhabdo diagnosis, I’m only half kidding when I say exercise is bad. I’m concerned that if what seemed like an entirely appropriate amount of exercise could have this impact on him, it could happen to me, too! I haven’t yet picked up a weight since he was hospitalized, so we’ll see when I get the nerve to do so.
I hope the dry needling keeps on the path to feeling good! I’m not sure if I’m having it done again or not, but wow, what a difference it made for me! Luckily I didn’t have to watch the needles going in because I was on my stomach. Did you watch it being done?
Yay needles!
That’s fabulous news that you’re getting treatment for your injured calf! I hope it recovers quickly and you’re out of that pool and running around your neighborhood and favorite trails again soon.
UGGGGGHHHH! Let’s hope this is the answer! I don’t want any more despair for you!
I am a mess without cardio. I haven’t been to the gym in two weeks and I don’t miss it, but if I missed two weeks of cardio, I would be feral..
I’m glad you have pool running but I also know it’s not the same.