Running Down a Dream
So, remember when I used to be a runner? Yeah, me neither. I know it happened. I have a long list of races. I have a marathon finisher medal and shirt. I have half marathon medals. I’ve done a 20K, a couple 15Ks, and quite a few 5 & 10Ks.
The last “official” race I ran was January 5. Before that, it was April of 2011.
Since catching a case of pregnancy in mid-2011, my running has been pretty crappy. I briefly rebounded last fall, even hitting a hilly and cold 10 miler in December. And then, everything started to hurt. My hips. My knee popped out in April during a spin class. My hips continued to hurt. And my tailbone region has been a source of great pain.
I have run a total of…48 miles in 2013. Seriously. I actually ran more miles in 2012 in the first 9 months of the year, and I didn’t run a single mile between January & June.
I keep making & breaking training plans. Part of it is definitely the discomfort. Everything hurts more now than it did in the old days (i.e. pre-6-weeks-pregnant days). Part of it is lack of motivation. Getting up early is hard, yo! Part of it is sheer and unadulterated laziness.
Finally, in July I decided that since everything still sucked, body-wise, that I would concentrate on losing the last of my baby weight and not start running again until I was back down to that magical number.
Last week’s weigh-in revealed that I am now within spitting distance of that weight. I’m still much heavier than I’d like to be, but I know I can run at this weight, because I was marathon training when I got pregnant and had a very successful 15 mile trail run the week after I found out I was pregnant.
This weekend’s Pacific Northwest weather didn’t necessarily seem conducive to re-starting a running program. Crazy winds and record-setting rainfall doesn’t say “let’s go for a run” to a lot of people.
But, after watching this little guy have a delightful time playing outside and splashing in puddles, I remembered how much fun Autumn running can be.
Post puddle-spashing wet baby…
So – yesterday morning, I headed out for a run. It was windy and a little rainy, but I had such a delightful time. Today I started PT to work on strengthening my core and pelvic floor to help relieve the sacral pain. I signed up for tennis lessons to get some cross training in this month. I’m even considering signing up for a race.
Follow me on social!
