Absenteeism

Hey guys…for those of you that read my blog, sorry that I have been absent the past few days. Last week was a pretty stressful week for me. Had some family issues come up, a car accident last Monday, and was busy with homework and studying for finals!! What a week. I have my psychology final tomorrow night, (which I will admit…I am NOT ready for at all), and my biology final on Wednesday (again, not ready!). It has been a pretty stressful quarter for me, as hubby and I are trying to get his business off the ground and survive in this terrible economy, so it has just been so hard for me to focus like I usually do on my studies. I haven’t been eating anything special and have forgotten to take pictures, hence..nothing to report. I haven’t even really had the time or energy to work out!! Soooo not like me! The knee is still killing me and I am just hoping that it gets better soon, I know that once I start running again I will be able to get balance back into my life. I REALLY NEED SOME BALANCE! I am really thinking about taking up yoga too but am not really that comfortable with doing it at my gym. Do any of you have suggestions of a good at home yoga program for beginners?? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Well, tomorrow I am going to study for my biology final with my dear friend Victoria and then hit Trader Joe’s for some groceries. Hopefully I will come up with some great food finds to share with you all tomorrow night, if I am not too busy studying for my final. I just love looking at all of your blogs and getting awesome food ideas! You guys really inspire me! Thank you!

Anyways…I am off to study some more and get ready to head to Starbucks for my study group.
I will hopefully be able to catch you all up on my good eats and activities tomorrow or Thursday!
Byeeee 🙂

A gentle reminder that the knee isn’t ready yet…

Well, as you know…or may not know, I somehow injured my MCL in my left knee about three weeks ago and have not been able to run.  Which has been no bueno!   I was getting ready to start my training for my first half marathon in August right when the injury popped up!  Dangit!  So, I have been good and have not been running but been crosstraining to make sure that I am still exercising….and can I just say that once you have become a runner, no other form of cardio compares in any way whatsoever!  Well, I decided that since it was a beautiful day today (35* and clear skies) that I would go down to the Tacoma Waterfront and attempt to at least get in a slow and easy 4 miles…it has been killing to not be able to run!  Finals are coming up and this is my one guaranteed stress relief.  So, I got dressed and ready after class and headed over there in hopes that since my knee hasn’t been bothering me that I could release some of this school related tension, not to mention all of the crap yesterday with my car accident!

So, off I went to the waterfront in my smashed up little hot rod, with high hopes and a smile on my face!
 

It was such a beeeeeautiful day today!! This is the view I get (well part of it) while I do my waterfront runs, which vary between 4 and 8 miles depending on the day.

My favorite pair of Brooks that are missing their weekly miles…

Well…I got started and told myself to take it slow and easy so that I wouldn’t stress the injury too much (since I thought it was pretty much healed), and for the first half mile or so I had an ear to ear grin on my face! I was so happy to be outside with the brisk wind hitting my face, the view of the dog walkers and the mom’s with their strollers, and the awesome smells of seafood and burgers from the restaurant that I passed, not to mention the feeling of freedom that running brings me, which I have missed so much over the past three weeks.
Well, that came to a screeching halt when I hit the one mile mark. The pain started to come on and I knew that I needed to stop and not run any further. I am a person that usually pushes through the pain, but this isn’t the kind you can push through, this is the kind that stops you in your tracks. So, I stopped and walked. I felt a bit embarrassed and my pride was a little smooshed. Here I am in my running gear just walking down the waterfront as the runners run by me with a question mark on their faces.
I decided since I was already out there and it was a beautiful day that I would walk to the 1.5 mile mark and then walk back….why not get some exercise since I was out there.
I am pretty disappointed but decided that if I want to heal and run my half marathon in August I need to just suck it up and take more time off. I am going to try it again at the beginning of next month and see how I feel. 😦
After I was done with my walk I headed home for a 3 hour study session and then went to the gym to get in a workout since my run was not completely successful. I managed to do 45 minutes on the elliptical trainer, 30 minutes of circuit weight training, and 15 minutes of a nice detox in the sauna. It was no comparison to running, but at least my legs work and I was able to get some exercise in.