In January, I threw my back out. I wasn't working out at the time, I was literally just bending over. Just like the older people in the movies do. I had just gone outside for a walk with the dog in the cold weather and I guess my back got cold, so when I got home it felt tight and I decided to bend over to stretch it. That was a BAD idea. I got stuck and Alec had to keep me from falling over. The worst part about it was that I was completely unable to workout. Right after I had gotten to my 8 mile marker, I had to just stop. I felt so helpless and honestly, lazy, because I just could be active.
So, after about a week, I was feeling better so I made the executive decision to go back to the gym for my regular schedule. IT WAS SOOOO HARD!!!! I felt like all of the stamina that I had built up just disintegrated in a week's time. My legs felt tight and my knees were warm and sore, and I started sweating after only a few moments on the treadmill. Part of my regular exercise is also doing strength training, and I went to do the weights that I had been doing and I got so frustrated because I had to go back a level on almost all of them. It is amazing how quickly my arms lost the tone and strength that I had built up.
One of the things that I noticed was that when you take a break off from running, you can expect a really difficult first run, but then your body quickly gets back to where it was. While the first two days were excruciating, the end of the week with running was almost like I hadn't stopped. (I wish the strength training was like that). Thankfully, I had worked with a trainer a few times and he offered to help me rehab a bit and get back into shape. The first big thing that we did was come up with a smarter plan for my daily workouts. Before the injury, I would bike for a few minutes to get my blood flowing, then go right into strength training making sure to work different muscle groups each day. After the injury, I had to force myself to allow extra time to fit a stretch in, and make sure that I stretched at the end as well. I also have to make sure that I am ALWAYS warm before I attempt to stretch.
Some people have told me that it is really not necessary to stretch, but I can honestly say that after feeling the tightness in my back, it is a very necessary part of any vigorous exercise. The key is being warm first. I guess I would put it like this: if you are going out for a cold run and have no time to warm up before you run, just go for it and stretch afterwards. BUT, if you have the time to warm up and then stretch or even do yoga, go for it! You will feel more flexible and more loose after you are done.
Ok so that's enough of my health lecture.
To get back to the training...
In January, my Aunt Janet asked me about my interest in running a half marathon. I had never run any races before, and had no idea what kind of fundraising would go into it, so I just figured that I'd go for it. We originally were supposed to go to a meeting and had planned to meet for some dinner prior to the event, but on the day of it got cancelled due to snow! I think I then got a little discouraged and started to doubt myself and my capabilities. Time can be dangerous when you let yourself really think about what you can do. The daunting task of running and fundraising seemed to be too much for me to handle, so I basically had decided that I wasn't going to go through with it.
Then my aunt and I talked about setting up a one-on-one meeting with the team leader and I thought, well maybe she will just tell me about the program and I will participate the next time it comes around. I think you all have figured out where this is going...
We met with Jillian, our AMAZING coordinator, and one of the coaches at Panera in Pikesville. From the moment I walked in, all I could think about was how terrifying fundraising was going to be. And then I saw the total amount that we had to raise and I wanted to run away immediately. Thankfully, Jillian and Aunt Janet both seemed really hopeful about the different way that I could raise money. My aunt even said "hey Sara, you're a singer, why don't you have a recital?" I also started to understand a little more about just what kind of cause we were representing.
They started talking about the different experiences that people had with Crohn's or Colitis, and I was immediately regretful of my selfish concern about fundraising. I heard about the young children that were honorees for this years race, and all I wanted to do was to tell them that there is hope for their future. The mere thought of a young 7 or 8 year old child going through the process of being on a feeding tube, or spending months out of school, or having to take 20 pills a day was heartbreaking. It is very true that people in our society shy away from discussing digestive disorders because they may feel embarassed about it, and that is such a shame. That is one of the other reasons that I decided to sign up for this cause. The more people out there who are aware of these diseases, the less embarassing they could be, and the more likely it will be for someone to find a cure. Because, even though many people may go years without having symptoms, they say that they are never cured. There is always a chance of a flare up, and when those happens it can mean years of pain and suffering.
Needless to say, I signed up. I committed to raising $2300 towards the cause. So far, I am about 1/3 of the way there. It is still really scary to think about the fact that if I do not raise the money, I will be responsible for paying the remaining amount, or I may not even be able to run at all. But, with all of the support that I have and with the few ideas that I have come up with, I am hoping to make it past my minimum goal.
Lastly, I wanted to end with giving a little recap of how our first run went! We met at the NCR trail (or railroad trail as some call it) at the Papermill Road entrance. I was sooooo nervous and tired (I was just getting a sinus infection that would later become an ear infection that I am still fighting)! It was only 7:30 when I got there, and I saw everyone standing around in a group and I just sat in my car trying to get up the nerve to get out. When Aunt Janet got there, I breathed a sigh of relief! We met in the group and tried to stay warm by moving around a bit. It was about 32 degrees. Then, my mentor Jessica started by having us all introduce ourselves and we played some games to share why we were there. Finally, they talked to us about what type of clothing we should be wearing and the course that we were going to run for the 3 miles.
The course was interesting to say the least. Apparently there was some ice and snow still on the NCR trail, so we set course through a neighborhood that is right down the road from the trail entrance. A very HILLY neighborhood to say the least. Also, I don't know if any of you remember this, but it was the Saturday with 50mph wind gusts that blew down trees and power lines. So that added a whole new level of dedication to the mix.
I ran with Aunt Janet for the first 1/3 of the miles and then I just felt like I had to go a little faster because I was getting cold. I really wanted to keep pace, but my body was not agreeing with me. I feel like the most exciting thing was going uphill and feeling my legs working to stay warm. I also had to keep blowing my nose into my gloves that I had taken off (gross!). I felt so hardcore in those moments. My fun moment of the day was when I was running up the steepest hill and there was a wind gust...I felt at that moment that I was running in place, and not making any forward movement. When it finally ended it was like I took off because there was no resistance meeting me.
When the run was over, we had time with everyone to stretch and meet with our mentors and the other participants. I guess that is when I started to first feel like I was really part of this team. I felt inspired to go out and do my daily runs with gusto! I even went home and mapped out a longer course that I ran outside the following week.....next up: Run 2, a new gym, and hip problems.
XO
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