Running in a Straight Line

Well well, it's been a while and I have to say that I've missed this space. The last month has been chockablock with work, business travel, life plans, with a reasonable measure of general malaise sprinkled on for that finishing touch. But some good shone through as well and that more than makes up for this tedious phase. I have finally been able to reach the 45-minute running mark. On the dreadmill (0.5% incline...just for the record), mind you. But what the heck, I’ve gone from not being able to run 30 seconds to a full 45 minutes! That’s B.I.G. and I’m thrilled to bits. Of course, for every good day, there are a few bad ones (and damn it, I can’t sit 5 minutes straight without a pillow under my butt), but I’m anxious to see how the piriformis behaves the day I take it out on a “real” run. Soon!

On that note, let me digress and jump to something far more interesting. I’ve been asked many questions about what it's like to run in India and if I could put up some pictures. Well, the best account I’ve read on this subject is the one written by the BF during his early days in India. So without much delay, here he is, recounting what it’s like to run in India, with a few pictures (not mine but they are the streets I run) of the city we live and run in…

India : Running in a Straight Line
Finally, a spare half an hour. Time to lace up the new shoes attach the iPod and go for a run. With a little OAR playing in the background and a water bottle in my hand, I am off. It starts off easy enough straight out of my flat, good pace, good energy…maybe 3, maybe 4 miles today. "Johnny doubled up with a royal flush, I had 3 jacks and a pair of nines…" I am ready to go.

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=362317&page=56

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=362317&page=56

And then I hit the street, a quick turn to the right to avoid the rickshaw followed by a stumble and a near ankle turn on the uneven pavement. On to the main street, each step adjusted just before it is taken in anticipation of the chaotic crowd movement…right, right, straight, left, jump over the stray dog…sometimes finding the hole…sometimes choosing poorly. A turn off the main street, ahhhh some clear area. I open up into full strides…."who's up for game three, I can barely see…"

www.sepiamutiny.com/sepia/archives/2005_08.html

I start pushing a little harder until I catch a tennis ball in the side. I turn my head to see a group of local kids doubled over in laughter as I just ran right through their pick-up cricket match. I turn off the road down a path and through one of the local slums. I cut back and forth through the people while absorbing the observing eyes of the crowds. I make one more turn and there I am, at a dead end and exhausted. 3 to 4 miles, no, but in India's true nature, it challenged my mind and it challenged my body, and in the end I got what I needed. It just didn't look like what I had envisioned.

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=362317&page=56

There are a million experiences to write about after just a short time here. India will assault your senses with the mass of people, the poverty, the traffic, the extortion, the pollution and don't get me started with sitting in a government office for days. It will overwhelm your senses with the charm of the people, the festive nature, their loyalty, their spirit, the colors, and incredible ties to family.

But the most enduring of many incredible things about India is that it can teach the ego a profound and humbling lesson. No matter the education level, no matter how well traveled an individual is, if they think they have humanity figured out, my suggestion is go take a run in India. Nothing happens in a straight line.

Recovery: Week 2 day 1

Since I misbehaved on Saturday and my piriformis won't make peace with me, I decided to make up by keeping today's workout sober. It was lower body strengthening day in any case, so all I had to do was keep the running in check.

Here how the session went:

Treadmill: 20 minutes walk/run (14 minutes run)

Free squats: 2x15
Standing lunges: 2x15
Seated leg press: 2x15
Calf press: 2x15
Seated calf press: 2x15

Leg curls: 5 reps > crazy sciatic pain > abandon
Toe raisers: 3x15
Leg raises on decline: 3x15
Glutes on machine: 2x15
Hip adductor/abductor: 2x15

Stretch routine with some yoga asanas sprinked in.

Tomorrow is cardio day and I promise not to be silly.

Recovery: Week 1

Since I started with the physical therapy sessions, I’ve gone from being an injured couch potato for 2 months to kick-starting a workout schedule at the gym, including cross-training, dreadmill walking (yeah yeah), and a weight training regimen specially planned keeping in mind the piriformis.

In spite of the torture of starting afresh, I have to admit that getting back into an exercise regime has been the best thing ever! I don’t feel so useless (and hopeless) anymore. Nevertheless, learning to walk before running has been hard and over the last couple of days, I managed to hit both extremes of the emotional barometer.

A few days into dreadmill walking got me wired up and since there was no discernable pain, I cranked up the speed to a fast walk just short of breaking into a jog. The next day, I jogged for 10 minutes. Of course, I could still feel a slight pinch at the back of my thigh, but it was a far cry from the excruciating hurt I had felt for the past few months. So far, so good. On day three, jog turns into a run. Slow and on the dreadmill, but a run nevertheless! And 30 minutes too. How cool is that!

And now, here's the part where reckless enthusiasm gets in the way of caution and sound logic. If 30, then why not 45? I think there’s a very good explanation for why not. But no, stupid me had to give it a shot. Of course I finished the run and of course the piriformis revolted. So I’m back on the couch for today, in pain but wiser.

Note for the future: When injured, curb the enthusiasm!

The search is over

A B.I.G. announcement is in order: After much consternation and failed medication trials (thanks to the uncertainty of the ortho), I unraveled the "dead leg" mystery. Acute piriformis syndrome. Phew!

So it’s been a combination of various treatments for the last two weeks. I’m still on the medication prescribed by the fancy neurosurgeon and I have to say it has helped reduce the pain dramatically. But this time round, I’m also working with a super cool physical therapist (it was she who first suggested the piriformis syndrome) to include:

Interferential Therapy
This uses electrical stimulation for pain relief, muscle stimulation, increased local blood flow, and reduction of oedema. My therapist straps on electrodes along the pain path down my leg and shoots electric impulses over 20 minutes, increasing the voltage every 2-3 minutes, as the muscles get used to the stimulation. It tingles and can feel a little weird when a muscle twitches, but leaves you with a deep-tissue massage after-feeling. Fabulous!

Short Wave Diathermy
SWD is a high frequency alternating current that produces heat for deep tissue heat treatment. So, I sit my ass cheeks (targeting the piriformis muscle) on 2 heated pads and lay like that for about 10 minutes. This feels so damn good; I’ve snoozed off on more than one occasion!

Stretch Routine
A set of stretches that specifically target the piriformis and other surrounding muscles, and the spine. I hold the stretches for 10 counts and do 5 reps of each. This is something I’ve been advised to weave into my everyday post-workout routine.

So that’s what I’ve been doing for the past few weeks and I’m happy to report that it’s all paying off! The pain is diminishing and I’m finally on a slow but sure recovery path. Can I just say "woohoo"? Woohoo!

10 things happy

So I got tagged by the Redhead a few days ago to write about 10 things that make me happy and I have to confess this has been one of the funnest blogs I've written. So here goes...

The Boyfriend

One of the reasons why I’ve mellowed out over the years. He’s an amazing person who is always by my side and encourages me to go the extra mile (running included).

Running Blogs
Ever since I discovered the world of running blogs, I have been a happier person. It‘s my daily dose of inspiration, encouragement, discovery, and support. I am so happy to be able to share the joy and pain of running (and life) with everyone out there. Thank you!

Strength Training

I love love love weight training! I was a gym nerd before transforming into a running nerd and I still love the “after feeling” of a heavy duty strength training session. Not to mention the sheer joy of seeing your body shape up beautifully!

Random Verses
Words have always had a way with me and I confess there have been times when I let hope hang on to a few. It’s amazing what the power of beautifully fashioned words can do to your emotions…


To the Moon - PB Shelley
Art thou pale for weariness
Of climbing heaven and gazing on the earth,
Wandering companionless
Among the stars that have a different birth, --
And ever changing, like a joyless eye
That finds no object worth its constancy?

Home-style Indian Food

Dal (lentil), roti (Indian bread), sabzi (vegetables), and tandoori chicken…I miss it all and I get cranky if I live without it for too long.

My Home
I love the home that the boyfriend and I share. Although, we still have boxes to unpack and fixtures to fix, it’s ours, it’s warm, and it’s full of love.

My Friends
Over the years, they have come and gone, some stayed in touch, and some exist just in memories. But to all I’m thankful, because without them, I’d never have had the life I did.

Shopping
Yes, I’ve always been a girlie girl, shopping is my release, and I’m attracted to all things pink or gray or pink and gray. The only thing my female shopping buddies find odd about me is that I find running tights sexier than minis. Obviously, they are not runners.

Generosity of Strangers
It makes me happy to think that there are good people in this world. I don’t know what I would have done without the girls who accompanied me halfway home one night when I was being followed by a drunk man; or the college student who offered me his standby fuel when I ran out of mine and didn’t even let me pay for it!

Running

We all run for different reasons and yet we’re often unable to rationalize why we do. I’m not going to explain this one, but I will say that it’s the one thing without which I feel totally miserable.

Run strong everyone!

The warmest white Christmas ever!

All said and done, I've ended 2009 fabulously. Not only did I train for and run my first half marathon, I wrapped it up with an awesome family vacation to Chicago and beyond.

Here are some pictures from then...

A limo pick-up at Chicago! I wish I was half awake to enjoy it though. The 30+ hours journey was a killer.

Someday I'll be pounding the streets of Chicago

The Bean

With my parents in front of the Milwaukee Art Museum

One of the numerous pretty brooks in Waupaca. Seriously, snow makes everything look so lovely!

Even saw some solitary joggers! And I'd get overly excited everytime I spotted one. Should have gotten a picture :(

A fireplace to warm my back and a fabulous brandy slushie to get into the Christmas spirit :)

My first traditional Christmas lunch ever...everything was so yummy!

Opening gifts with the family was so much fun...first time again

At the Packers game (I swear I was the only colored person there) with the boyfriend and his dad. Now, how many Indians can claim to have done this, at Lambeau no less? Ooh check out those mighty mittens!

Boyfriend's dad helps my dad walk onto the frozen lake. My mom needed no help though, she literally ran out (this trip was her first exposure to snow)!

The boyfriend packing in enough for a brutal facewash. Check out the wicked grin. And yes, it was brutal.

The NYE party. The hostess is a marathoner and needless to say, we discussed IT bands and foam rollers. Perfect party conversation.

The nerve

Wow something to write about. Finally! Here's an update on the relentless search for the cause of my mysterious leg/hip injury, a source of much pain and despair over the past several months.

Scene 1
After much delay, brooding, and hours of pouring over running injury sites (during work hours), I have my lumbar spine X-rays examined by the chain-smoking ortho (he looks like a wreck but is ironically one of the best in town…hmm). No stress fractures, no disc abnormalities. Nada.

I say, “So the next step would be an MRI, right?”

Chain-smoking ortho says, “Yes, and I bet nothing will come out of it.”

I say, “Hmmm.”

Scene 2
I’m laying in the scan room, with nothing but a green robe on. They plug cotton balls into my ears, “because the noise is deafening.” Not cool. Then they proceed to strap my head, arms, and legs. Not cool again. Into the scanner I go. The next 30 (yes, 30) minutes are pure agony. MRI scans are serious torture.

Scene 3
Ortho looks at the MRI scans.

“Like I told you, nothing.”

I nod and burst out, “It’s getting worse! I’m worried the ibuprofens won’t work anymore…I’ve taken so many!”

To which he replies (I think I see him getting serious now), “I suggest you see this neurosurgeon…”

Scene 4
This neurosurgeon is fancy. The waiting area is designed like a new-age meditation resort. I’m certain he’s going to charge by the alphabet. I go in, he asks questions, I answer, he bends and flexes my legs, I cooperate.

Finally he speaks, “I’m pretty sure your S1 nerve is pinched.”

“How might that have occurred?” I ask.

“Any sudden movement, although this usually occurs when you bend forward and pick something heavy. And you made it worse by not resting it.”

This is when I ask the dreaded question. “Will I be able to go back to running?”

“Of course, but first you must give it 3-4 weeks of complete rest. No strenuous exercise and no running.”

Is this it? Did he nail it? I'll take it if he did!

Right now, as I sit here with an ugly, uncomfortable lumbo-sacral binder around my waist, my thoughts drift to the anguish of going back to the ‘starting line’. Yes, the leg still hurts. Yes, I’m going to have to start by shedding the weight. Yes, training for a marathon seems far-fetched. Yes, I can’t even begin to map out this year’s races.

Nevermind all that, for now, I'm pinning my hope on the S1 nerve.