Mud Helps You Recover

I dropped the ball on two awesome photo-ops today.  I'll regret both of them forever.

First, today was the day I went back to running.  I was a bit nervous about it.  Would it hurt?  Would my legs give out?  Would I hate it?  Shelby and I decided to do a trail run together so we could rehash the marathon (so we don't drive everyone else crazy). I distinctly remember Shelby messaging me, saying, "Do you think we'll be ok on the trails with all this rain?"

My reply, "Pssshh.  We'll be fine."  Remember that.

On the way to Pine Hollow, I saw a gigantic, beautiful bald eagle light on a tree branch right next to the road.  I pulled over and got out of the car to take the picture, and a car came speeding by in the opposite direction and scared him away.  He was gorgeous.

This is EXACTLY how it looked, except there were no mountains, and no snow.

Shelby and I ran the Wetmore Trail; we had only run it once when it was very hot.  Today felt just right, in the high 50s, but it was definitely muddy and wet.  We found out just how wet it was when it came time to ford the first stream.  There was a flat rock in the middle with water swirling over it, and we figured we'd just get the bottoms of our shoes wet, so we sucked it up and stepped in.  No biggie.

At another crossing, we used some rocks and logs; my right foot slipped and I went in up to my knee.  Funny; no biggie.

At the next crossing, there was really not much help.  We saw two potential places to wade; one looked relatively shallow and had a log crossing.  I told Shelby, "Just cross on that log or walk through.  It's not deep; you can see the bottom. You go first."  She carefully put her foot on the log, slipped, and fell right in the stream.  I managed to ask her if she was ok before I started laughing, and the two of us were laughing so much I forgot to take a picture, dammit.

This is EXACTLY how Shelby looked falling into the stream.  We always run trails while wearing string bikinis.

After that crossing, we ran through a large puddle, and I lost a shoe.  I had to walk back through the puddle and pull the shoe out of the sucking mud, and it wasn't easy.

All in all, we both had our share of mud today. Mud heals, right?

We did four miles on the Wetmore Loop and called it a day, but I wasn't ready to call it a day just yet. I think part of the reason why the run felt good to me was that I was running in my Bondi Band compression socks.  I've worn compression calf sleeves on the trail before, but today I decided to go for the whole shebang, and I really liked it.  I should have taken a picture (so I guess that's THREE shots I missed) because they were the pink argyle socks, and I looked super-cute, if I do say so myself.  Remember, Peeps, that I am a Bondi Band Ambassador, so if you want to order some compression wear (or headbands) of your own, you can use my code (TroubleRun) for a 10% discount.  Click here to check out the possibilities. Anyway, I felt really good, so on the way home I stopped at Hampton Hills and added another mile and a half. THIS time I remembered to take a picture:

You know what else heals (besides mud, compression socks, and trail running)?  Massages.  Today I'm going for a massage so I can recover from the marathon.  I've been foam rolling and doing yoga and strength training all week, and now I'm ready for a little muscle love.  Based on previous experience, as I am a very tightly-wound person, I suspect that the massage itself will NOT be relaxing, but I will be very glad in a few days that I got it done.

How did you recover from your fall race, Peeps?  Are you back at the running thing?  Have you taken any mud baths?

Speaking of mud baths, next week I'll be posting from a guest blogger on how to treat your running clothes.  Until then, run happy, Peeps!

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Treat Yo Self

Today I had to take a personal day from work in order to take my daughter to the doctor.  That is possibly the first personal day I've taken in over seven years.  I get four days a year, and I never take them.  I almost never take sick days; in fact, the only times I am ever absent from school is for professional leave, so I'm still working when I'm not there.  It may be because of this:

Anyway, many people have pointed out to me that this isn't healthy or normal, and I totally agree.  I still wasn't happy about taking the day off, but it occurred to me that since I had to, I might as well enjoy myself.  So, today is (guilty) pleasure day.  Here is what I did to take care of myself after the doctor's appointment and dropping my daughter off at school:

1.  Starbucks Tall Java Chip Frappuccino.  Hey, my daughter got one, too, so it was really about the bonding.

Aaah, the Frappuccino.  330 calories of caffeine and deliciousness.

2.  Tempo run in a different than usual place.  I ran the Towpath in the Valley in an area that was relatively flat so that I couldn't wussy out on the tempo run.  1 mile warmup @ 10:00/mile, 3 miles between 8:50 and 9:00/mile, 2 miles cooldown.  I felt really good about this.  I think it was the frappuccino.

3.  Not blow-drying my hair.  Ladies, is it just me?  I'll do just about anything to get out of drying my hair.  Today I braided it right out of the shower.  Done!

4. Lunch!  Subway Footlong Veggie Delite on Honey Oat.  Give me ALL the vegetables, and don't skimp on the spinach! Don't look at me like that; YES, I said FOOTLONG.

Oh, Subway. How I love thee.

5.  Makeup.  I stopped by the Bare Minerals store because I needed some supplies.  I tried to look as desperate as possible (no makeup, hair in French braid and headband), but I didn't get a free makeover.  I did get a free sample of something, though.

6.  Massage.  This is a real guilty pleasure for me.  Massages are necessary for runners, but I rarely get them because of the time commitment and the price.  I have a secret, though.  I go to the relaxation station at the mall, and I am able to get my massage without an appointment.  Today I got a combination of reflexology and then a table massage.  Fully-clothed, Peeps, it was the mall after all.  Anyway, I forgot how much tension I carry in my back and neck until the masseur started kneading away and then HOLY GOD!  To broadly paraphrase (or maybe just reference) one of my favorite characters in Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City (Michael), it's gotta be really bad if you can name your knots.

I tried to look up my sore spots, but really, it was all sore.  I am a hot mess.

7.  Lastly, tea.  I am sitting here alone in a silent house with a mug of hot tea.  I have about ten more minutes until my daughter comes home, and then about fifteen minutes after that when my son gets home, and then my world will become chaos again.  Sigh.  It was fun while it lasted.

How do you treat yourself, Peeps?  Maybe you should consider signing up for the Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon Challenge Series!  Join me, and we will treat ourselves to a fun time and beer.  Oh, yes.  There will be beer.

Until then, run happy, Peeps!

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