November Was Not Fun!

November was not a good month for running. It was a good month in all other aspects of life but when I am not running things just aren't the same. I did run the Las Vegas Half Marathon because my knee felt a lot better but after that race things returned to the same as they were before. It was not fun and I haven't ran since that race. I logged a whole 20 mile for the month of November. 

It was tough not running because the temperatures have really dropped and I really wanted to be out there enjoying it with everyone else. I miss the running club as well and seeing their Facebook posts makes me sad because I want to be out there running with them.

I have seen the my doctor and all of the tests didn't show any signs of a serious injury. Nothing is broken or torn but I have this pain on the inside of my knee cap. The only conclusion that they have come to is that I have runners knee and just need to rest it.

I started physical therapy last Friday and my knee felt a lot better the next day. My PT gave me 15 minutes of electrotherapy and she also did some ultrasound therapy as well. She showed me some strengthening exercises which are definitely for my quads and hips because those exercises left me feeling a little sore this week.

I was told that I can run but I haven't by choice. My knee usually hurts when I touch it or after I run but it has actually been pain free for a few days now. I am excited about it but at the same time I am willing to wait it out because I have no big races on the calendar. I want to be healthy and ready for 2015 so I know what I have to do to get myself there. PATIENCE!

There have been lots of positive things that have happened since I have not been running. I have done some things that I have been putting off around the house and I have spent more time with my family. It has also felt nice to have an open calendar and not have to worry so much about scheduling my life around my runs. I have sleeping a little bit more and I actually did all of my indoor Christmas decorating way in advance.

I have a lot to be thankful for so I have been keeping my head up and count my blessings. 

How was your November?

Have you started decorating or shopping for Christmas?

A Good Kind of Pain

My calves have been really upset with me! I think I may have pushed them more than I should have but it sure felt good doing it. Let's see how this might have happened...15 miles on Sunday and then a nice 6 miler on Monday. I rested yesterday and spent the day in my CEP's even though they did not quite coordinate with my business attire dress code at work. I don't think anybody really noticed my socks since I spent lots of time in my office hiding out working for the most part.

I have been icing my calves, using my Stick and also using my TENS/EMS unit so I think I might be on my way to recovery. They are feeling better today and tonight I have 7 miles on deck.  My last two runs went better than expected so it's kind of hard to pass up a planned run when everything feels so right. I guess I will see how I feel tonight and make an executive decision. I know that I have to be careful...

This is kind of unrelated but I am loving this bag from Lululemon right now. My friend Shawna brought it to work and gave it to me because she had an extra one. It was kind of exciting to get my hands on this bag without having to drop my life savings on a cute running outfit! 

Are you a Lululemon fan?

 If you have never shopped there it is best that you don't even start because it can be pretty addicting.  I made the mistake of signing up to receive their Tuesday morning lulu-grams that tempt you with all of the new stuff for the week!

Something New to Try

If you have been following my blog since my injury (yes, those dark and lonely days) then you may remember how I swore by the electrotherapy treatment that I was receiving in the end of my PT. The first five weeks of my physical therapy involved ultrasound therapy and it did absolutely nothing for me! It was frustrating! I wish I had started with the electrotherapy so that my healing process would have been a lot shorter. The good news is that I am now able to run pain free or else I would not be running. I know better now. Believe me! I do have some discomfort after my long runs but I think it may just be the normal soreness that is experienced after a long run. I say this because the pain goes away versus pain that lingers and gets worse like when I was injured. Big difference!! I decided to purchase a unit to try at home to help me with recovery and also for pain if I need it.  

It is a combo unit and can be used as an EMS (electrical muscle stimulator) or a TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulator).  The TENS unit is more for controlling pain while the muscle stimulator helps with muscle strength and recovery. I looked at some units that ranged from $400-$1000 and just could not afford something that expensive. I ended up purchasing a less expensive model that had really good reviews on the website. 

I have been busy reading up on it and figuring out how to use it and will definitely be trying it out after my long run this weekend. Hopefully it is beneficial for me and the results are positive.

Have you ever tried a TENS/EMS unit? Did you have positive results?

Ultrasound Therapy or H-Wave Therapy?

I had another physical therapy session today and I have two sessions left over the next month. Since I am making progress, I will now be going every other week. Today I did my strengthening exercises, speed walked/jogged 1.11 miles for 15 minutes and then had my beloved 15-minute H-Wave therapy/icing session.

This is my second session of H-Wave therapy and I really feel like it has done me some good.  I had the ultrasound therapy for the first five weeks of physical therapy and I am convinced that it did nothing at all for me. I have had a couple of comments from my small group of faithful readers who stated that ultrasound therapy did not work for them and they wanted to know if in the end it worked for me.  I am have to say "NO," it did NOT work for me. Each of us are different so it may work for you but I did not see any results. My PT also told me that if it was helping, I should have noticed something by week five.

Even though I am able to speed walk/jog these days, I still feel some sort of discomfort and not so much pain like I was experiencing when this whole nightmare first occurred. According to my PT this is normal as long as the minor aches and pains subside within a couple of days and do not get worse. 

I was given the go ahead to lessen the amount of time speed walking and increase the jogging time and the treadmill speed to 5.2! Although it is not where I want to be, I am thankful that I am making progress and able to do just a little more. There are days when I just want to get out there and go for a long run and those are the days that are the most difficult.  It's much easier to talk myself out of it these days because I have made some progress and I don't want to give that back!  I just can't do that!

A Meltdown, H-Waves and an Extension!

I was feeling pretty bad this morning about going to PT.

I guess I am just sick of being injured and not being able to run!

The pain is still lingering and the fact that the

LA Marathon is this Sunday did not help.

Today was the day for my re-evaluation at physical therapy.

The results would determine if I would need to continue 

with the physical therapy or not.

My PT will be running the LA Marathon this weekend.

All of the patients know about it and she was telling them

how great her training is going and how excited she is.

Great...just what I needed to hear.

My PT was asking how I was feeling and I told her I was frustrated.

I told her that I know that I am better but not 100%.

I told her that as long as I can't run, I don't consider myself better.

She started talking to me about the healing process..blah blah blah

and I had a meltdown!

I explained to her that it has been five weeks and I am done!

I even told her that perhaps I was misdiagnosed and something

more serious must be wrong.

Legally she cannot discuss my MRI with me and I have to consult
my doctor but she disappeared for a moment and then returned.

I am pretty sure she took a sneak peak at my MRI because

she told me that my diagnosis was correct and that I would be 

running soon but just need to be patient.

Soon, what does that mean?  A year?

She did lots of PT things to me today that she doesn't 

normally do.  Today she gave me a massage, ultrasound therapy 

and this..

It's called H-Wave and it's a form of electrotherapy.  It's supposed to
help with pain and healing.  I thought it was weird how it made my
leg jump around! It made me feel like it was working!

I think my PT felt sorry for me so she extended my treatment
for another 8 weeks because she said that she wants to see me
running before she sets me free!
The plan is alternating jogging and walking 
on the treadmill.
The highest speed I am allowed to do is 5.0!
That's some serious speedwork so watch out!

I have my last big exam to complete my degree this Saturday!
I will be so glad when it's over.
On Sunday, the LA Marathon will be broadcasted live so
I will be in my bed crying on Sunday at 7:00am in case you need me!
( I know, I'm such a complainer...I promise I will stop soon!)

My First Day of PT

Last Thursday was my first day of physical therapy.  Of course my physical therapist is also a runner and was telling me all about running the LA Marathon this year. She just had a baby six months ago via C-Section and is already  tackling the big 26.2!  Good for her, right? I have to admit that I didn't like her for about five minutes while she talked about running the LA Marathon, which I will have to sit out this year. I started to like her again when she told me that if I get better that I might still be able to run LA, but with minimal training I don't think I want to risk another injury.  Just as I convinced myself that I would sit it out, LA Marathon sends out an email with the 6-Week Marathon Training Plan!  Very tempting..let me tell you!!

In addition to several strengthening exercises, I will also be given ultrasound therapy which is supposed to reduce the healing time of certain soft tissue injuries. and has many benefits (Source):

• Ultrasound is thought to accelerate the normal resolution time of the inflammatory process by attracting more mast cells to the site of injury. This may cause an increase in blood flow which can be beneficial in the sub-acute phase of tissue injury. As blood flow may be increased it is not advised to use ultrasound immediately after injury
• Ultrasound may also stimulate the production of more collagen- the main protein component in soft tissue such as tendons and ligaments. Hence ultrasound may accelerate the the proliferative phase of tissue healing.
• Ultrasound is thought to improve the extensibility of mature collagen and so can have a positive effect to on fibrous scar tissue which may form after an injury.

Then I just laid in the bed and did some exercises to strengthen my hamstring. I have to do the exercises at home on a daily basis and have the ultrasound therapy for the next five weeks. I am supposed to rest for 4-6 weeks and it has already been two weeks and a day! I will stick to the stationary bike for now and slip in a treadmill workout once in a while. All I can say is that I am dying to go on a run!