I’ve been in a “blah” mood all weekend. The disaster in Japan (and those affected by the after-effects) is sad. I’ve spent some time in parts of Japan and I absolutely love the country, people and culture. This weekend was even more difficult for our Air Force Family. Yesterday I received the wake-up call that I have been dreading since I got into the Safety Profession. Its tragedies like these that make my job difficult; it brings out the worst in life but I hope that we can determine the “how and why” so we can prevent bad things from happening again…..
To top it all off, I learned the other day that there were several wildfires that broke out in my community back in Harrah, OK. Many people lost their homes and personal possessions. Our thoughts and prayers go out to you all. I’ve been consumed with these recent tragedies and I’ve been trying to figure out ways to help. I have a lot of friends in Japan and Oklahoma who are working their butts off to get things back to normal. Keep faith and hang in there!
For those who know me, you know that there are two things that I love to watch: College football and basketball (especially during the month of March). I’m watching the Big 12 tournament final last night (Texas vs. Kansas) and was rooting for the Longhorns (of course, “Hook ‘Em Horns). But let me be brief: it wasn’t even close….. I couldn’t bear to watch, so I got up out of bed then headed downstairs for a drink. All of a sudden, “boom, boom pow!” My back went out! I had to sit down to prevent further injury.
I was having severe back spasms (a recurring injury, from December) and was in extreme pain. For the past two weeks, I have been receiving back treatment from the chiropractor. The Doc said that the re-alignments would generate some soreness and discomfort afterwards. To date, I’ve not experienced this type of post-treatment pain (until last night). I was forced to take some pain meds and grab the heat pad. The Doc prefers an ice gel pack over heat; I didn’t have a gel pack at the time but will go out and buy one today!
Well, I got about 3-4 hours of intermittent sleep last night. I tossed and turned then finally got comfortable and fell asleep. I was feeling miserable last night but woke up pain-free this morning! I was tempted to go to the ER….. Anyways, today was a run day and I woke feeling like a "million bucks!” I can’t explain it. It’s as if someone flipped the pain switch off! I was ok with that….. So I continued on with my pre-run rituals (change, stretch, go).
I took off and was feeling a little sluggish. It was cold, with a temp of 35f (28f, wind-chill factor). It took a while for me to get loose and warm. I hung out in the warm-up loop for about 2 miles then finally got the courage to take off into the neighborhood circuit. I was feeling better after mile 3 and ate my first Gu Energy gel. I could immediately notice that it was kicking in (or it was psychological). I didn’t look down at my watch much today either; I didn’t care too….. I hit the 6 mile mark and reached for my 2nd Gu Energy gel….. It wasn’t there. That is the second time I’ve lost a gel pack! I am at a loss; I secure them on my SpiBelt….. That obviously isn’t working out for me…..
I hit my mark of 7 miles then decided to venture back out a couple of blocks over. I intended on trying to go one extra mile at a time. I reached 8 miles and decided that I could go for another….. And once I hit 9, I was thinking that I could hit double-digits! Well unfortunately, I “hit a wall” at the 9 mile mark and decided to walk the remainder of the way home. I was exhausted and ready to be home. I honestly don’t think that I am going to break sub-2 hour mark this May….. There’s no way. Hitting that wall made me wonder if my body is even built for all of this….. We’ll see. Thanks for the visit. I am tired but very pleased with my longest run of the year.
PS Today’s run puts me over 400 miles since my 2nd knee surgery (Oct 2009). And, I have two events this week: WPAFB St Patty’s Day 10K and Harrigan’s Tavern 5K fun runs! “Giddy up!”
PSS I’ve added some more info to my “Safety Page,” check it out and “be safe!”
Happy running and God bless!
"Fight the good fight, finish the race, and always keep faith"
2 Timothy 4:7
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