Knocking Knees

I went to see my PCP this week, really for an annual physical but I had a few things I wanted to discuss with her - namely my knee pain.

Overall, other than being overweight, I am not terribly unhealthy. I don't have diabetes and my A1c% is quite nice. My cholesterol isn't bad with only a slightly elevated LDL and everything else well within range. My thyroid is completely borked but that is nothing new, I've had hypothyroidism/Hashimoto's Thyroiditis for something like 20 years now. It's pretty well controlled with medication.

I told her about my new exercise routine and goals, and that my knee pain has been keeping me from pushing myself because I didn't want to make anything worse or permanent. She said while running is often hard on knees, she certainly doesn't want to discourage me from doing something I enjoy and keeps me active. She agreed that icing and ibuprofen were good fixes for the time being, and is sending me to a physical therapist for some tips and tricks to help. It shouldn't be anything long term, but they can show me stretches and things to help with the pain.

INTERESTINGLY enough... when I got home I was scheduled to do a walk that evening. But it was raining and I really didn't want to get wet outside, so I got on the trusty treadmill. At first I started walking for my warm up. No pain.

Then I started fast-paced walking. No pain.

"Hmm," I thought to myself. "I wonder if I can try a little jogging, see how it goes?" So I jog a little. I decide to put the treadmill up to a 1.0 incline, because I know from running outside that downward running hurts my knees badly with such jarring impact. Maybe an ever-so-slight uphill would help the impact not be so tough? Still, no knee pain.

So I decide to attack my interval run/walk, and when my knee first started to give problems, I would stop or slow down to a quick walk.

No. Knee. Pain. Y'all, NO KNEE PAIN.

So I kept my 1.0 incline, and did 1:1 run/walk intervals at 4.5mph/3.0MPH and I completed a great 30 minute run! And I did not want to collapse afterward like I had in the past with my stupid knees. I didn't need to grab my icepacks immediately. I did some basic knee/leg stretches and have not had any significant pain for three days now. It's so wonderful getting back to my non-crippled self.

Of course all this AFTER I made my appointment with the physical therapist. 😂 That's just Murphy and his dumb stupid Law right there. I'll keep the appointment though, I'd like to see what else I can do to help that pain if it should come back, and any other tips I can garner to help my progress.

* * * * * * *

Today was a Strength Training day so I went to the gym and worked on machines. I was a little slow at it because I am learning what machines do what and how they work. But I did an elliptical warm up for 10 minutes, 45 minutes of strength training, followed by 14 minutes on a mini-run. And then a little of the hydro-masager. Goodness, the monthly dues are worth it just to lay on that thing.

Side note: the treadmills at Planet Fitness are bomb. Better than mine at home!

I printed out my 5K to Half Marathon workout plan, and can't wait to get all this into my Erin Condren day planner. This might be the only time I actually CONTINUE to use it. Having a plan and knowing I need to do X on Y day, really gives me focus. And if I know I have it planned, I won't sit down on the couch and fall asleep after work, as Old Me did. 😊

I signed up for this Rock N' Roll Half Marathon in December. I have a virtual 5K (my first official one, with a medal!) with my NYAR group. I am so excited to work on ME.

Let's Do This

I decided to start a blog to document my running progress, and so that I wouldn't bore the tears out of any of my Facebook friends who don't care about running. Because I know they are out there... I used to be one. ;)

So a while back I decided that I needed to do something about my weight and fitness. I'm 40 years old and overweight. It's not going to get easier to do as I get older, right? Other than my weight and some mildly elevated blood pressure I'm not super unhealthy. My A1c is good, my cholesterol isn't bad, my kidneys appear to be doing their job, my thyroid is borked but medication helps that sad sack function somewhat.

I can't recall exactly how I stumbled on it, but I came across the Not Your Average Runner Facebook group and was intrigued. I'm certainly Not Your Average ANYTHING, so what is it all about? I believe the tagline went something like "If you're middle age, plus size, and want to run but don't know if it's possible, then this is for you!" And it showed a running coach built LIKE ME. Not a slender, fit model in their 20s. Someone who understands the ins-and-outs of running as a plus sized woman who isn't 20 anymore.

I discovered she has books (a basic running guide, training for a 5K and a half marathon! And a podcast! Now, up until this podcast I hadn't really gotten into them. I've listened to a few here and there but nothing stuck. My husband (referred to as DH in here from here onward) listens to them all the time, but they never just got me hooked I guess. Let me tell you. The Not Your Average Runner podcast has 80-something episodes as of this writing and I am allll caught up in about two weeks of listening in the morning, on my way to work, while working out... excellent stuff.

The author, Jill Angie, is my kind of people. She is funny, she's practical, she swears a little. She gives practical advice, she interviews normal people who ride the Struggle Bus just like I do. She's REAL. I love it.

So I started running on the treadmill, mostly because I didn't want to go outside to do it. I didn't want to wear running pants and a tank top outside. I'm fat, no one wants to see that out there. Through her podcast, I found the confidence to say "F*ck that, I'll wear what make running more comfortable." After all, some teenage boy cat-calling you if sooooo original, isn't it?

Spoiler alert: No one has done that to me yet. Nor have they crashed their car because of my pasty white fleshy arms.

She had a Run Your Best 5K challenge starting March 4th, and I joined. It was basically a Couch To 5K plan, but more reasonable. I quit C25K in week 4 because it was too hard. It's not realistic for many people because they increase too quickly. I mean, I can run for a while, especially for a fat girl, but that was so hard and I stopped.

Now, I've developed knee pain which I am in the middle of deciding if it's equipment (treadmill/? Shoes?), just being overweight, or my gait/stride. If I ice my knees after a run I do fairly well. But yesterday evening I got on the treadmill to get some extra steps and I had to stop after reaching my low goal because my knees were on FIRE. Iced, ibuprofen, slept. Felt pretty dang good this morning! No stiffness, nothing! So I learned that I need to work on strength training some to help ease that pain. Because not being able to do things has always annoyed the crap out of me.

Anyway, I'm hoping to use this to chronicle my progress. :) I hope if you stumbled upon this, that you enjoy it! :)