Well, that settles it; it appears that the knee brace on my left leg is going to have to stay. I have no idea if the brace is actually helping; it could be that my body is beginning to get over the shock of my new running routine. Or simply wearing the brace could be providing some sort of placebo effect. I don't really know. What I do know is that my knee feels better today than it has with all my previous runs; so the knee brace stays.
As far as the tightness in my shin (same leg) I will have to play around and see what I come up with. It could be I need to stretch more, or perhaps I need insoles or a new pair of shoes altogether.
Whatever the solution may be I hope I find it soon because my last few runs have not been pleasant.
I will figure it out -- I have to. In only her second week of Girls on the Run, Tera has already worked herself up to the two and half mile mark. I must say, I'm impressed.
If I sound upset with my little set back, well, I'm not. Bumps, bruises, strains, scrapes, soreness and, God forbid, injuries are just part of the exercise gig. This is nothing that I haven't been through before.
I also need to make my occasional trip to the chiropractor. I can't explain why, but an adjustment to the spinal cord always takes care of my right arm whenever it starts to fall asleep on me. Like I said, for me anyway, physical setbacks are just part of the gig.
The mental benefits I receive from exercise makes all the aches and pains worth it. I'm not an expert and have no idea why, but I feel like I think so much clearer when I'm in shape. I'm a lot more confident and, generally, happier.
At no time are the benefits of exercise more evident than in the winter. I don't know if it's because it's darker longer or that I'm cooped up inside the house or what, but if I don't stay on an exercise routine through out the winter I really struggle emotionally.
Every winter I have to fight off the temptation to hole myself up in my room and sleep the day away. The less I exercise, the more tired I become. The more tired I become, the grumpier I get.
Over the winter, if I don't exercise, I will walk around the house all day like I just got up. Just saying good morning to me could likely result in getting your head bitten off.
So, as the days start to get darker, I make sure I drag my ass out of bed before anyone wakes up and I go for a long walk. It could be ten degrees outside and it wouldn't matter -- I need to walk. When my walk is over I roll right into pushups and planks. After wards I get in the shower and, by the time everyone is up, I'm doing ok....I'm ready to face the day.
Of course, now that my scheduled has changed, the wife and kids won't have to worry about dealing with the grumpy bear. By the time they get up I'm already at my part time job and they are long gone before I get home.
But just because I come home to an empty house doesn't mean that I can ditch my workouts.....They have to come home some time. Exercise becomes a necessity during the winter months.
From this point on I was going to give my thoughts and opinions on exercise but, you know what, everyone has an opinion and I simply don't need to add to the pile. Instead I will keep things light and just give you some general thoughts and share some of my more light hearted exercise moments.
1. Be yourself, do your thing, and don't worry about what anyone thinks.
When you become either self conscious or a show off you lose focus on why you are exercising. You are doing this for you and no one else.
bad move # 1 -- There are opportunities to show off in front of the opposite sex.....The treadmill is not that place. I tried to be smooth and rip off my sweatshirt while simultaneously attempting to keep a good clip. I didn't even get the sweatshirt over my head before I wiped out; the treadmill unceremoniously depositing me onto the gym floor......I scored big with the babes that day.
2. If you don't know what your doing, don't be afraid to ask.
Don't be stubborn. Admit that you don't have a clue and nine times out of ten someone will be more than willing to help you.
bad move #2 -- The hip adductor, abductor machine is the work of a sadistic freak. I watched a girl using it to work her inner thighs and thought I would give it a go.
Picture sitting in a chair and a padded bar place at about the knee on the inside of each of your legs. To work your inner thighs you simply press your legs together. You can adjust how much weight you want to use by locking the machine in place to hold the bars while you figure out the weight you want to use.
The girl pressed her legs together, locked the machine in place, got out and walk away. I took over from there. Figuring that my legs were stronger I added more weight on before sitting in the chair.
Having never used this machine, there were two things that I didn't take into account. 1. You don't need that much weight to work your inner thighs and 2. Women are MUCH more flexible than men.
As soon as I unlocked the machine the excess weight I set upon it caused the bars on the inside of my legs swing out with great force, turning me into a living wishbone. I don't know that I've ever experience a pain so swift and terrible, and I'm fairly certain I let out a squeal. I've never been drawn and quartered, but I now have a fairly good idea of how painful it must be. I have not gotten back on that machine since......I don't think my groin will ever be the same.
3. Quality over quantity. Form is everything when lifting weights. For instance, when bench pressing it is much better to do five reps using good form as opposed to doing ten reps bouncing the bar off of your chest.....Not that I've ever seen anyone do that. :)
bad move #3 -- This bad move was not my fault and it has nothing to do with form. But it is a story about the bench press, so I'm going to use it.
I usually work out by myself. I put my headphones on, tune out the rest of the world, and go about getting things done.
On this particular day I had left my headphones at home. It didn't take long for a stranger to come up to me and strike up a conversation....Awkward.
The guy seemed nice enough, although I found his attire ill fitting. I believe he had a pair of runner's shorts on, but even by those standards, they seemed a little, well, short.
"Dude," said Mr. Shorty-Shorts, "You want me to spot you on the bench?"
I really didn't....I just wanted to be left alone. But he seemed like a good guy and I didn't want to come off as prick.
"Um, sure...Ok."
I don't remember the weight I started out at, but that information is irrelevant in regards to this story.
Anyway....Usually when someone spots you on the bench they stand behind and over the top of you. This guy kicked his leg over the side bench and was standing more over and beside me. I thought it was an odd way to spot but when I considered that, should I lose control of the bar, it would hit his leg and not my throat, I let it slide.
Still, his way of spotting didn't make any sense to me. If I lost the bar, he would have a hard time getting the weight under control due to the fact that he wasn't centered on the bar. But, I was comfortable with the weight I was using, and again let the matter slide.
As I slowly lowered the bar I noticed that Mr. Shorty-Shorts slowly squatted down with it. When I got the bar close to my chest I glanced over to the leg beside me and made a horrifying discovery.
Mr. Shorty-Shorts was going commando and there, not more than a foot away from my face, was the biggest, ugliest, purplest prune that I had ever had the misfortune of seeing.
The dangling bag gave me super human strength. I practically threw the bar into the rack and came off the bench as if I had been shot out of a cannon.
Captain Commando was duly impressed. "Dude, that was too easy. We could easily put another forty five on there. Whaddya say?"
"Um...I better not. I felt something pop in my shoulder."
"Dude, that's too bad. Probably ought to get some ice on that."
"Yeah, I...um....I..I think I'll go do some crunches and call it a day."
"Alright, man....Let me know when that shoulder feels better and we'll try again."
No.....No.....I don't think we will "DUDE".........
Yes.....I much prefer to work out alone.
Well, that was a memory I wish I wouldn't have dredged up......I think I'm done here.....Perhaps I'll burn that memory away with a couple shots of whiskey.....
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