ran.
I ran today!!!
When I woke up, I was still on the fence - run today? Run tomorrow? Don't run ever again? Chop my foot off and get one of those big springs? But when I stood up out of bed - no pain. Walked around all morning - no pain. I texted my running buddy and we decided to head out for 5.
The weather was my favorite running weather - sunny and 45 degrees. We went out to the Mt. Vernon trail, parked at Belle Haven, and headed out on our usual 5-mile out-and-back. About 10 steps in, I got a giant rock in my shoe. Dumped, ran another 10 steps, and realized that something was yanking on my shoulder. Turned out that "something" was a combination of my large-&-in-charge boobs and a stretched-out sports bra. On every step, the right strap of the sports bra was being yanked downwards - causing some discomfort in my shoulder but not pain. So I ran the entire 5 miles with my right arm in the claw position, preventing the tatas from ripping my tiny surgery-holes apart. No discomfort this way, but I'm sure I looked a bit weird.
We went out very easy - I wasn't sure what to expect. About 2 miles in, there are some gentle hills, and then a gradual upward climb to a bridge. The hills really took it out of me, which was surprising - my lungs felt really tight and small, which I think is still a residual effect of the anesthesia & nerve block. The anesthesiologist warned me that deep breathing would feel strange for a few days after the surgery, and this is really the first time my heart rate has been above, oh, 50, since. We stopped at the water fountain, stretched, and headed back. It was great to have girl running talk again. :) I really felt like I hit my stride at about the 3.5 mile mark, and by the time we got to Belle Haven, I felt amazing. We headed home, but I seriously thought about joining my bf and roommate when they went out for 3 later in the day. I decided instead to take a brilliant nap under the electric blanket with the puppy.
It's nap time, Mama!
Total: 5.1 miles/53:45/avg. pace 10:43
A few hours later, body inventory says: shoulder feels fine, foot feels exactly the same (a teeny tiny bit sore), IT band isn't complaining, mind feels clear. I've spent the past week and a half feeling like a racehorse straining at the start gate, and while I still feel this way, 5 miles went a long way towards calming my head down.
Pretty happy to be out today (sorry about the stomach shot, egads)
I've gone through stretches of great runs and tough runs in my life, and the week before surgery everything felt amazing - the regular run, the speed run, the long run. I was worried that I'd take 10 days off and everything would feel like crap again when I came back, but other than being a little more tired than usual and a bit short of breath, everything feels great!! And I'm SO thrilled to be back on my feet!
In other breaking news, I bought 2 new pairs of Champion capris (I have a hate-hate relationship with running shorts) at Target and my new fancy-pants iFitness belt showed up today. I love shiny new running gear. More on these tomorrow!