Back. Maybe.

It’s been a long time. The course of events over the last few months completely messed with my running. I travelled a whole bunch in October. That was no good for my motivation. The stress fracture in my foot is much better. Perhaps even gone. Then this stupid phantom pain in my left foot started. I have no idea what it was. It’s mainly gone now. I was sentenced to eight sessions of physical therapy for November. In my “last” session, my therapist told me I needed two to three more weeks of therapy. I’m going to choose to believe that it’s because he has a thing for me (one can hope) and that it’s not because my knees are total crap.

My last run before I stopped running was back in San Antonio, where I realized that I can’t put my right foot down at the same straight angle as my left foot. I hate running on treadmills, but the only time I had to run was in the hotel gym and that’s what was available. I watched the positioning of my feet with each step in the mirror and I realized that my right toe area was crooked.

I ran for the first time since I started therapy last night. With the therapy and the heel insert in my shoe (did I mention my left leg is longer than my right leg), I realized that my toe area came down much straighter. I was hoping that I would have this amazing run, with no pain and I’d think that I could run to the ends of the earth. It was only OK in the end – my feet are fine; my knees felt stronger (turns out the therapy is making an impact and I don’t feel wobbly with each step). I could feel the muscles in my legs working so differently last night, and I could feel the pull of my knee caps working. My breathing was absolute crap and I actually had to use my inhaler when I got home. Running in the cold is a whole new thing to me and I hope that it doesn’t always go like that. I liked my new running pants – they weren’t like the tights I had to wear in high school and therefore are much warmer but more technical and regulated my sweat better. I saw a chick running in nylons; I know this because I could see her white granny panties in the street light.

It’s so strange to actually feel everything, since all I have been doing in physical therapy is focus on how stuff feels. The therapist just pokes at my knees and looks at my face to determine if this or that hurts. Fortunately everyone is awesome in the office and I look forward to each session, even if it’s not always pleasant and I have to be polite while someone hurts me. I totally have a thing for the therapist. Every girl I talk to about it says it’s totally normal to have crushes on the physical therapist. My sessions are almost over and that kind of bums me out, although I’d like to walk away with a comment like “go run your ass off and never look back.” The other primary irritation is that I have sessions twice a week, it’s winter, and who the hell wants remembers to deal with leg hair that often…ok I know that’s just me, but it’s certainly something I have to work very hard to remember every time I go to therapy. The guy who does the strength exercises with me reminds me of my big brother in mannerisms and character (he can’t sit still). He’s really funny and makes me miss my brother terribly.

I hope to keep up some very short runs over the next few days, and start back up with yoga next week. I’ve neglected my body over the last 6 weeks (except for my stomach). I leave for the west coast on the 16th and I hope to keep up my running while I’m there. The order of my life is going to be very measured while I’m there. I have to work remotely several of the days, and I am also going to be the designated baby helper – my responsibilities will be to cook like crazy, clean as much as I can and hang out with baby Audrey as much as possible while my brother and his wife visit the baby Alessandro at the hospital. Since that’s what I’ll be doing, I hope that finding the rhythm of my life will be easy enough. There isn’t much I was to do for just me beyond run and get in a couple of climbs with friends out there. I can’t wait to meet the babies. I can’t wait to see my brother. Having family far away sucks.