I feel I owe inquiring minds an update.  Yeah, my knees?  I sure did a number on them.  I tried to get out the day after my last post (nine days ago) and I didn't even make it to the end of the block; my knees were seriously THAT sore.  It was a pain that was concentrated on the inside of my knee cap and was excruciating if I was doing anything more than hobbling.  I returned home, iced my knees and started a regimen of twice-daily Motrin tablets to keep the swelling and pain at bay.  Just over a week has gone by since my last run.  I think the sore knees situation has put the kibosh on my whole running idea.  Even up until today, walking Shaun to and from school twice a day has been impossible.  Craig's taken him to school and I've been able to pick him up.  Any more walking than that hasn't been happening.  As it is, I feel like an old woman when walking down the stairs because essentially I take one step at a time; two feet on the step before proceeding downwards.

 

Well, I'm happy to say that today is the first day I'm actually feeling more normal than in pain.  Walking down the stairs is still uncomfortable but is nothing like it was last week.  Walking remains uncomfortable and it's completely impossible to do anything more than walk at a toddler's pace.  Case in point: Kyle took off running at Shaun's school playground today.  I called him to return and he only paused to smile at me before continuing to run.  At one point he got closer to the road than he was to me.  He was still a fair ways away from getting to the road but knowing I wouldn't be able to dart after him was humbling and terrifying at the same time.  Eventually I was able to catch up to Kyle and coerce him to walk towards me but it proved to me that I need to keep up with taking care of my body.

 

So on that note, I feel pretty good in saying that my running career is all but over for the time being.  I think cycling will be more up my alley.  I already have a bike with a nice gel seat cover.  Believe it or not I'm really disappointed with how I've let myself down.  I'm not a quitter and I don't really give up or fail at anything.  In the end, though, I only have one pair of knees and I'm only 30 so the thought of feeling like this indefinitely terrifies me.  Maybe once my legs are strengthened a little more I'll try running again.

A Setback

Last week I diligently set my alarm and set out for my morning run.  Friday morning I had an early drop-off for 7AM so I ended up getting up at 5:30 to make sure I had time for my full run plus a shower when I got home.  It was rough getting up that early but once I got going I enjoyed it even more than before because there were even less people out that early.  Friday also marked the beginning of phase 2 of my training: run 1 minute, walk 1 minute, for a total time of 24 minutes.  Around the third set in, or so, my knees started to ache quite a bit.  I've always feared running because of the impact on my knees; I've always had bad knees and wore a brace throughout middle school because my left knee constantly dislocated when I was playing sports or would turn funny on it.  Knees were sort of in the back of my mind but after the first few runs when I was barely sore at all I figured they wouldn't pose a problem. 

 

I continued Friday's run through to the finish but by Friday afternoon I could barely walk.  Bending or kneeling felt better than standing but stairs were agony; my knees hurt so terribly I was worried I wouldn't be able to walk by Saturday.  We spent the weekend re-doing all the front landscaping with a planting bed.  We hauled 4X4 pressure treated wood and I spent most of Saturday on my knees.  By Saturday night I knew there was a problem because even after a couple hours of rest they weren't feeling any better.  In fact, they felt worse.

 

According to Google, my quads are weak and my knees are compensating for the new stress being put on them.  The solution is to strengthen my quads.  Apparently the pain is caused because the cartilage is being worn down from grinding along the sides of the track it moves in.  A tighter quadracep muscle will lessen the amount of movement and grinding.

 

So I will head out tomorrow for my regular run and see how it goes at first.  I've had 2 days off since my last run but with all the work we did over the weekend and the fact that my knees are still screaming for some attention, I'm not feeling too optimistic.  I've found and printed some simple quad-strengthening exercises that I'll do every day and hopefully this will only be a small setback.  I have committed to still getting up before the kids so even if it's just for a brisk walk, it's better than nothing.  Also this week, I'm investing in a really good pair of joggers.  I have a feeling that my current running shoes are part of the problem.

1-2

Okay, so I ran again yesterday morning.  Got up bright and early with my alarm and did the same routine as Friday.  Surprisingly, today I'm not sore.  Not at all.  I didn't think my legs would get used to their new use so quickly.  If I rub my quads they're a little tender but not any moreso than they were the day after I chased Ian in the grocery store.

 

So tomorrow marks the end of my first week.  I'm hoping the trails are dryer tomorrow.  They were really mucky and squishy yesterday and I had to take a few detours into the parkland to avoid some pretty intimidating mud holes.

 

I'm enjoying exploring my neighbourhood.  We chose this neighbourhood before we even found the house.  We knew we wanted to live here because of the larger lots (for the city, anyway), the grown trees, the school, the community, and the trails.  It's been a lot of fun heading out in a new direction and discovering where it emerges from the forest.

 

Yesterday I found a look-out point that overlooks the whole entire neighbourhood.  It was barely 6:30 in the morning and the air was still misty.  No cars interrupted the singing of the birds and I stood and looked down on the place we call home.  It was beautiful.  Tall roof peaks tucked in between bare trees just beginning to show the first signs of bright new leaves.  With all that's been happening across the globe in the past few days, it was a somber moment to appreciate.  To appreciate that I can go out on my own so early in the morning and not have to worry about my safety, that I can look over where I live and see more trees than houses and that the sounds from the Earth around me are louder than the sounds of the people.

 

I will take my family to this place.  Maybe we'll even pack a lunch.

"Mom, who's Aw-sam-ah bin Lah-den?"  Shaun's attention is turned to CNN and away from his LEGO race car.

 

"He was a very, very bad man,  He killed thousands of people who didn't deserve to die."

 

"How did he die?"

 

"The military in the United States shot him with a gun.  In the head."

 

"You mean a soldier shot him?  Maybe it was with a long gun like Elmer Fudds!"

 

"Yes, a soldier shot him.  It probably was with a gun like Elmer Fudds.  I would think those soldiers carry all sorts of weapons."

 

"Why did he get shot?"

 

"Osama bin Laden blew up some buildings before you were born by crashing airplanes into them.  He also made some planes crash into the ground.  Everyone died and it was Osama's fault.  The United States has been searching for him ever since and yesterday they found him and shot him so he can't do bad things anymore."

 

"Why didn't they just put him in jail with other bad people?"

 

"Osama bin Laden was too bad to go to jail.  When the sodiers caught him, they shot him and now he's dead."

 

"I'm never going to be that bad.  I'm glad Aw-sam-ah bin Lah-den is dead, Mom.  People who are super extra mean like he was should get shot in the head."

 

_____________

 

The conversation was short and honest.  I answered his questions without offering too many details.  Somehow I think he'll remember this day as 'the day a soldier shot a bad guy with Elmer Fudd's gun'.

 

 

Ball Hockey

After Shaun decided he didn't want to play ice hockey because he's not a strong enough skater yet, we agreed that ball hockey may be the best option.  The games are on Saturday mornings usually and Shaun is on a team with his best school friend.  So far they've played 3 games and Shaun is really starting to get the hang of the flow of the game.  Each shift gets 2 minutes on the floor and then they sit on the bench while the next shift plays.  Shaun's team has about 12 or 13 players on it so not quite enough for 3 complete shifts which means it's pretty much equal time playing/resting.

 

Shaun really loves the game and gets better each game he plays.  So far no goals but I don't think he's aggressive enough to score any.  We spend all this time teaching our kids to share and be nice and all of a sudden they're put into this ball hockey game with a bunch of strangers who are on their own team and a bunch of other strangers who they're supposed to poke-check and steal the ball from.  Add in the confusion of playing an actual position like forward or defence and these poor 5 year olds are pretty wide-eyed when they first head on for their shift.  By the time the second period arrives they've remembered their job but with a whole week between games, it's all but gone by the following game.

 

If Shaun really shows an interest in ball hockey it may become the new go-to sport for him.  We certainly want our kids to be involved in one sport - and they can bounce from one to another if they choose - but it's important to us that they have a commitment to following something from start to finish through the season.