My Run In The Rain

It seems like about once a year I have a run in the rain, and yesterday was this year's glorious installment.

But before I talk about that, I am grateful to report that I am back to running short distances (four mi. or less, for now) since the plantar pain (heel) is almost completely gone in my left foot! The regimen I describe in the previous post, plus a special anti-inflammatory prescribed by my foot doctor have really been doing the trick. Yay!

Now, about the rain run: Yesterday (Sunday) was one of those days with little, intermittent showers coming through, in between periods of bright sunlight. One shower had just passed by, and a quick look at the radar showed another one on it's way, but not for a while. I'd been wanting to get a run in, and thought this might be the opportunity to do it.

So I threw on my gear, (runners, shorts, -no shirt- hat -just in case it did rain- and GPS watch, to track my performance and distance) stretched good, then off I went after another quick glance at the radar. The rain was close, but I really thought it would miss me.

The conditions were great with temps in the mid 70's and calm. There were a few little puddles on the trail, but the concrete was already starting to dry.

About a mile in, the clouds started to thicken (no surprise), and I could hear a little thunder in the distance. I was prepared to get wet if it did rain, but was ready to turn back if the thunder got any closer! Getting struck by lightening has never sounded like a pleasant experience, especially if I could prevent it.

At about a mile-and-a-half it started to sprinkle, which felt kind of nice, as I was starting to get a good sweat on. Then at at little past half way the sky opened up, and buckets of huge drops came straight down. It was awesome! The temperature was just right, and it was oh-so refreshing. The hat proved to be useful keeping the rain out of my eyes, too.

It was full-steam ahead with new energy, just me, the path, and the rain. There's only one drawback of note, and it's that my shoes got soggy-squishy. Other than that, it was an amazing experience, perfectly timed. Had it been raining when I was ready to start out, chances are that I would have not gone for a run at all. The way it turned out, though, I had a chance to get warmed up so when the rain came it was very welcomed.

Then, as suddenly as it had started, the drops stopped coming with about a half mile to go. By the time I walked back up to the house, the sun was trying to peek out again. I will remember this as one of the easiest 3.5mi runs ever. And it felt like I could have just as easily gone twice that far.

Plantar Update

After shots of Cortisone the pain in my foot actually got worse, and two weeks later I was still limping around the house in the mornings. So, I decided to take matters into my own hands.

My pain is almost gone now after using some new and old techniques combined. It seems to have been pretty effective, and I have continued to play racquetball 3x/week.

I'm now icing (heel submerged in ice cube water) 15 minutes twice a day. The second icing is combined with 800mg Ibuprofen an hour or two before bedtime. Also, while I'm at my desk at work I roll a tennis ball around on my instep, giving it a nice massage and stretch. And, of course, all of my footwear has good instep supports in them.

So far, so good. I got out of bed this morning and almost forgot about my heel. If this keeps up for a few more days I'm going to try a trial run.

#!%%*#$%^!!! Plantar

Okay, this is the second summer that I have had foot pain enough to keep me from running (I'm still playing racquetball, though)! Fortunately, it has been mostly less intense than last year. Now, after a second round of hydro cortisone shots (three injections in two weeks, one in the right foot, two in the left) I am optimistic that this issue will be finally resolved once and for all.

I had it fixed last summer after one injection from Dr. Lantz, my podiatrist, and was good through the winter, that is until I got too cocky on the treadmill and over did it. Lesson learned!

5/22/12 177#

Starting to notice the pushups

3/10/12 180#

3/10/12 180# at 47y/o

Really, 100 Push Ups!

I saw this Android app in the Waterloo Courier, and thought I'd try it out. It will train you to do 100 push ups. And since I have never been able to do more than 40-or-so push ups at once I thought I'd give it a try.

I like push ups because you can do them at home, and easily fit them into a busy schedule. Plus, when I am faithful to do them, the results are noticeable pretty quickly.

UPDATE... 10/25/16
My goal had been to do 50 consecutive strict push ups by my 50th birthday. I surpassed that, and did 60 really good ones, and can now consistently do 60-65. My pushup workout is typically five sets of 40 reps with a 90 second rest between sets, but sometimes I'll do more sets of fewer reps. And it all started with this Push up App.

Ab Vac Video

Blue Zones

http://www.bluezonesproject.com/ Go there.

The Blue Zones Project is the first movement I have seen that will actually elevate the action for happiness and fitness of an entire community - Mind, Soul, and Body.

I could write more here, but you really need to go check it out.

http://www.bluezonesproject.com/ Click on "I'm A Citizen".