New found drive

I have been trying to think of something insightful to write about after the horrible tragedy at the Boston Marathon on Monday, but I am at a loss.  I just can't believe the cowardice of the person or people behind it.  I will never be the competitor those athletes have trained to be, but I will say I am far more motivated to pull off a 1/2 marathon that I was on Sunday.  I can't imagine losing a limb, but for someone who has made running such a huge part of their life to lose a limb is beyond my comprehension.  I found the following pictures;  one comforted me and one made me smile because I think it accurately describes the American Spirit, not only that of a runner.  Don't mess with us!

These past couple weeks have not been fun.  This boot thing, while necessary and helping, is a bulky, inconvenient mess.  I am going to need a major chiropractic adjustment when this is all over after walking around with one leg feeling a little longer because of the height of the boot.  It's funny how much you need to bend your ankle in a day.  I have nearly face planted myself in the parking lot by stepping off a curb on far too many occasions over the last couple weeks.  I have never appreciated full range of motion quite like I do today.  Then again, that was the whole point of this process, to better appreciate my health and mobility.  Point well taken, universe.  Point WELL taken!

I was given permission to resume my workouts with Jason this week as long as I wore my boot and kept it to upper body and core work.  Core work is something I need to do more.  My muffin top isn't disappearing nearly as fast as I can make muffin disappear from my plate!  The workouts have been tough since we usually split the session up instead of focusing only on upper body or only on lower body.  It's been good to get a little sweaty!!  I have been waking up sore again.  Just when my body thought it was going to get a break!  HA!  Fooled you!!

I have a doctor appointment this week.  I am hoping I get the green light to get back into a cardio routine, even if I am not supposed to run for an additional 4-6 weeks.  My legs are feeling very wimpy and I really am missing the stress reduction I had been enjoying from exercising more.  I saw a picture and phrase that really hit home the other day; it said "Food is the most widely abused anti-anxiety drug in America and exercise is the most potent and underutilized anti-depressant."  This is SO true for me and I am really feeling the stress and irritability work their way back into my system with the reduction in movement.  As someone who has battled depression and anxiety for several years, it is even more important to keep this all in check so send me some good vibes so I can get this food healthy and get back to it!  I am hoping to find another race in the area in the Fall to work towards.  I also plan on doing the Diva Dash in Frederick, MD on Sept. 21 with some co-workers and hopefully Randi will be able to make it out for that as well!  It's a 5k obstacle course that looks like it would be a ton of fun.

Since I am unable to participate in the 1/2 Marathon next weekend as planned, I will be volunteering at the event.  At least that way I can still be part of the event and hopefully learn a thing or two!  I wish I could be on the other side, but I will just have to work on my form and continue to build my stamina so I can do it later.

Have a great weekend and stop by again for updates soon!