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Run Day, Leg Day & Physical Therapy

Running & Lifting
Let's just say today was a long one. This morning I set the alarm for 5:15. Jason and I were tentatively planning to run depending on the weather. They've been calling for rain all day today. It was not raining at all at 5:15 am (or even at 12:15 pm for that matter).

So, no excuses. We got up and got ready and headed out the door. It was definitely cooler (only 70 degrees) but a bit muggy. But, with the sun not yet up, it definitely felt pretty nice compared to my more recent runs.

The first mile was a slow one for sure (9:26), but I chalk that up to just waking up. The first mile is usually warming up anyway. Not sure what happened, but we kicked it into gear during mile 2 for an 8:50 pace. Mile 3 was just a tad slower, but we were taking more turns, curves, and crossing roads, but still not bad at 9:11.

Mile 4 was 8:58. I felt like we were zooming along, but that was another point where we were having to do some meandering through a park (sharp rights/lefts) and waiting for traffic. The sun was just starting to come up at that point too. The sky was gorgeous with pink hues. Love that time of the morning.

Mile 5 was 8:48. I'm definitely proud of this one because we tackled 2 hills. So it always feels good to finish really strong, especially on hills.

At lunch I ran home and did a quick leg workout with some chest included. It was 30 minutes on the dot in length. I like nice round numbers like that ;-)

I went with more of a circuit style or giant set style.

Set 1 - 4 sets at 10 reps (unless noted)
Squats
Plie squats
Calf raises - 2 sets with feet parallel, 2 sets with feet turned out, 20 reps
Stiff-legged deadlifts
Pushups with toes on step - 12 reps

Set 2 - 3 sets with varying reps
Side lunge with leg raise - 8 reps each side
Weighted donkey kicks - 10 reps each side
Hip lifts for hamstrings (heels on athletic step) - 12 reps
Chest flye into chest press - 8 reps

I really wasn't feeling it too much right after I finished. I was slightly disappointed thinking I should have worked harder or lifted heavier. Then I took my first step down the stairs. Wobbly legs!

I had a physical therapy appointment today after work with a new therapist. The one I was using moved away on me, and she highly recommended I see this particular therapist. He was her mentor at the clinic and he also does dry needling.

More Physical Therapy
Mostly he just evaluated the piriformis pain situation trying to get a full understanding of what was going on. Apparently I am barely engaging my glute muscles on my left side (the side that hurts) and almost not at all on the right (which doesn't hurt).

Sounds like I have some work to do on learning how to use my muscles properly when running huh? But, at least it means that I'm not just incredibly weak. I was starting to wonder why I bother doing half the exercises I do.

Anyway, he did recommend the dry needling. He feels I'd be a good candidate for it. So, I'm scheduled for June 15th. Now, I just need to not talk myself out of it.

Since I had PT after work, that meant I didn't get home until late. I just had Jason start baked sweet potato fries for fries and veggie burgers.
 

You can't really get much simpler or easier than that. Just bake the "fries" then heat up the homemade lentil & quinoa burgers and you have dinner.

Daily To-Enjoy List:
Running
Cooler temps
Easy dinner

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