Set Backs

Ah, setbacks. They happen to all of us, and if you're like me, they happen when everything is finally going well. I came back from vacation, had another great week of workouts, and finished the week with a swimming/patterns workout at a lake. Patterns practice in water = so much fun.

Then Saturday morning, I woke up ready to run. I've had a new pair of running shoes sitting and waiting for me to break them in. I was excited to get out there.

But, first I needed to walk the Moon Dog. We have great walks most mornings, and it's a great warm-up for running.

Let's just say, I didn't get to the run. Moon wanted to play with a loose dog. He pulled. I was standing on broken pavement. My ankle rolled. Bad. I was on my knees in the gravel. Moon was running down the trail. I wasn't sure I could stand.

I managed to stand, limped to my car, and called Andy. Then Moon Dog came back, and I got him into the car. My ankle swelled really quickly. By the time Andy picked me up, it was the size of a softball.

I was upset. I hate being injured. I hate not being 100%. I couldn't do anything for several days, and I was frustrated. I definitely had a pity party for myself. Tuesday was the worst because I had to miss TKD. We have no class next week. I am hopeful that I will be able to go back for the next class.

It's getting better. Wednesday, I was able to walk on it for a bit. Yesterday, I managed a .6 mile walk with Moon Dog. Today we bumped it up to 1.3 miles. It's a little sore, but otherwise not too bad.

I took several days off. I did a little swimming, which hurt a little but was nice because I could stay off my foot. Wednesday, I did an upper body workout. I couldn't do anything really heavy, but it was nice to be moving again. Yesterday and today have just been walking. I'm trying to ease back into exercise, and not do too much too soon. So far so good.

I think the hardest thing about set backs is dealing with my head. Logically, I know that a few days (or even a week) off is not a big deal. I'm not losing any strength. I know I need to rest and let it heal. I know it will be worse if I do too much and re-injure myself.

But, even knowing all of this, I was still pretty down for several days. I have to keep reminding myself that it will be okay. I can still be active. It just takes a little more planning. It's not easy, but it could be much worse. I'm just glad it's healing quickly.