ReRunning.

I have missed running so much. I am loving the couch to 5k program that I am doing with Andy. It's short, manageable, and there is no thinking involved. I love not having to think. Just get out the door and go.

I really love being able to be active again. Last week was a great week. Not only did I do my 3 C25K runs, but I also crushed my old bench press PB by 15#. I can bench 100#, which may not seem like much to other people, but it is huge for me. I feel like I've been stuck at 85# forever. It's nice to be able to lift heavy again, too.

It's been several weeks now, and I am still blown away by how much was affected by my parathyroid. Something as simple as calcium can throw everything out of whack. I promise I'll stop talking about it eventually, but I am still amazed every day by how great I feel and how much energy I have.

It's a good thing I have all this new energy because Andy and I have completely committed to running again. We've started a podcast about our rerunning adventures. It's still in its infancy, but you can check it out here. It is also available through iTunes, Stitcher, and Google Play. Subscribe and follow along. The C25k is only the tip of the rerunning iceberg.

TKD

It's tournament season!

I really enjoy tournaments. I had so much fun volunteering at the first one. There are so many awesome people, and it's a really positive environment. I love watching my kids compete. One had a difficult time this time around with patterns and breaking. He took third in sparring! He was disappointed, of course. Before the tournament, we set some goals that had nothing to do with the medals, and he met all of them. We had a good talk about learning from losses and having a good attitude. This is why TKD is invaluable. Those lessons mean so much more than medals.

Last night was my first TKD class in almost two months. I was nervous. For over two years, I have started class feeling like I was going to pass out. I breathed heavily throughout classes, overheated,  and went home completely beaten up. It took several days for most of the pain to go away. Last night was my first class after surgery, and I had no idea how it would go.

It went really, really well. I was very rusty, but I could breathe. I got through warmups without feeling dizzy. I woke up this morning sore but not in pain. I was super excited when I got home, and I definitely cried a little. There were quite a few times when I wondered if I would be able to continue. Luckily, I am stubborn and really didn't want to give up TKD.

I'm really excited to see what I can do now that I feel better!

Appreciation.

Yesterday I was officially cleared for all exercise. I was so excited. I have been running this week and completed the first week of C25K, but I was nervous to lift again. Yesterday I lifted for the first time in about 3 weeks, and it was awesome.

I kept it short. I'm really working hard to ease back into exercising, but it's not easy. I have so much more energy now. I want to do everything!! While I was feeling bad, I had a lot of big, lofty goals that truly seemed impossible. Now, I have energy again and feel amazing. Those big goals don't seem as far away now.

For 2018, though, it is all about the 5ks. Andy and I are enjoying C25K, and it's fun running together. We're planning on doing 3-4 races this summer/fall. I may throw in one 10k. There is a local race that I've done a couple times. I may have to do it again now that I can. It's been a few years since I ran it.

Today is the first TKD tournament of the season. I am not competing. I'm kind of bummed. This is only the second time I have missed one since I started TKD, and it's the first time I've missed this tournament. I had no time to train, so I know this is the right choice. I am going to volunteer to help out instead. My kids are still competing, and I am looking forward to seeing everyone there.

Overall, I am just so thrilled to be able to move and have energy and to be in a good mood. I feel like a different person. I feel the way I used to over 3 years ago, only now I am so much more appreciative.

I Ran.

I feel like a new person. It's strange. After being in a certain mindset for over two years -
I can't run. It hurts. It will take days to recover.  
- Suddenly, I am back to where I was three years ago. I feel good. I can exercise daily, and I feel fine. No pain. No recovery time. I was not prepared for the shift. It's a great problem to have. I am so lucky that this was easily fixed.

On Sunday, I ran.

Andy and I are doing a c25k program to start running again. There will be a podcast about our adventures coming soon. 

So, on Sunday, we started the program. It was a warm up and intervals of walking and running. It was manageable and went so much better than I expected. I really tried to stay active as limited as I was. It helped. My strength is there. My cardio is not as bad as I thought it would be. Best of all, my heart rate did not spike. I did not feel like passing out. I felt good. When I was done, my hips did not hurt. Nothing hurt. I felt fine Monday morning. It seems so normal, but it's been so long since I could run without pain. It's messing with me.

On Monday, I did a little rowing on our new machine. It was fun, but it's going to take some work to get used to it. I only did about 10 minutes. Andy and I went for a walk up the big hill by our house and decided to add in some sprint intervals. I used to love hill sprints. It felt good, but it was definitely hard. I can't wait to do more.

If there is something positive to take from my two year hiatus, it's rediscovering my love for running. I took it for granted before. I focused on the negative. I refused to call myself a runner.
Ridiculous.
I'm coming from a different place now. I appreciated every step. I got teary-eyed thinking about how I could move without pain. I know that as the difficulty increases, I will probably have some bad runs, but I think I will keep the love this time. I'm just so happy to move again.

We're starting out slow and easy. I tend to jump in and try to do too much too soon. This time, I am focused on small goals and enjoying the process. I'm excited to focus strictly on 5ks for a while. I always added distance before, and I am sure I will again. Still, it will be fun to keep it short for a while.

Today is day two of the program. I think I'm going to go up the big hill again.  I'm just so happy to run again.

http://www.picturequotes.com/ill-be-happy-if-running-and-i-can-grow-old-together-quote-442165

Limited.

So, in my usual fashion, I completely overdid it on my first day post-surgery. I felt good, and the weather was beautiful. I couldn't help myself.
I paid for it. I spent the whole next day just trying to find a comfortable position. Guess what? There wasn't one.
Yesterday was better. My neck was still sore and swollen, but it improved as the day went on. I was able to go for a short walk with the family. That was nice. I don't enjoy taking it easy, and even though I'm limited, I wanted to be outside and moving. I made sure to do a lot less than I did the first day.
I do not like being so limited. I feel good (other than my neck), and all I want to do is go run or lift weights. But, for now, I cannot do much. I am not supposed to run or "lift heavy". Their definition of lifting heavy greatly differs from mine. I can't lift anything over 15 pounds. Of course because I can't do it, it's all I can think about. I can't wait until I can start being active again.
I am finally feeling more clear-headed. I have only had a few experiences with anesthesia, but I do not do well with it. I hate the way I feel, and it seems to take several days for it to get out of my system. I don't know if that's how it actually works, but it's how I feel every time. I'm glad to be feeling somewhat normal again.