The dangers of planning ahead

Well exercise planning starting to get going, new ideas buzzing, running slow but steady ish, weight management still requiring serious thought and effort, so all ticking along, maybe not nicely but definitely ticking. Then a weekend away ruins the lot....

A wet windy weekend and a walk along a stony beach, where a great amount of fossils lie in wait for discovery. wet rocks and unsteady scambling are no great combination for successful exercise and...... unable to control the slipping sensation underfoot... crash, down I went, slamming into my knee and causing several seriously foul expletives to rain continuously for a few minutes. (no change there then) (Bonus fossil found while on the down bit so some redemption allowed)

Hobbling continued for at least another hour, interspersed with wailing and howling (that's me not the wind and rain) when faced with wall ladders and climbing up and down things (not good with those as anyone who has heard of my exploits trying to recover things from my parent's attic will have noted - and that's another story)so... full panic mode and childish petulant metaphorical footstamping ensues, followed by getting feet seriously soggy having to walk in the water and eventual arrival back on soggy dry land (??) soaked to the skin (love leaving the waterproofs in the car) and ready to head home immediately please, well after a spot of lunch to aid recovery.

Investigation of said knee showed swelling and discolouration setting in..Oh Bum!!! Luckily icepack to hand and travel home with knee being iced was next.

More swelling to follow with hobbling pain and cut off cirulation as the ankle and foot are also the size of a small barrage balloon.

Running is, I think, not an option for a while......a short while I hope, but definitely not this week and will not hold my breath re next either.

So hey ho, back to beginner status again. Oh deep joy, well at least I can start from scratch and try and co-ordinate everything together....ooooh look....another pink piggy flying overhead.

Mining for gold

Every now and again we stumble upon a gem of an idea, sparked by something very simple that could really develop into something much bigger with a little bit of spark and enthusiasm, a bit of knowledge and the ooomph to make things happen.

I attribute my newly found enthusiasm for exercise and fitness (as opposed to the one I know I should have) partly to a chance conversation with another running club member, who like me, suffers from post marathon injury and demotivation and reduced levels of fitness, but also like me has previous exercise qualifications and also coach training.

So we started discussing various aspects of fitness and how we know that we don't do enough to strengthen our running muscles other than by trying to go out and run, and reminiscing back to the days when we both taught various aerobic classes and how fit we were at the time.

This sparked an idea which we are currently working on to get some decent running specific add ons for those who do nothing but go out and run. Things that will help runners specifially to strengthen the running and in the end hopefully to reduce the high injury rates we all seem to suffer from.

Suddenly my brain is in the zone of planning and motivating to get things done....ah but again this relates to others, so.....

PLAN A.......information gathering
What bits of me hurt when I run?
What exercises work to help strengthen those bits?
What stretches do I need to do to help?

Next step..... try them out, do they make any difference.
If No - then ditch that particular exercise
If YES - well get it on paper quick, if it works for me it'll work for others.

I am constantly being told I am a mine of information, so time to start digging it out and flogging it off rather than burying it for future generations. Theres gold in them there training hills eh?