Post Op

I was going to write a witty post about going into surgery but I am still a bit stupid.

But here is the short version:

• I had my surgery on Tuesday afternoon.
• My ankle is ugly but seems to feel pretty good
• I think it went well but my doctor hasn't called me back yet...(more on that later)
• I don't really like being on pain pills because they make me loopy 
• Ice cream makes everything better

When I can put full sentences together I will write more about it...but here is a picture of me looking great before I went in the operating to get fixed. To get my ankle fixed you sickos.

On Inspiration, over shooting, and cutting deep

So the last two week were long. There was Passover in LA with the family, the drive there and back, the scheduled ankle surgery, the postponed ankle surgery, the ED trip, the trip back to the ED to find out what was causing the gastric distress and diagnosis of acute colitis, and then MEB WON THE BOSTON MARATHON AND THAT WAS SUPER COOL.

Now for more color. I was getting ready for what my doctor said was a simple ankle surgery on Friday morning. It was going to take about 30 minutes and I would be off crutches within a few days. It would take care of the chronic inflammation that goes away after a few weeks of rest and comes back after a week of running. Very simple he said, does them all the time he said. So I said let's do it.

On Thursday night I started my mandated fast but started feeling my stomach bubbling up.  I figured it was nerves. I didn't sleep very well, again chalking it up to nerves. But when I got to the surgery center the cramps and nausea didn't subside, and in fact got worse. I tired to power through but the pain in my gut just didn't stop. Finally I choose to go home and get some rest and liquids in my stomach.

I thought I was going to be fine and was pissed about not sucking it up; then the cramps just wouldn't stop. They were incredibly strong and were getting worse. So off to the hospital we went. The doctor thought I was a wimp and said it was most likely nerves. Now, I trust doctors most of the time and I tend to think ED folks see a lot of the same stuff so they probably would know what was up. But this wasn't nerves and I am not a wimp (an idiot sure, but not a wimp).

I blame Vegas and Meb

Weigh-in Wednesday: April 9, 2014 -- 214.2lbs

So this past week wasn't the best. As you may have noticed, I didn't do a full week in review and I gained weight. I was pissy, I wanted to get the hell out of Dodge, and I didn't want fall into a funk. I did start the week well but then I couldn't get past the end of the block while running on Thursday. It wasn't good.

But then we went to Vegas and it was great fun. My lovely wife and I met my parents for a weekend of eating, drinking, and throwing money away. As is tradition we ate copious amounts of food. The only exercise I took part in included doing arm curls with my drink or walking from one eating establishment to another.

Surprisingly this didn't fit into my get back into shape plans...but hey it was part of the getting mentally back into shape. So suck it.

Last night, it got late, we needed dinner fast, and I have been wanting to go to this Eritrean restaurant in our hood. It was great! Assab was everything I wanted and more. Honestly, I figured I would wake up put on my Sketchers and run a one hour half marathon. But I couldn't. I was really full and there was a ton salt in that delicious Eastern African food.

I finished the same race (one year, two hours, 51 minutes later)

So it wasn't the best week. But tomorrow I will talk to the doctor to discuss next steps and have "run" 10 boring miles thus far on an elliptical machine. On ward and upward. Hopefully I will be running by next week and not prepping for surgery.

Week in Review 4-6-14

This week wasn't great. My ankle hurt a bunch. I was on schedule through Thursday, however when I got dressed to hit the road it wasn't happening. There was direct joint pain and some grinding in the ankle cavity and that isn't fun.  So instead of complaining about it (or seeing the doctor) the wife and I went to Las Vegas for the weekend with my parents on a last minute crazy trip.  A much better choice.

Anyway, I did one Pilates mat class, my weekly spin class, and ran six very comfortable miles on Tuesday. I also did some cardio work before and after my Pilates work out.  All in all a pretty good week considering I wasn't able to run more than two hundredths of a mile without limping.

I am calling the doctor tomorrow to see about options and I will report back.

Maybe I will have something to write about with some thought involved.

I can tell a lot about you by what Law & Order you like

I prefer the Goren versions of Criminal Intent. But really it is all about the procedural aspects of the show. Bad guys do stuff, Goren figures it out, he confronts them by speaking within the bubble of personal space and then the show is over. And if you are watching re-runs on ION TV you get to watch the next one within seconds.

I am a sucker for a predictable sequence
of events.

Yesterday was my first weigh in Wednesday. It wasn't a great number for the calorie burn over the week but I took it.  The truth is I forgot it was Wednesday when I woke up so I weighed myself at about 1pm.  This was after a crazy spin class but I thought it would be alright. Yesterday's post was also really lame, but I wanted to stay faithful to my self-inflicted disclosure doctrine.

But today I got on the scale and the numbers were better.

One week into my concerted effort to blog and run and such, and I am feeling pretty good. Not Goren good, but solid.

Weigh In Wednesday - 4-2-14

The first week was a good one.

I ran a bunch. I went to the gym. I ate too much but hey it is a start.

Weight: 213.4

Not much of a change. I will take it.

On to the rest of the week.

Week in Review - March 23-30

Considering I don't have much witty or insightful to say right now, I will present my first Week in Review post. These will come on Sunday. Weigh in Wednesdays will clearly be on Wednesday and then I will try to read something and share something at least a few more times a week. Like with my running, if I have a plan I like to stick with it...so there is my plan for the blog.

Mileage: 20 miles
If I was being honest, which is sort of the point, the runs this week were tough. I didn't particularly enjoy any of these runs. I believe it had a bit to do with the high pollen level (in addition to being out of shape).  I got four miles in the rain on Tuesday along a boring local route. It was a moderate effort with a decent pace. Thursday took me to Golden Gate Park and the Panhandle which was exactly at 9 minute miles (which felt pretty quick) and then slowed way down on the up hill sections of Masonic. I slowed, a lot.

On Saturday, I got eight with the club which I talked about yesterday and this morning after taking the lovely wife to the airport at 5:30am, I knocked out four nice miles with my chum Stephen.

Goal for Next Week: Keep the mileage and increase the week day pace for a completely even four to five mile run. 

Classes: Two out of Three
The spin class I took on Wednesday with Liz Bradley at the JCCSF was insanely difficult. As anyone who has taken a spin class knows, you check the clock at some point during the class. I checked 10 minutes in...it was that bad. But I my goal is to back to Liz this coming week. Because I am crazy like that

I also got a Hard Core class with Tara Widmer under my belt, who is a great teacher except when she is mad. Her bracket got really messed up, so we paid for it in crunches and leg extensions. I am still in pain.

Goal for Next Week: All three classes and don't feel like death after Tara's class. 

Strength: One out Two
I did some strength work at home on Friday that included ankle work, back, and some arms. It was weak sauce but it wasn't nothing, so I am counting it.

Goal for Next Week: Hit the weights at the gym.

No Watch Saturday

My watch with stuff I have long lost.

For the past two weeks I forgot to bring my trusty GPS watch to my long distance slow run with the fantastic San Francisco Road Runners Club. It was liberating.

So here is another new rule for my pre-plan plan: I will not run with a pacing device on Saturdays.

This forces me to focus on my actual pace on that day. It will mean that I might run with 9 min/mile crew or perhaps the 10:30 min/mile depending on how I feel. It will mean that I will push myself based on my internal such and such and not according to that task-master known as Garmin. It is a nice mental break from the fear of not being able to make it back to the start line.

So today's run broke the 100 mile mark for the year. I was proud of it. That said, I know I get caught up in the pace and the net mileage and the Stats that I inflate for personal reasons. And I won't stop that. However, once a week, I think it will be a healthy departure to just run for the sake of running as opposed to doing it every once in a while when my watch dies or when I "need a break" or whatever else. Intention is important.

On the STATS: I will update every Wednesday for Weigh-in Wednesday.

I got a pre-plan plan

I am back. My ankle is at a solid 85% nearly 95% of the time. The other five is either much better or not but at this point I see it as healing and on my way to the New York City Marathon.

I bet that guy to the right gave up.

But I am way out of shape. And not just running shape. But cardio, speed, strength, and perhaps most importantly, mental shape. I am way out of it.

So here it is, my perennial promise to keep this blog updated with my progress and engage in a number of Pintrest-like work outs where I look like an emaciated model doing lunges with script inspirational quotes floating above my poorly lit face, but perfectly sculpted ass.

But seriously I am promising to run about 20-25 miles a week based on pain, stretch and foam roll daily, one take a spin class and two core classes per week, and do two days of strength training until we reach the NYC Training Start Date (TSD). I will keep my goal weight of approximately 200lbs prior to the TSD and get below it for race day. I will blog. I will read. I will get in shape physically and mentally for the hard race that the New York City Marathon will be for me, both physically and mentally.

PLEASE KEEP ME HONEST.
STATS:
Weight: 213.2lbs
Week's Mileage: 8
Week's Classes: 50 min Spin
Week's Strength Training: Nothing Yet