I'm Not Dead

I haven't posted since June 11. Wow. A quick look back at my DailyMile shows the following workouts:

6/12 - 3.2 miles, 42 minutes
Again, not a great run. The heat is really getting to me. I used my CamelBak for the first time this year, and it didn't bother me. Ran with my cousin's wife, Amy. She told me my intervals were too long, and gave me a Jeff Galloway book to read. Will adjust accordingly and try again on Thursday.

6/17 - 4.47 miles, 55:37 minutes
Beach Run with Kate. Much better than I expected. Tried Jeff Galloway's intervals. 2:30/1:00.

6/19 - 1.69 miles, 21 minutes
Beach Run Solo. Hot as balls and my calves were super tight.

I haven't run since then. I did walk on the beach every night after dinner, sometimes early in the day too. I didn't gain any weight on my trip, which seems incredible to me.

I've met a few roadblocks that I'm having trouble overcoming. Firstly, the heat. Georgia is in for an incredibly hot weekend (highs in the 100s), after an already incredibly hot week. Running outside has been out of the question. The treadmill is so hard to handle mentally, but I'm really going to try on Saturday. My 6/17 run was amazing, and I can't lose all of that momentum.

Another problem I've had recently is my moods. I've been so up and down, and unfocused for (seemingly) no reason. One minute I'm feeling great, life is perfect, I don't want to change anything, and the next I'm down, self-conscious, and sad. My body is also in some kind of weird funk. My stomach hasn't been right since the trip, although my diet hasn't changed so I'm not sure why. I'm also having random pains that jump from joint to joint. My wrists, my neck, my knee, my hips, my ankle. It's so weird. I've also been getting a lot of headaches and my eyes are constantly twitching. I don't know what's wrong, or if I'm just incredibly tired and dehydrated. I'm hoping it passes, but I think if I feel the same way next week, I'll have to go to the doctor. Not happy about that.

And lastly, my knee is starting to worry me. At first, it was only mildly sore after a run. Then the pain started to increase slowly, so I would stave it off with Ibuprofen and ice. Then Kate and I went for a long run early in our trip, and my knee never really recovered. Walking up the stairs to my bedroom was a challenge, and on one walk along the beach with Eric I had to ask if we could go back because I was in too much pain. I'm starting to get worried, but Eric's dad is a former surgeon and present acupuncturist, so I'm hoping he'll be able to give me a little bit of guidance. Perhaps I didn't rest my knee long enough after my little tumble? Hopefully it's not anything serious. I don't feel like I'm active enough for a serious problem, but I'm probably heavy enough for one.

So that's what I've been up to. I'm ina  down swing with my mood right now, so I'm sorry if this post is a little depressing.

On a positive note, I met with a personal trainer friend yesterday, and he walked me through a new weight lifting regimen. We're starting very slowly, and we'll reevaluate in a few weeks, but I'm excited.