I'm sure you're all wondering how my leg is doing and my food issues and whether or not I'm still alive. I'm happy to clear it all up for you! I am in fact, alive. I have missed blogging but with the no running thing I'm low on material.
 |
| Perfected carrying all my crap into the gym! |
I've done some "aqua jogging" exactly twice so far and it's not as bad as it seems. It's only mildly terrible. Although I've only done it for 30 minutes each time. If I decide to get an hour or so in, things might be different. So far it's been a combo of swimming and then running since I've yet to allow myself more than an hour at a time at the pool. I know, I'm super lazy during the "off season". I'm going to try cycling this weekend or next week. I'm allowed to do whatever doesn't hurt so we'll give it a try and see. Before I knew I had the stress fracture I rode my bike a lot in place of running because it didn't hurt so I'm going to give it a whirl again. I've only been crutched up for just over a week but I can already tell things are getting better. It had gotten to the point that I felt a little pain in my leg all the time. Even just laying on the couch I knew it wasn't right although it may not have been particularly painful. Just from not using it at all for a week I've eliminated most of the noticeable pain which is awesome. I put weight on it from time to time when I'm brushing my teeth or in the shower and even then there's no pain. I won't be walking on it for some time but we'll see if a little cycling movement makes it hurt or not. I'm going to start with just 10 minutes easy spinning and then see how it feels after 24 hours or so before I do more. I do still have pain primarily when I'm sitting and the pressure from the chair on the backside of my leg aggravates it. That's sort of the tell tale sign of a stress fracture so I'm not surprised by that.
As far as the food issues. Well, you could say they're getting better. A lot of it is a mental game which is the hardest kind in my opinion. I'm upping the calories and trying to eat more but it's exhausting. I'm working hard not to be consumed with thoughts of food and calories but it's hard. I'm also trying not to let the pound and a half I've gained bother me too much. It fluctuates but I know I've gained at least a pound which I have to constantly remind myself isn't that big of a deal. On the one hand, gaining a little tells me I actually am increasing my calories which is good and the extra weight will likely fall off pretty quickly once I start ramping up my activity again. But then I have my fat brain which is terrified of the slippery slope and convinced one little pound will grow by 34 tomorrow morning. It's a delicate balance. I have to constantly try to look at it reasonably, first, it's seriously just a pound. It isn't actually 35. Second my clothes still fit, in fact better than ever. I'm in the grown up equivalent to the size I wore in college (7-juniors then, 8-grown up lady now) and that's awesome. So in addition to just eating more which is extremely difficult, I'm looking into vitamins and supplements that might stimulate some bone growth to avoid having this little issue again.
 |
| Making lunch time more fun by watching White Collar |
I also have very little soreness or fatigue in my upper body from using crutches like I was expecting. This isn't my first rodeo on them and I have memories of ridiculous soreness through my arms, back and shoulders and huge bruises under my arms from where I'd get tired and lean too much. Even my forearms hurt! And that was only for a week! So 6 weeks sounded tough but I really don't have any of those feelings this time which makes me super excited to be in such better shape. I do notice when I'm swimming that my arms are a little tired even when I first start and the next day I might have some extra muscle fatigue hanging around but it's nothing new and nothing worse than how I feel after arm day with my sister. Looks like I've been doing something right!
 |
| Someone's excited I'm staying off my leg more... |
So tell me, what are your words of wisdom for getting some more calories? Please nothing like "eat a burger" or something. I'm talking quality, meatless calories. Any shakes or vitamins that you're a fan of?
I love this update! I'm glad that everything seems to be working out!
ReplyDeleteNuts and cheese? Full fat everything? I know people who add oils to their smoothies, shakes and oatmeal (coconut or olive or sunflower or whatever) to get in healthy fats.
There is some company that has a birthday cake flavored protein powder! I've never tried it but I don't know how it could be bad!
I'm glad things are looking up! I remember being on crutches once in high school and my arms were so sore! I like Jess's ideas of adding some oils (like EVOO) to your smoothies and using full fat instead of low fat or light stuff. I bought some Garden of LIfe brand protein powder and it's a little chalky but tastes pretty good. It's a vegan brand made of all good for you stuff. You can order it on Amazon for the same price as a health food store.
ReplyDeleteI hope you're back on your foot soon but in the meantime try to not beat yourself up over a little gain. I know it's hard but stay positive!