What have I done?

Dear Readers-

I no longer want to be legit.  I am going stir crazy over here.  I haven't had a run since Thursday and I can feel my missed mileage steadily adding up on me.  It's to the point that it can't be easily fixed by running an extra day.  My injury is not improving.  I thought that resting it on Friday would allow me to run on Saturday.  I had a big run planned on Saturday with Ms. Running Roommate (for her BIRTHDAY!  HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!) but when I woke up on Saturday morning to get ready, I quickly realized that it wasn't going to happen.

I don't work out on Sundays, so that was an additional rest day.  I figured I could make up the lost 9-miles from Saturday by running on President's Day as I was lucky enough to have that full day off.  However, Monday came and my calf was STILL not feeling better.  By this point, I realized it was more than just a sore muscle.  Something is wrong in there somewhere (although the internet has not yet told me what it is).

Monday became a R.I.C.E. day--Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation.  I rested (watched a bunch of TV), iced (so cold...I hate icing!), compressed (not so bad really), and elevated (naturally comes with watching TV).  I also stretched and took anti-inflammatories.  I was taking good care of my leg--I knew it would get better right away.

Ace bandages are sexy.  Don't try to deny it.

When I woke up on Tuesday and it was still just as sore, I was pretty disappointed.  Ms. Running Roommate had been steadily sending good advice on how to fix it via text (seriously guys...she's the best friend ever), but even her good advice wasn't working.  That's a rarity!  At this point I finally accepted that I probably had done more harm than I had thought.  I am lucky enough to have a friend who is a physical therapist and I asked for her advice.  Without seeing me (I hate doctors...even friend doctors...haha), she believes I likely have a strained muscle or strained ligament.  I'm hoping for the former.  A strained muscle has to be rested for about a week and a half; a strained ligament has to be rested for four weeks.  FOUR WEEKS!  I will die.  I am already going stir crazy by not being able to go for a run.  Plus I have races I need to run soon!  I MUST RUN!

Anyway, I woke up this morning and my leg finally felt like it had improved slightly.  I even thought it might be good enough to get in a run tomorrow.  I was feeling pretty awesome about it.  Then I did something really stupid.  Seriously, people, it was stupid.  As I was leaving my house this morning for work, I suddenly realized that I couldn't remember unplugging my flat iron for my hair.  Not wanting to burn my house down, I decided to run upstairs and check.  Did you see the key word there?  "Run" upstairs.  I wasn't even thinking as I did it.  I ran for approximately 1.5 steps before sharp pain went searing through my calf.  Seriously--I could barely walk after it and I am limping enough today that I've earned the name "Gimp" for the day.   Whatever was wrong in my leg before is now even worse.  I don't think I'll be able to run for a while.  Ms. Running Roommate is trying to convince me through her wise logic that I should go to the doctor.  I know she's right, but I'm totally stubborn.  However, the threat of not being able to run races is haunting me so she just might win this battle.

Speaking of Ms. Running Roommate--just because we didn't do a birthday run doesn't mean we didn't hang out!

Love this girl!

We met up and went to Pei Wei for lunch with Hubster.  It was delicious!  I also convinced her to sign up for the Thanksgiving Point Half Marathon with me.  SO EXCITED!  I love having a great friend to run with.  It makes the runs go so much faster!

By the way...4" high heels are totally a logical choice to wear when injured.  Becky = smart.

I did make Hubster take some progress photos for me that day since I haven't posted some in a while.  So, without further delay here's how I look as of this past Saturday:

The angle of this photo is flattering.  Hubster should always take my photos.

And because I think it is horribly awkward to pose for these photos, I make up for it by making awesome faces...

...and then Hubster makes me pose normal to make up for it.  Hmmph.

Anyway...send good vibes my way.  I really want to be back on my feet soon.  I cannot believe how much I have missed my weekly runs.  I might actually be turning into a runner after all!

Happy Wednesday!!