Martini Fridays: Jerkface, the Fibroid, and Other Tales
Where’s John Madden when you need him?
Welcome to Friday, and this edition of Martini Fridays, where Adrienne Martini runs long and talks about Jerkface.
Apparently, I’m going to spend the entire summer—well, what’s left of it—re-arranging the training schedule. Week 4’s long run had to go on Thursday, not Saturday, which pushed Thursday’s NS: 5 miles (3,2) to Saturday, which, given how I’d re-arranged the rest of the week, made Friday a rest day. Confused? Yeah. Me, too. But I’ve been drawing circles and arrows all over my copy of the training plan so that I can keep track.
The long run was the first ten miler of this cycle. The middle two miles were to be at race pace. There were hurdles, not literal ones, mind, because I know I don’t have enough gazelle in me to run hurdles without breaking something.
Hurdle #1: What the heck is my race pace? My goal for this 13.1 is to come in under 2:30, because shaving 18 minutes of off my first half is within the realm of possibility, especially given that I spent a good 8-9 minutes of that race waiting for or occupying the porta-potty and another minute after than trying to get my dang skirt pulled back up.
I plugged my time goal into an online pace calculator—this one, but I reckon any will do — and it spat out that I should run 11:26 miles. So mote it be.
During the long run, I managed one mile under 11:30 and five under 12. Not exactly what the plan called for but as close as I could get under the circumstances.
Generally, the circumstances were good. The weather was perfect because a cold front had blown away an especially cloying wave of hot and humid. I was as rested as I get and had eaten decently the day before. Plus, I had new shoes—and who doesn’t love a run in new shoes?
This week, there were clams. At last, our long national nightmare is over.
Which leads to Hurdle #2: Despite the fact that I’ve been through four pairs of Brooks Ghost 6s and have loved every single one right out of the box, something about this new pair was just a little bit different. By the end of the run, I had a blister on my right big toe and between two of my left less big toes. After three plus years of running, I finally have my first blisters! Hooray?
(Also – it seems that Brooks will be phasing out the Ghost 6 because the price has dropped and I’ve seen Ghost 7s on the shelf. First they came for my favorite socks and I said, well, a lot. Now they’ve come for my favorite shoes. Oh, the humanity.)
Hurdle #3 has been the summer of 2014. I’ve finally figured out what I don’t like about summer runs: I end up feeling like an overburdened sherpa because I don’t have enough pockets on my hot weather gear. By the time I strap on Herr Garmin, a pouch for my phone and house key, and a small handheld water bottle that also has a pocket for Gu, I barely have the mobility to hit the start button. Plus, my handheld water bottle just isn’t cutting it anymore because I was dreaming about a pool-sized cherry slushie by mile seven—and I really don’t even like slushies, cherry or otherwise. I’m going to have to add a waist belt with H2O, which means I’ll have even more crap on my person.
When did I start requiring so. much. stuff to run? And where is my support staff who travels ahead of me to set up water tables and nutrition stops?
But gear hasn’t been the biggest hurdle, really. It’s the other life stuff—the non-running stuff, if you can believe such a thing exists—that has been getting in the way this summer. The biggest of which is my uterus. And if you are at all squeamish about TMI, look away, because it’s about to get extra TMI-y.
TMI, ordered up. Do not Google pictures of fibroids, especially before breakfast.
I had my annual appointment of womanly fun a couple of months ago. I mentioned to my GP that my periods had moved from “annoying but not dreadful” to “unpredictable tsunami.” An ultrasound was ordered and a smallish fibroid was discovered. I’ve named it Jerkface, because it is one.
Last week, Jerkface and I went to a new GYN to discuss options. She mentioned endometrial ablation (NovaSure is the brand name she does, fyi), which is sounding more and more like it’s in my future, because the present situation is growing untenable and gross. Swear on a stack of Runner’s World, my first question was about how the procedure would affect my training for the Syracuse Half. The new GYN is not a runner, by the way, and I had to explain how far a half marathon is and what the training is like. She anticipates that I might have to take a week off from the hard workouts but easier runs might be OK a couple of days after. Or I could wait to have everything done after the race, which, eh. I don’t know. I’d prefer to do it sooner, like tomorrow.
Which is why I’m again throwing myself on the mother runners, some of whom have faced similar questions, I’m certain. What has your experience been? How have you handled your own Jerkfaces? And how long did it take for you to get back on your feet?
The Most Important Mile of My Life: Erin VanLaningham
Erin and her boys at a recent race.
I handed the pine cone to my youngest son. He turned and grinned at me, face flushed. Then, his older brother ran past us to take the pine cone, picking up the pace. We were running the first Pine Cone Relay, a game we made up on our first family run.
Every summer we spend time at my parents’ cabin on a lake in Northern Wisconsin — swimming, kayaking, and having campfires. This summer was a bit different as I unlocked the door, quickly lighting the fire to cut through the cold front that had hit in July. I was fresh off a divorce and this was the first family vacation I was embarking on with the boys alone. After a few wet days inside reading and playing with legos, we were literally full of cabin fever. I told the boys to lace up their shoes.
We ran along the familiar tree-lined road, gazing at Indian Lake on one side and Sugar Camp Lake on the other. When we reached the end of the peninsula, it had started to rain again and spirits were dipping. I grabbed a pine cone and announced we would run home as a relay team. In a single file line, the runner in the front held the pine cone like a baton, until the rear runner cut to the front and took the pine cone from the leader. After many hand-offs, we arrived at the cabin wet, sweaty, and smiling. Each summer the boys now request to run the Pine Cone Relay, and if the weather is nice, we end at the lake with a swim.
This run is the most important mile of what was otherwise a very difficult time. I keep a pine cone to remind me of the day we all ran in line in the rain, on an old path toward a new life.
This is an ongoing feature on the website. Best way to submit is to email us your story with a picture: runmother {at} gmail {dot} com with “Most Important Mile” in the subject line. Please try to keep your mile stories under 300 words. Thank you!
#120: Lady Doc: An OB/GYN Gives Advice for Active Moms [Rerun]
(photo via picturesbymom.com)
[Note: We’re hard at work on our third book this summer, so today’s podcast has previously aired. Don’t worry – we’ll be back next week with a new show!]
Sarah and Dimity talk with Dr. Amanda Hurtubise, an OB/GYN in Port Huron, Michigan, who they found through her informed, insightful comments on their Facebook page, about health advice for active moms. This mom of three and beginning-again runner quickly dubs this show about “the fallout of running,” addressing TMI topics like vaginal prolapse, urinary incontinence, and risk of infection from hanging out in sweaty workout wear. The good doctor also talks about running during pregnancy. The show’s highlight, though, is Dimity over-sharing about her shaving habits. Talk about TMI!
[audio:http://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/podcasts.pagatim.fm/shows/amr/amr_072914.mp3]*If you’re digging our podcasts, we’d be super-grateful if you’d take a minute (because we *know* you have so many to spare!) to write a review on iTunes. Many thanks.
**Also, the quickest way to get our podcasts is to subscribe to the show via iTunes. Clicking this link will automatically download the shows to your iTunes account. It doesn’t get any simpler than that!
Martini Fridays: Let’s Focus on the Positive!
Just another 8-mile, lovely run in upstate New York.
Three weeks into 13.FUN and regular updates on Martini Fridays. In this one, we learn a little about Adrienne’s grocery store background, among other important things.
Last week marked my first Eminem run of this training cycle. It’s been at least three months since I’ve done 8 miles and, given how lousy my last 6-miler was, my hopes were not high. Perhaps it was simply a result of low expectations, but the Eminem was fine. Kinda good, even.
Which is one of the facts about running that always humbles/gratifies me: things change. A good six miles one day doesn’t mean they’ll be good the next. They might be fabulous. Or they might suck like a Hoover. You can’t predict with complete accuracy how any run might go until you run it.
Deep, eh? These are the sorts of highfalutin’ thoughts I have at mile 6 or so.
Warm and foggy beats cold and icy anytime.
Part of the reason this long run was better, I think, is that I moved it to Thursday rather than try to cram it into an already jam-packed weekend. I’m trying to be sort of smart about moving workouts around. I’m not putting intense runs—like a long run and an interval run—on back-to-back days. I might have to do the same with strength training, since I discovered that my form on the 13.FUN strength training routine was off enough on the morning after the Eminemer that I extended too far over my right knee on a lunge, which made it grouse for the rest of the day. It complained even more vehemently with each of the 9000 loads of laundry I carried up and down two flights of steps, but had given up its klaxon calls by the next morning.
Week three’s ladder intervals—I think that’s where they are called—were on tap for Sunday morning. They break down in a 1, 2, 3, 2, 1 pattern, which I interpreted as 1 minute hard as you can, then 1 minute easy; 2 minutes hard, 2 easy; and so on. Ten minute warm up (um, before you start the ladder, silly) and a ten minute cool down. According to the plan, this should be about five miles. For me, it was more like 3.5, for I am not a speedy engine.
Despite that, I kicked that first hard minute’s arse. I pushed out a sub-8 minute mile pace and felt like a goddess. I walked for a minute, then busted out two minutes at 8:30ish. I walked for two minutes, then, well, didn’t go nearly as fast for any of the following intervals. In fact, during the 3-minute haul, I had an 8th grade gym class flashback to the day we were forced to run a half-mile and I nearly barfed from the exertion in front of a boy I liked. On top of that, I failed the exercise because I couldn’t haul my 14-year-old self around the track fast enough to please the P.E. teacher. Related: I may still be a little bitter about this.
Does she look scared?
Still! Let’s focus on the positive. A 7:36 mile pace! Fear me, Kara Goucher!
Given that a) I’m doing OK with the spicier Race plan so far and b) the Race plan ramps up the intensity and distance pretty quickly in the cycle, I’m now at a place that I haven’t been since halfway through my journey through the run plan last winter: I am starving all of the time.
Unlike Dimity, I actually like to cook and do it frequently. I am a meal planner from way back because I intensely dislike having to go to the grocery and deeply prefer to only force myself to do it once a week. The loathing stems from a summer I spent as a cashier at a Publix near my mom’s in Orlando. Still a little bitter about that, too, it seems.
Anyhoo. Dinner is easy. Breakfast, too, because cold cereal and warm oatmeal exist. But I really can’t get a handle on lunch. That mid-day meal is the one I don’t want to have to think about. To quote a friend: I just want kibble in my bowl.
Lately I’ve been cooking a big batch of brown rice, then heating up lunch-sized portions with whichever frozen veggies I seem to be hoarding. But I am getting bored with that kind of kibble and it’s not keeping me as full as it used to.
So, mother runners, how do you deal with lunch? And does anyone want to come over and make it for me?
AMR Traveling Ultimate 6 Kit, Episode 5: Piriformis Syndrome
Nicole Hart, a mom on the move in Boiling Springs, Pennsylvania, had a massive pain in her butt for months. “I haven’t been able to do any real speed workouts, just all easy runs,” she told us. “Foam rolling, stretching, core exercises are helping my Piriformis Syndrome, but they’re not perfect. Sitting is the worst for it!” Sounds like she was the next perfect recipient for the AMR TriggerPoint Traveling Ultimate 6 Kit.
Anatomy 101.
What Piriformis Syndrome is: When one muscle—the piriformis muscle, which is your in your butt near the top of the hip joint—gets too aggressive and compresses the sciatic nerve.
On a scale of 1 (a hangnail) to 10 (hospitalization required), I would rate this injury a: 5-6 at its worst. When I was attempting to run, it stopped me in my tracks. I limped home. When I wasn’t running, but had been sitting for an extended period of time, it was a 2-3. Even though the pain wasn’t as intense, I still felt like I was limping.
What causes it: For me it was just an overuse injury; too many miles; not enough pre- and post-run stretching; not integrating cross training and strength training into my routine. When it first hit, I was training for a full marathon last fall. I ran my last 20-mile training run in preparation for the marathon, and couldn’t run without pain for months after that. Also, sitting too much seems to have aggravated it. I sit often in the car, while waiting for kids at their activities, or while doing work online.
Dr. Wikipedia weighs in with this important explanation: Runners, bicyclists and other athletes engaging in forward-moving activities are particularly susceptible to developing piriformis syndrome if they do not engage in lateral stretching and strengthening exercises. When not balanced by lateral movement of the legs, repeated forward movements can lead to disproportionately weak hip abductors and tight adductors.Thus, disproportionately weak hip abductors/gluteus medius muscles, combined with very tight adductor muscles, can cause the piriformis muscle to shorten and severely contract. Upon a 40% increase in piriformis size, sciatic nerve impingement is inevitable. This means the abductors on the outside cannot work properly and strain is put on the piriformis.
Nicole ripping it up, in her pre pain-in-the-butt days.
What it feels like: A real pain in the butt. For me, it was a tightness and pain that started in my butt, and travelled down the back of my leg, making even walking uncomfortable at the height of the injury. While the pain would affect my gait, and force me to stop. When not running, I could feel almost “normal”—until I would try to run.
You might have it if: Your butt hurts, especially when you’re running or after sitting for long periods of time.
A good self-test: To differentiate piriformis syndrome from other causes of sciatica (such as a herniated disc in the low back), a simple test you can do on yourself is to pull your knee toward your opposite shoulder while lying on your back. Hold the involved knee towards the opposite shoulder for about 30 seconds and if piriformis syndrome is present, you’ll feel a slight tingling along the outside of your leg.
When I would try to stretch my piriformis, it just was so tight. I would feel a definite pain and tightness in the middle of my glutes. Also, I could never get a “normal” stride going on my runs.I kept hoping it would loosen up, and it eventually didn’t once I had let the problem go for a while. The day after a run, I could barely walk without limping.
Rolling, rolling, rolling…keep those doggies rolling…
What and how to roll: For me, rolling with the TP Massage Ball before running worked the best. Just before I headed out, as I was sipping Nuun, I would just take a few minutes to do the 4 positions/actions: External Leg Rotation, Clam Shell Out, Clam Shell In and Pivot. I am happy to report that within a week or two of rolling with the TP Massage Ball before my runs, I felt so much better.
It really didn’t take long at all. Ideally, I should’ve rolled both sides, not just the affected side, but I usually only did that side. The key was to roll slowly, deeply and while taking slow, deep breaths. There wasn’t any need to rush, since the whole think only took a few minutes.
Occasionally, I would take time after a run to roll again, this time experimenting with some of the other tools in the Ultimate 6 Kit, including the soleus manipulation with the FootBaller and the Quadriceps/IT Band Manipulation with the QuadBaller. I even tried the psoas manipulation with the ball, but don’t really think I found the right spot.
What else works physically: I had physical therapy appointments for 3 months, 1-2 x per week. During those appointments, the PT used ultrasound, massage, and stretching at first to relieve the initial pain. Eventually, we worked on strengthening my core and hips. I was encouraged to do hip bridges with a resistance band and clam shells at home.
In January 2014, I resumed running, but continued to have discomfort, especially when I ran 2 days in a row. So, from January-June I ran 3x per week, with no high mileage, no speed work. I crosstrained with TRX, yoga, and did core exercises at home at least 3 times per week. This is the routine I really like.
For the last 3 weeks, I have been able to run five times weekly. I have consistently rolled with the TP Massage Ball before my runs, did a few dynamic stretches while waiting for my GPS satellites to kick in, and then stretched and did my core exercises post-run at least three times a week. This is really working for me. I was able to run a 5K race last weekend with absolutely no pain, which is huge.
How I coped mentally: Honestly, until just a few weeks ago, I was feeling pretty down about my running. Yes, I was able to run, but the runs were lackluster and often difficult to get through. I felt that I had lost my mojo. I just kept seeing my runner friends getting fitter and faster, including one who qualified for Boston. Meanwhile, I was nursing this injury for months and getting very discouraged.
How to avoid it in the future: As with any running injury I have had, I know prevention is key. I am going to continue to do my core and strengthening exercises regularly, and I have plans to order an Ultimate 6 Kit for myself now that I have to send this one to the next Mother Runner. Secondly, I will listen to my body and take rest days, work out tightness and deal with what’s going on, instead of continuing to run through it. I’ve always known this, and someday I will master this skill.
If you’ve suffered from a pain in the butt, how did you recover? Any other tips or ideas to share?
We’ve covered IT Band Syndrome, Plantar Fasciitis, shin splits, and hamstring strains in previous Ultimate 6 episodes, but if you have another running injury that needs some TLC from the AMR Ultimate 6 Kit, email us at runmother [at] gmail [dot] com, and we’ll see if we can get some relief sent your way.
Also, if you’ve got your eye on—or your muscles are longingly aching for—some TriggerPoint products, grab 20% off with code AMR20 at checkout on TriggerPoint.com
#119: (Running) Streaker Paula Harkin Bares All
T-shirt twins Paula Harkin (left) and SBS chitchat pre-podcast
Dimity and Sarah reconnect with Paula Harkin, the Portland mom of two, “proficient” runner, and coach who trained SBS for the 2007 marathon that kicked off Run Like a Mother. Main topic of conversation: Paula surpassing her 2000th day of of running at least a mile a day. The mother runners delve into the origins of Paula’s noteworthy running streak, the speedbumps along the way, and if it shows any signs of ending. Much to the TMI delight of Sarah, Paula shares the gory details of a fibroid-fueled episode that nearly sidelined her. Dimity and Sarah also have Portland Running Company co-owner share insight about hurdling the intimidation factor of shopping at a running specialty store. And you might be wishing for the podcast version of Smell-O-Vision during this episode.
If you’re digging our podcasts, we’d be super-grateful if you’d take a minute (because we *know* you have so many to spare!) to write a review on iTunes.
[audio:http://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/podcasts.pagatim.fm/shows/amr/amr_072014.mp3]**Also, the quickest way to get our podcasts is to subscribe to the show via iTunes. Clicking this link will automatically download the shows to your iTunes account. It doesn’t get any simpler than that!
One of Paula’s training log and a quarterly streaker journal