A Look on the Bright Side

Hi, runner friends. It’s been a while. I’m still here. Still nursing my tendonitis. Currently, I’m allowed to walk or do the elliptical for 20 minutes a day. So that’s…something.

A friend recently complimented me on how gracefully I was handling this whole thing. (Seven weeks in a walking boot with no exercise allowed. Several more weeks with limited exercise. No running at all.) Her comment told me three things- one, I have wonderful friends. Two, I don’t like to complain to people, which is exactly why I’ve been on a break from blogging. And three, I really am a positive person. I like exclamation points. I see my glass of chardonnay as half-full. I like to look for the good in everything.

On that note, here are some things that don’t suck about being unable to run:

1. My kids don’t have to spend their summer vacation mornings at the gym or in a jogging stroller. 9am playdate? Sure, we’d love to! And we don’t have to deal with the gym kid germs, either. Bonus!

2. I can sleep in on the weekends. Sort of. My kids are early risers, which means I have to do my long runs even earlier. Without the run, I’m getting a little extra sleep. 6:30am is better than 5am, right?

3. I don’t have to run in this crazy heat. My last outdoor run here was in mid-April. Since then, it’s gotten hot. Hotter. Wicked humidity. Even at 6am. It messes with one’s pace and hydration, and honestly, I’m glad to be missing out on it.

4. My house is so clean! I realized how desperate I was to fill the void of running when I began to dust and vacuum three times a week. There is no such thing as a cleaner’s high but having counters and floors this clean is a decent substitute.

5. I am buying shoes that aren’t running sneakers! Okay, this is a stretch, because well, I buy them anyway, but I’m wearing them more often than I do when I’m running four times a week. (Please don’t tell my podiatrist.) My birks are super comfortable (I choose to believe they give the same support as a sneaker. Ahem.), and my vintage-style Brooks are super cute, even with a skirt. There may not be endorphins from vacuuming, but the same can’t be said for shoe-shopping, am I right?

How have you coped with an injury? Favorite summer activity? We’ve been swimming and eating sweets- twistee treat, mini cupcakes at the local bakery, italian ice. YUM.

2 thoughts on “A Look on the Bright Side

  1. There are things that we encounter in life that are just out of our control, so we can choose either to complain about them or find the positive in them. I prefer to do BOTH. ha! At this point I am happy that I can at least run short distances, given that for the longest time ITB syndrome had me running no more than a 1/2 mile without pain. Now that I can run up to 4 without real pain…that’s something! Injuries are just no fun…but we manage somehow. Keep working it and being positive, my friend! And, when you are “back” I’ll have you put in some long distance runs in my honor! ; )

  2. sounds like you are doing all the right htings….. embracing your friends, staying busy, and positive. a clean house is an excellent side-affect of an injury and so is extra sleep!

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