Quotable

I promised myself I won’t whine to you poor, unsuspecting reading people, but I’m having a moment of weakness and figured I can rant if I want to.

No purpose of this picture, but to amuse you.

Today I was at the chiropractor for a little ART. Unfortunately, I’m the last of the NYCM injured carnage to be cured. He said to me, “You must be very frustrated…”

Of course, I am frustrated you nice man who is PEARLS-ing me and it makes me feel better because you are acknowledging my pain.

I replied pretty calmly, actually, saying, “Well, I’m doing all I can do.” And, I guess that is true, to some extent.

I was at PT today, too, and my PT does always ask me if I have any pain with this or that. I never know at what level of pain you should  just put up with it. I’m always honest and today told her that my SI joint and glute were kind of hurting with some of the exercises. I feel bad complaining because, I mean, it’s not horrible pain. It’s enough that I notice something, but I can work through it if I needed to.

I don’t know, I just feel like I’m becoming this whiner who can’t take any pain or something. One of those people who cries wolf all of the time. I don’t know at what point I just need to suck it up a little bit.

Cry Wolf --> Werewolf Howling --> Compelled to post picture of Twilight Werewolves

I can’t tell if I’m being hypersensitive or just doing that whole “listening to my body” thing.

I guess time will tell. BUT, HOW LONG IS THIS GOING TO TAKE?!?

Above line also said by King Julian in Madagascar.

Anyways, instead of continuing to rant and whine, I will share with you one of my favorite quotes, because I need to be reminded of it right now.

“Ability is what you are capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it.” – Lou Holtz

Can someone stitch that on a sampler for me?

Something simple will do?

ADD ON: GOT A FAVORITE QUOTE OR QUOTES? AT WHAT POINT SHOULD I START IGNORING SOME OF THE TWINGES I’M FEELING IF THEY’RE NOT THAT BAD? TIRED OF MY WHINING?

Until next time…

P.S. Go congratulate Emilia on her sub-4 marathon and go tweet to the RC that she is awesome always.

What’s Up Wednesday

Here we go…

1. CROUTONS

Zero nutritional value. 100% deliciousness.

Every day when I order my salad from Just Salad, I tell myself, “Meggie, don’t get the croutons – there is no nutritional value in croutons.”

And, then I succumb to getting croutons because crunchy bread is awesome and even more awesome when it’s soaked in some red wine vinegar.

2. HOLIDAY CARD FROM JESUS

Yep, you read that right. I got a card from Jesus.

The face of Jesus as made from its imprinting on the Shroud of Turin. Watch that documentary. It's cool.

Ok, not that Jesus. My friend Becky is married to a man named Jesus (he goes by Chuy though), but the holiday card said “From Jesus and Rebecca.”

So, I did get a card from Jesus. In my head, it’s funny.

3. YOUR COMMENTS ON MY LAST POST.

They mean the world to me, truly. They made me feel much better, especially since I was worrying that I sounded too whiny.

I think the hardest part is managing your expectations and emotions. I fully expected I’d be 100% by now. Now, I don’t know what to expect.

It’s hard to not get excited when you can do something. Being able to run for 10 minutes then turns into me wanting to run a loop of Central Park with my friends…the next day. But, then getting excited prematurely leads to disappointment, too. And, then you get frustrated. Its a vicious cycle.

I try to remember to take an “optimism tempered by realism” approach – to be optimistic about what I can do, but be realistic about what I can’t do for the time being. I need to write that on a post-it to remind myself when I start getting really whiny.

4. PICKY BARS’ NEW COFFEE FLAVOR

Word on the street is that once it is named, it can be in my our hands. So, help them name it so it is available asap.

My suggestions are: Pre-Race Jitters, Dark Roast Horse, Rocket Fuel, Picky Me Up.

5. THE RC IN THE MARATHON OLYMPIC TRIALS!

Go RC! Real name - Stephanie Rothstein

Wish my running brain luck! Comment on this Picky Bar post or tweet to her (@stephazona).

I’ve told her that after she makes the team, she needs to get this Kate Spade bangle.

"London Calling"

 

ADD TO MY LIST: ANYTHING PARTICULARLY THRILLING FOR YOU THIS WEEK? OLYMPIC TRIALS PREDICTIONS?

Oh, I forgot two things — dinner with my college roommate and the nail polish color “Cocktail Bling” by Essie.

Until next time…

Choose Your Attitude

A happy person is not a person in a certain set of circumstances, but rather a person with a certain set of attitudes.” – Hugh Downs

When I was a camp counselor in 2007, I used to always tell my campers to “choose their attitude.” As a counselor (meaning I lived in a cabin with 6-7 girls), you are mother, cheerleader, waitress, psychologist, teacher, disciplinarian, and friend. If one of my campers woke up on the wrong side of the bed, telling them to “choose their attitude” or “turn that frown upside down” sometimes worked to put them in a better mood. Key word: sometimes!

I’ve need a dose of my own camp counseloring lately as I haven’t had the best of attitudes since mid-November. With the whole hip/IT-band/back thing, my attitude wavers. Currently, I’m a low point.

Thankfully, my IT band does not hurt at the knee, as it did when this whole thing first started. I had a few days of pain-free running when I was in Arizona.

Now, my hip and back get very sore with walking. I can best describe the pain as being over the outermost part of your hip (or greater trocanter area, if you’re into anatomy) and where my SI joint would be (but does not feel like it needs to be adjusted, just inflamed). The soreness/pain somewhat gets better with running, actually, as I think the whole things warms up.

Part of me thinks that maybe this is just some residual soreness from the monster ART session I had with JB on Monday. I still have bruises to prove it.

Part of me thinks I should suck it up.

Part of me wants to ask an interventional radiologist to shoot some cortisone all up in there.

Part of me isn’t sure what to do.

Do I continue with PT exercises? Keep getting ART? Or just quit the whole thing, call it a day, forget about running for the time being, and become a professional ellipticaller complete with magazine. Plus, I can’t keep paying for much more treatment.

Unfortunately for me, I’m very stubborn and I won’t give up on the whole running thing just yet, especially my marathon goal. I’d love to get my 3:35 in the spring, but maybe I’ll just have to wait a little bit longer for my turn.

The worst part about not running or racing for me is that it lets my confidence slip. I convince myself that all my PRs are a fluke and that my marathon goal is way, way beyond my reach. Somehow I’ve just faked myself into thinking it’s possible. And, because when I’m the furthest thing from the runner I was in October, when I go run now, I can convince myself that it’s true.

This is really where I need to choose my attitude. I can believe I am as good as I want to be, or as bad as I want to be. It’s up to me. My own biggest cheerleader should be me.

But, sometimes, it’s hard to remember that.

Patience and positivity aren’t my strongest suits when it comes to running, but I’m working on it.

Thankfully, I have my Believe I Am journal to remind me of the right way to think. Seriously, get one. You won’t regret it.

CHIME IN AND HELP ME: ANY BRIGHT IDEAS RE: HIP/BACK SORENESS? EVER CONVINCE YOURSELF THAT YOUR GOALS ARE FAR TOO GREAT OR THAT YOUR PRIOR RUNNING WAS A FLUKE?

Until next time…

It’s Wednesday, Again?!?

Seriously, when I woke up this morning I thought, “It cannot possibly be Wednesday, again.” 2012 is flying already, people.

Before we begin, #0 for the week is watching the sun rise AND set at the Grand Canyon. Pretty cool, in my book…

Lookin' sharp and alive...or not so much.

Ok, time for the usual…

1. MY BRUISES FROM ART FROM JB

I have no pictures of my ART-induced bruises, but, trust me, they are a gnarly shade of purple. I like to think of them as my battle scars.

2. EXTENDED VACAY

So, I was supposed to go back to NYC at 6 am this morning, but decided to extend my little vacay with a few extra days at home to catch up on some stuff here.

Ok, really, I just wanted to hang out with Clip again. Here he is on his 4th birthday last month.

3. INFOMERCIALS

I watched a lot of them while in Arizona. Those are such a time suck. I can’t stop watching. And, I mean, who doesn’t want a Magic Bullet?

You can make everything with the Magic Bullet...or so they say on the infomercial.

4. MY CONFISCATED AIRPLANE BLANKET

According to my family, those blankets they give you on airplanes are not for you to keep. What? Seriously? That was a gift, Todd! And I’m taking it with me! (Name that movie).

Seriously, you can't keep these?

But, who wanted to borrow my blanket when watching tennis matches once it got chilly? EVERYONE.

5. “LEAP DAY SPORTS” BLOG

Jesse (Thomas, one of the Picky People) writes well and is honest and funny. I mean, I have wondered how those Ironman people sit on bikes for hours on end and, according to Jesse, their butts hurt, too. You can glean some good tips from Jesse’s posts. Sometimes, when I read Jesse’s race reports, I think I’ll try a triathlon. And, then I remember that swimming for >1 min feels long to me and that spinning makes my butt sore.

This is Jesse...winning a triathlon.

Plus, not so into the triathlon outfits.

There must be something cuter than this...

Warning: Jesse has like 6 degrees and does 20,000 things so sometimes I feel slightly lazy when I read it. Inspired, too. If my memory serves me correct, Jesse delved into the whole triathlon thing in his late 20s, maybe even 30 years old after getting a Masters, working in start-up things, and then getting an MBA. And, then he decided to become a pro triathlete. And, succeeded.

Maybe there is hope for my Olympic gymnast career then!!!

Can you name this gymnast?

No? Ok, fine. I’ll stick with medicine and recreational running.

Anyways, check out Jesse’s blog throughout his 2012 season.

ADD TO MY LIST: FAVORITE INFOMERCIAL PRODUCT? CAN YOU KEEP THOSE AIRPLANE BLANKETS? ANYTHING IN PARTICULAR ROCKING YOUR WEEK?

If you’re curious about the running front, I went and ran/walked a 3 mile loop today. I did the last 1.5 miles without walking. I got some horrible left groin pain about 5 minutes in and I swore that a) I broke my pelvis or b) I avulsed a muscle from my pelvis or c) I had a hernia. Seeing as the pain sort of subsided after a few minutes of walking, I was pretty sure a) and b) were ruled out. I hope it has to do with all the ART I got on Monday…

Thankfully, I didn’t feel as horribly out of shape cardiovascularly as I did the other day. I did, however, feel super awkward, like my limbs forgot what they were supposed to do and somewhat like I was waddling. I hope that’s normal when you haven’t run in a while.

Oh, and I loved all your half versus full responses. I’m still on the fence. So, you can keep those coming if you haven’t rocked the vote, yet.

Until next time…

 

Random Running Rambles

John Ball (the chiropractor) is my new favorite person. I don’t know if it’s the mildly sarcastic nature, the curly hair, or the fact that he makes you go run for a few minutes in between treatments, but I wish I could park myself here and see him weekly (or daily). The sunshine here isn’t half bad, either.

Now, although Dr. Ball is my new favorite person, his active release therapy brings the pain big time. The almost immediate increase in range of motion helps you endure the pain a bit more (in addition to the desperation to get back to your chosen activity).

Plus, he entertains all of my questions and random thoughts. Score!

I ran for 15 minutes, mostly pain free today! It was great, but 15 minutes also felt, well, long? hard? I ran for what I thought SURELY had been 5 minutes and lo and behold, it had only been 2 minutes. Suffice it to say, I’m out of shape. Whatever race I pick next – marathon, half, etc – is going to be the “couch to ___” version, I fear.

Roughly what I felt like today...

 

Speaking of races, I haven’t decided if I should do a spring marathon or not.

Part of me says I should go for it, seeing as I didn’t really get my chance at New York with that whole IT-band-injury-two-weeks-before thing and that I won’t get to train for marathons, at least “seriously” (ha! I couldn’t find a better word), for too much longer.

Part of me says I don’t really love the marathon, or at least haven’t found I have. I don’t mind the training, actually. I just don’t like that, first, a marathon is a lot of eggs in one basket. If a marathon doesn’t go well, I can’t just go do one the next month (some people can, I can’t). Consequently, I’ve never been able to really enjoy any of the marathons I’ve run because of that pressure (self-induced, of course).

Spring marathon + eggs in a basket = Easter eggs in Easter basket, no?

Another part of me says that I need to do another one and figure out a way to enjoy it and, maybe, my dream marathon time will follow (my PRs have followed enjoyment in my last races). Plus, I feel like I need to end on a better note than running a marathon injured.

And, I figure, I can put other little races along the way to a marathon to buffer the pressure of just one race (I do this anyways).

Yet, another part of me thinks a marathon might not be a smart decision. Maybe, my injury shows my musculoskeletal system has had enough for the time being and I need to scale back on the volume to let that system adapt a bit more (whereas my cardiovascular system may have adapted a bit more and can handle another marathon).

I don’t think I can give up my marathon goal so easily though…

So, we shall see – you can weigh in if you want.

CHIME IN: EVER HAD THIS DILEMMA? UNRELATED NOTE, WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CURRENT TV SHOW?

I’m watching Real Housewives of Beverly Hills right now. It’s not my favorite, but it’s good.

Until next time…

I’m Bad At New Year’s Resolutions

Happy New Year!

I rang in the New Year with my family…

Staying at El Tovar at the Grand Canyon…

Ally and I at the South Rim

Having a photo shoot with a moose (or is it an elk?) in Grand Canyon National Park…

Show us your left antler! Now the right! Look angry! Pose!

Eating at Diablo Burger in Flagstaff  twice in two days…

Roasted garlic on a burger is strangely good...

Taking a hot air balloon ride…

Good morning mountains!

And nerding out at Taliesin West, a Frank Lloyd Wright house…

This tour was one of my favorite things that we have done in Phoenix. HIGHLY RECOMMEND.

I’m really bad at New Year’s resolutions. You see, usually, my years revolve around an August to August (or now July to July) schedule. It’s the end (or middle) of the summer when I start anew, making my resolutions as I shop the aisles of Staples for the latest and greatest highlighters.

I'm undecided on the gel highlighters...

I tend to make goals when the spirit moves me, so to speak. Sometimes, I’m not moved to make a new resolution or goal on December 31st or I just don’t know what the goal or resolution is, yet.

Some things I must accomplish in 2012: figure out where I want to do my residency, apply to residency, interview for residencies (see a theme here?), study for and take step 2 of the boards (clinical skills and clinical knowledge), get something published, decide if I want to do the NYC Marathon again or not (I have the guaranteed entry, just not sure I want to spend $200+ on it), figure out my 4th year school schedule…

Some things I’d like to do in 2012: host another Cookies For Kids’ Cancer bake sale (preferably at a tail gate this time), run a 3:35 marathon (old goal, new year), find a new running goal besides marathons (suggestions welcome – I’ve always thought it’d be cool to run a 21 min 5K, but I’m pretty sure I’m not that fast), read a good number of books, maybe play in a tennis tournament again (trying to convince my bro to play mixed doubles!)…

Some things I need to do in January include: find my biochem stuff from college (I’m TA-ing that class this semester), write a to paper I need to finish, get the gumption to sign up for a spring goal race, get back on a regular running schedule (assuming this injury business is healed), and, if not, get back on a regular cross training schedule (I’ve been taking it easy since on vacay with the family – and we’ve been busy at that!)…

Wait, I know what my New Year’s resolution is — get an iPhone so I can get instagram…

I’m dreaming big in 2012, people. ha.

TELL ME: MAKE NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS? WHAT ARE YOUR RESOLUTIONS? BEEN TO ARIZONA BEFORE? FAVORITE THING YOU DID?

Until next time…

What Else Would Write About Today

Let’s not beat around the bush…

1. ATC USING HER INITIALS IN A CARD TO ME:

From one of my lovebugs (ie babysitting kids)

I like to think she learned her love of initials from my penchant for using my initials.

2. LULULEMON WATER BOTTLES

These people know me...

“I run because I really [x10] dessert” and “I run because I can, but really I jog.” SOMEONE UNDERSTANDS ME.

3. RICK PERRY AS LORD VOLDEMORT

If you haven’t seen Rick Perry’s “Strong” campaign commercial, this may not make sense. I could be wrong, but most on both sides of the political spectrum might find Rick Perry outrageous.

Stolen from my cousin's facebook page! I can't take credit.

4. SPINNING

Its an adequate substitute during my running hiatus. It’s really fun, but it just doesn’t have the same satisfaction as working towards a running goal does. However, I will say spinning clothes are cute and headbands are plentiful in the NYC spinning crowd. Therefore, I’m a fan.

5.  FOREVER LAZY

Thank you to Lauren for introducing me to this. THINK HOW AWESOME THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN WHEN I STUDIED FOR YEARS IN FREEZING LIBRARIES?!?

You know what to add to my Christmas list.

That’s all this week.

———————————————————————————————————————

I did run today as part of a study. It was actually a run to fatigue, which I told them wouldn’t take so long, considering I haven’t run in a long time. They want you to run at “5K pace.” Seeing as that wasn’t happening for more than 10 minutes (if that), we settled on 8:15/mile (fyi: my original suggestion was 9 min/mile, but they didn’t think it would fatigue me quick enough).

I made it almost 3 miles before I waved the white flag of fatigue. It was also at that point when I started to get IT band twinges so we figured it was a good time to stop. I actually felt very little knee pain. It was more IT band pain at my hip in addition to my low back/adductor. I’m glad it’s moving around, keeping me on my toes.

Between my shock-to-the-system run + all the strength testing I did, I was wiped. It felt really nice to run though. I still haven’t been able to find a comparable substitute to running.

I’m hoping that the physical therapist on Friday will say, “Fear not! For, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy! You can run again as you wish.” I really miss it.

The Angel of the Lord -- a seasonal reference...

 CHIME IN: What’s rocking your week?

Until next time…

 

 

It’s A Good Thing I’m Not A Horse

Or I would’ve been shot by now.

Remember that horse they rehabbed and tried to save but it didn't work...heartbreaking...

Anyways, so I’ve done the whole resting thing. I’ve tried yoga. I’ve been dedicated to that foam rolling stuff. I’ve tried cross-training. I’ve barely run. I’ve stretched. I’ve done core things and lots of lunges. NONE OF IT WORKS. IT’S ALL LIES.

You're sitting on a throne of lies! You're a fake! It's a fake! He's not Santa!

Ok, slightly dramatic. However, today was my 3rd time running since the marathon (3+ weeks ago). It was suggested to me to try running fast as that would hurt my IT band less as you run with better mechanics when you run fast.

That actually kind of worked…for about 15 minutes. And, I had to keep increasing the speed for the entire 15 minutes as I’d start to feel some IT band pain at a certain pace and I found out that if I increased it then, I’d have a few minutes of relief. It was actually kind of nice to have to push myself again.

Around 15 minutes I got that sharp-ish type of pain (it wasn’t horrible, but it kept getting worse) in my lateral knee. That coupled with the fact that my medial hamstring (or adductor magnus, I still can’t figure out which its is, its the one that flares up with my SI joint concurrently) hurt the entire time made me stop.

Some anatomy, including the IT band. Woo.

Fortunately, no one in the gym turned me into a psychiatric ward after I was whispering to my leg, “I’m going to kill you.”

I briefly considered quitting and throwing the foam roller and my running shoes out the window. I determined I was going to re-take up tennis, considering that would probably be a lot of fun and improvement steep in the first few months as I haven’t played a match in 4 years. Tennis and I would have a beautiful honeymoon period where it was all fun again.

Tennis and I in our honeymoon period. It would be fun, new, novel, and I could throw in drop shots and swinging volleys as I so pleased.

But, I don’t actually want to quit running, like I didn’t actually want to quit tennis the time I left my racquets on the court in college and claimed I was done (that was so mature of me).

I’m just kind of frustrated as I’m at a loss of what to do. My plan to chill for November and be better by December has failed me.

It reminds me of the last practice test I took for the MCAT, a week before the real thing. I scored the second lowest score of all 10 practice tests I took for the real thing. I was shell-shocked and walked around NYC for approximately two hours because I was at a loss of what to do. I didn’t even want to eat (this is highly unusual for me). Fortunately, I had a lot of nice people talk me out of my funk, including my roommate’s mom who came up with the following mantra for me: “You’re smart, You study hard, You’ll be fine.”

Ahh, memories...

Fortunately, that worked out well for me in the end. I’m not so sure about this whole running thing. The SI/hamstring combo is the exact same thing that flared up last year. I sort of feel like I must’ve just dodged a bullet for about 10 months and, in reality, this may be a constant problem that can’ t be fixed (its SI Joint Dysfunction that, when all out of whack, makes the hamstring hurt like whoa.) The IT Band is completely new, but, seriously, how long is this going to take?!

"We will take them when they are deep in their sleep...HOW LONG IS THIS GOING TO TAKE?!?" - King Julien, Madagascar -- I feel you.

Anyways, I’m sure none of you wanted to hear this whiny-ness, but it’s cathartic to write about it for me, so you’ve been subjected to this, should you have read this whole whine-fest. My Believe I Am journal didn’t have enough space. I’m well aware everyone gets injured. I guess its just hard for me as my last real injuries were 11 and 12 (teeth knocked out and stress fracture, both gymnastics). And, truthfully, I don’t consider this a real injury as nothing is broke, fractured, or requiring surgery. This whole thing is just annoying, not an injury.

Thankfully, I’m getting ART/Graston tomorrow from Dr. Levine. He is a Godsend. Hopefully, he can fix this bum mare.

TOTALLY UNRELATED QUESTION: Favorite holiday/christmas movie BESIDES ELF?

Until next time…

Fair Weather Fan

***Note: I am writing this above 10,000 ft so if anything sounds really crazy, it’s because I am temporarily insane on airplanes. Also, there is a weird smell. I don’t like it.

I have become a fair weather runner as of yesterday.

Normally, I’m down running in the rain, as long there is no lightening as I am not really into being electrocuted (it happens people…I’ve known 4 people struck by lightening).

Yesterday, I thought I’d give the ol’ run a go, considering there are some softer surfaces at home (flat terrain, however, is another story). Within 5 minutes, it started to pour. I immediately turned around and headed for indoor activities that may or may not have included me listening to the Mariah Carey + Justin Bieber version of “All I Want For Christmas Is You” about 16 times while on the elliptical.

FYI: I have choreographed Derek Hough and I’s jive to this song, which we will be performing after I get a spot on Dancing With The Stars. And ,again, at the Disney Very Merry Christmas parade after we get asked to perform it there, too.

 

All I want for Christmas is to get asked to be on DWTS. I know. I’m not a star. Minor snag in that plan.

 

Anyways, I turned around because running by myself isn’t really that fun right now.  Running for 30 minutes slowly isn’t enjoyable as most of it involves monitoring if my IT band or hamstring hurts, which, of course, interferes with me pretending I’m a pop/country music star.

 

I love/hate her. Love the sparkle guitar though.

Further, running for 30 minutes slowly doesn’t really seem to serve a purpose for me, right now. I could probably get a better workout or at least some sort of cardiovascular benefit from cross-training (who am I and why did I say that?).

 

Me except insert better outfit and hair accessories.

Finally, there is no real goal or point to most of my running right now, unless I’m social running (socializing is a totally a valid point for running, in my world), which makes running not that attractive of a workout option right now, not to mention it gets dark at 4:30 pm.  I always like for there to be a point or goal to what I’m doing so I think, at least, I’m getting myself to the next step, from A to B, etc.

Side note: Social running is totally cool right now, though, because I have something to distract me from monitoring my leg. Plus, social running is my thing. It’s how I started running. I can’t abandon it.  So, if you want to social run, you let me know.

 

See, my first race was disguised as a social run.

And, for some reason, I kind of just don’t want to know if it hurts or not. If I don’t run, I won’t know. If I stick to safe activities that don’t bother my leg, all seems ok in my world because I can pretend it is, indeed, just fine and I’m only choosing not to run, instead of it being that I can’t run.

OMG this is very turbulent. I can’t breathe. HOW ARE PEOPLE SLEEPING THROUGH THIS TERROR?

Mommyyyyy....help.

TELL ME, PEOPLE: Anyone else turn into a complete psycho on a plane? Can you sleep through turbulence? Anyone ever find running not so fun? Anyone want to join my future women’s [tennis] interclub team? Requirements: You can’t be a psycho and you have to be down with matching outfits.

I’m going to go try and not freak out now. And GOOD NEWS! Tennis doesn’t bother my leg, so if the whole running thing doesn’t work out, I can live out my 17 year old dreams by dominating the women’s interclub scene.

Except I'll need to get a new racquet that generates all of my pace for me in addition to stringing my racquet around 40 lbs (very low tension = more power without trying).

 

Until next time…

Diverted

I swear, getting home is never easy. Last night, on my seemingly perfect flight back to Knoxville (we actually took off on time out of LGA, a novelty!) we got diverted to Greenville, SC due to fog and then our flight was cancelled (and it was about midnight at this point). Thankfully, a nice radiologist and his wife who happened to live near me rented a car and offered to drive me home (its about 3 hours from Greenville to Knoxville). Solid travel day.

Fortunately, I sat next to my dental hygienist on the flight so I couldn’t act like I total crazy person during takeoff. Although, I may have professed my love for that foamy fluoride treatment which they have replaced with some lame paint-on stuff that isn’t flavored. That’s not crazy, right?

True story: There was a 5-6 year period where I couldn't get fluoride treatment due to my veneers (from a gymnastics accident where I knocked my front two teeth out). It was definitely upsetting at every dentist's visit.

Now, I know what you’re all thinking – if I’m home, what is the lady dressed up as for Thanksgiving? A pilgrim, obviously.

The Lady and myself. Yes, I'm wearing two different shades of orange. I put basically no effort into my wardrobe when I'm at home.

Since I’ve developed some pathologic addiction to sweating and since my weird-left-leg issues prevents me from using running as my primary form of sweating, I spend most of my mental energy figuring out other ways I can get my sweat on. I’ve reached the point that my post-marathon break feels over and just “resting” leaves me with a lot of pent up energy.

Yesterday, I went to bikram again (before catching that diverted flight home) and have determined that not only do you need to try 3 bites of anything, but also that a lot of yoga is instructor dependent. I spent way too much time figuring out where the instructor yesterday was from because she had this weird accent that I couldn’t place. After 90 min, I think she was Canadian or possibly from Wisconsin. She also gave too many life lessons. Is it bad that I don’t want any of that and only go because I think it will make me a better runner?

Can any of you do this pose? I can't. Not even close.

Still, you do get a major sweat on in Bikram Yoga. Its pretty hard not to with that room being 100 degrees or something like that.

Today, I tried this TRX class at home. FYI – that TRX stuff is no joke. It was one of those times wear I SWORE it was the longest 30 seconds of my life and that the 30 second work period HAD to be over and, clearly, the instructor’s watch was broken.

Do you think I could install one of these in my dorm room? Like, "Don't mind me, just installing my new ceiling fixture!"

Or maybe I’m just very weak. I actually really liked it though, in some sort of “this hurts really badly, but I bet it is good for me” way. I highly suggest you try it.

I also played some tennis to get my endorphins going. I gotta make sure I can get my groundstroke on so I can warm up my brother at his tennis tournament this weekend. Yes, my family spends our Thanksgivings at tennis tournaments. We eat Subway Turkey sandwiches instead of that big Turkey dinner thing.

Intense focus on the backhand preparation. Yes, that's a picky bar shirt. Don't even try to take over my #1 fandom. Also, that's a BIC band which a lucky few of you will win tomorrow.

Well, not entirely true – I have spent a Thanksgiving or two at home when only my dad and brother went to his tournament and not the rest of us. It was, of course, a very formal affair.

You're completely jealous of our outfits. I know. You don't have to tell me.

Unfortunately, I won’t be Turkey Trotting this year due to said tennis tournament. I was so ready with my hair feathers and everything to channel my inner Native American and trot! Missed opportunity.

YOUR TURN: Raise your hand if you’re turkey trotting? Anyone got any fave non-running sweatastic ideas for me? Anyone else actually like the dentist like I do?

I mean, I actually really like getting my teeth cleaned.

Wait! I almost completely forgot! My real favorite way to get my non-running sweat on is shopping, specifically at Target. This lady is my inspiration and the basis of my new training plan for November and December.

Until next time..