April 14 -- My wonderful running friend Lori did me a huge favor this week. She asked me to go running. Since I had been going to the gym the last few months, I hadn't run in ages, but with the warm weather I found myself itching to get back outside. So I said yes. Since I knew that spinning class is extremely rigorous, I was curious to see how I would feel. Would I love it?
When I set out this morning, I couldn't help but notice the sharp pain in my thigh. It was definitely a muscle pain from yesterday's workout but it wasn't completely awful. I decided to ignore it. At first, when we set out down the path, I felt good. Then the pain started to get worse. With every stride, my leg pounded. Then I could feel my glute muscle. There was a sharp pain every time my right foot hit the ground. By the time we stopped, it felt like someone was jabbing a pair of scissors into my right hip.
We stopped and talked for awhile and I got into the car. When I got home, I went up the stairs and my left leg buckled. Something was wrong with my knee. I was like, what the heck?!! I walked around the kitchen for a while and eventually the pain in my knee settled down.
That's when it hit me. I never, ever, leave spinning class with all of that pain. Duh. It's low resistance, that's why. After months of low impact cardio, my body was like, helloooo. You are the daughter of two parents with nasty arthritis and joint issues. You are not a spring chicken. (Total bummer with that thought.) I thought of my sister-in-law Maria who is my age almost exactly. She was a huge runner. Several years ago she hurt her neck. When she started running again, she realized the impact was making her neck ache again. She gave up running completely and became a walker.
And suddenly, I had my epiphany. I am done with running. Why, I asked myself, do I need to do that to my body? I love the biking. Or swimming, or tennis, or whatever cardio fix I will focus on next. And walking? I love walking. I can talk when I walk. It's great. So Lori did me a favor by having me run. It made me realize how ridiculous it is for me to do it. I don't know. Maybe I will start up again. But for now? Seriously. What do I gain from making my joints ache? The pounding clearly makes any minor issues I have feel even worse. (I have always had issues with my right glute.) It's like saying, hey, this food will make you feel lousy. So do you eat it? Well, no. Not unless you enjoy feeling lousy. I don't.
So yeah. For now, I am quitting running. Or stopping. Or making a life change. (that sounds healthier) I know Lori likes to run. I am happy for her. And happy for me. Because I think I am making a really smart decision. There are many other ways to stay in shape. And thankfully, I can do them. With minimal pain.
No comments:
Post a Comment