This past weekend, I had to make a call on a half-marathon that I had been planning on doing for awhile. I injured my right foot on a trail run in late January and the pain has been ankle/heel related. Between chatting with my doctor, running coach and massage therapist, we couldn't nail it down to solely to plantar fasciitis – although many of the symptoms pointed in that direction. A concern was also expressed about the foot having a stress fracture, which I have already dealt with in my calf area, and it is safe to say that I wasn't exactly excited about that prospect either.
I spent most of February not running and doing cross-training via Crossfit, elliptical and recumbent bike. It helped get me through the unhappiness around not being able to train as February was going to be crunch time for me with respect to loading up on mileage, etc. I had to modify some of the workouts at Crossfit, but fortunately the team over there was very helpful in adjusting some of the exercises that were high-impact on my feet. I am still really enjoying the intensity of the workouts and am starting to feel less like a "newbie" as I master more exercises/slowly scale more weight.
Being that I am getting older, I need to be smarter about managing the risk of being able to tolerate pain because I can vs. backing off because I should. I also have some bigger goals in mind this year and the upcoming race was not really one of those major events for 2011. So I made the call to not race in 4 weeks in Portland. Of course I am disappointed but deep down I have known for 2-3 weeks that while I would be able to race it ("run all out and compete"), the probability for longer-term injury was increased. And yes, while I dodged a bullet in September, 2010 at Disney, I didn't want to push my luck. The events that I am excited about for this year are all in the 2nd half of the calendar year, so gotta keep my eye on the prize.
The good news is that I resumed some light running last week and now have some time to build for late-June, which is the Seattle Rock 'n Roll Half-Marathon. As you can imagine even with the cross-training, my running cardio is not where it was a month ago so I need to get that to where it was in late January. It's disappointing but as one of the other TNM coaches (Mark) told me, "yeah, you need to get over that" and he is spot on with that assessment. Kim, also of TN Multisports, has been awesome at checking in with me DAILY(!) to see what we could do from a cardio perspective and not pushing to come back too quickly. I am grateful that she has been so proactive and flexible, and it's a welcome change from the past.
Since I am not racing a half-marathon for almost 4 months, I decided I am going to try something new with my culinary adventures and see what happens. I am going Paleo for the next 30 days. It was a spur of the moment decision yesterday. Well "mostly" Paleo. I can't commit to the program every day because of some commitments that I am not willing to adjust to meet the needs of being 100% Paleo. I'm fine with that because I know I can set a goal that will stretch me but is still achievable. I am probably already 50% of the way there, but I am going to up the adherence to 85% for this period. I came up with 85% based on the amount of proper meals per week (21) and the amount of meals that I am confident that I can be 100% Paleo for (18).
In terms of what "Paleo" means, I am not going to get into that right now. It's too extensive and honestly, I just want to work the program. Everyone has to make their own assessments on what may help them or not. I did link to a couple of well-regarded sites earlier, so feel free to check those out. I know many misconceptions are out there about Paleo, but I am looking to see what happens with me and my health. Nothing may change or I may feel worse at the end of the 30-days, and that may be for a variety of reasons. But I am accountable for that, including not doing it 100%.
That doesn't mean I am going to go crazy for those remaining 3 meals. It just means that I will not be 100% in meeting the requirements of the 30-day program I signed up for via NW Crossfit. And ultimately I am going to know if I am being "true" to what I am trying to achieve by embarking on this program, just like when I did the South Beach Phase 1 detox a few years ago. It was incredible what I learned in that time and some of those lessons are still very much at the forefront for me today.
This is going to be a challenge mentally because obviously most of us have a somewhat emotional relationship with food. Some of us are better than others at managing those emotions. But I am excited about the challenge from a cooking perspective and coming up with substitutes that can still make a dish taste good, yet be compliant with the rules of the 30-day program. For those that are freaked out by the rules reference, it is what it is. Yes, in an ideal world, you want it to be a guideline but as with South Beach, you do not get the results and learnings of what the program is trying to teach unless you adhere to the rules. Guidelines are for when you have made it through the program and know how to "pick and choose" your battles.
So I may make an occasional post here and there on some cooking tips that I find effective, as well as how I am feeling. Based on what I remember from doing South Beach, I felt pretty crappy the 1st few days. That is part of the deal and I know that. But this is a long-term lifestyle adjustment as opposed to a short-term "fit in the dress" thing. I feel good for the most part, but am very excited to see if I can feel better through some modifications.
And no, Marc isn't doing the Paleo experiment but is being very supportive as usual.