Sidelined!

Yesterday morning, my alarm buzzed at 5 am and I  finally rolled out of bed just after 6 am. Before walking out the door, I made sure I fueled - two eggs, 1/2 cup rolled oats with 1 tbsp crunchy, unsalted peanut butter, and 1 cup of coffee. It was speed work day - one of my favorites!

I wasn't all that chipper heading to the gym. I was tired. My body ached. The day before I had done a one hour spin (indoor cycling) class that was full of hard hills in the morning. That same evening, I lifted weights. When lifting, I go heavy. Yes, I do twelve reps at 135 pounds for my deadlift. My philosophy when it comes to fitness is go big or go home.

Tuesday morning - I had to stick to my plan! I'm training for a half-marathon and so excited to run with my friend for 13.1 miles. Race training requires commitment. I didn't give myself the option to change or cancel a workout.

I considered my 15 minute walk to 24 Hour Fitness my warm up, which was a little shortcut as I typically walk, then foam roll, do some leg exercises, and then run.  After I logged in, I hopped on the treadmill, walked a little more and then started my intervals. Mile one was easy enough. We were doing 1/10 mile "on" and 1/10 mile "off". Off was a decent walking pace and on started at an 11:30 pace and every other interval I bumped it so by the time I got to mile two I was running 1/10 of mile at an 8:34 pace. I maintained that for all of mile two, until I really challenged myself to run the last interval at an 8:00  pace. That's pretty fast for me.

With about three intervals to go, I felt a twinge. I paused and thought - this is weird. It didn't hurt "that bad" so I kept going and finished my workout.

All day, my leg hurt and neither ice nor ibuprofen really took the edge off. Instead of sleeping it off and relying on web searches for information that just instill more anxiety, I went to the doctor.

And yep, strained adductor muscle. No running until it heals. More ice and ibuprofen. Could be a few days or a few weeks until it heals.

I am frustrated. I'd like to go jog my four miles in the morning. But I won't try and risk a longer recovery. I appreciate my body and I also respect the advice of my doctor and coach.

To my surprise, my drive to train is higher than ever. Maybe it's because my ability to run has been temporarily taken away and I can no longer take it for granted. Maybe it's because I am finally unstuck in life and see myself living forward.

Being sidelined is not what I had planned for my week. Even as I spend extra time on the couch with an ice pack under my leg, I can't help but give thanks for the gift of drive and determination. I doubt God will make sure I can run my race, but I am certain God has my back and is right here on the couch next to me, ready to run when my body heals.

What's been your experience with being sidelined?

Blog Resurrection!

Why restart now?

You are important and dreams never die.

This blog is part of my dream and call in life to build community through faith, fitness, and fundraising. As for the inspiration behind Soul2Sole:

My journey to become fit is about holistic well-being. On June 21, 2010 I made a bold decision to join the Wisconsin Athletic Club (WAC) in Wauwatosa, WI for the summer while completing a chaplaincy internship for my Master of Divinity program. The truth is it took some encouragement from my cousin (thanks Andrea!) to walk in and take a tour. I weighed 300 pounds at the age of 27 and decided it would be "nice" to lose 100 pounds. I met my coach, Jeremy who has become my friend, running buddy, and mentor. Twelve months of weight lifting, learning how to eat, and wanting a new way of life really badly - I achieved my goal!

I wasn't satisfied. While on a yearlong internship in Arizona, my project at Desert Cross Lutheran Church became the first version of Soul2Sole. My goal was simply to bring fitness into church. We walked, ran, and tried yoga, zumba, and circuit training. The finale was a summer olympics party complete with games and an 11 mile relay between two church sites.

Then it was back to Berkeley for one more year of school! I joined UC Berkeley's triathlon club. I completed the Big Sur Marathon - yes, all 26.2 hilly miles in under six hours! The following year, I completed the Stanford sprint triathlon - swimming 500m in the San Francisco Bay, biking 12 miles, and running 3.1 miles.

Then I took a break. I trained on and off, did a few 10Ks and half marathons for "fun," but basically lost my momentum. My body was tired. My mind was bored. And eventually my heart broke when my mom died on November 1, 2014.

On May 6, 2016 I decided it was time to start living more boldly again, and start training, for real, again. Ten weeks of consistent meditation, working out, eating right, and registering for another half-marathon, and I feel like my old/new self again. Look for a blog about old/new self, soon.

Now that I've convinced myself that I'm in this for the long haul, I'm inviting you all to join me. 

For those who followed my blog the first time, you might notice some changes. This time, I'm broadening Soul2Sole beyond transformational weight loss. There will be plenty about the ups and downs of trying to lose 70 pounds again (gulp!) after having lost a total of 150 pounds from June 2010 - August 2012. The real reason for Soul2Sole is to build community and share resources. That means, your story is just as important as mine. And we are all in this together. Also, you can look forward to a variety of content like recipes, sermons, workouts, gardening photos, inspirational quotes, and maybe a Bible study, or videos in the future.

Let me know if you have ideas for blog posts. I like questions:)