Sometimes it's "Ruff"

I had my last physical therapy appointment on Friday and just like all the other doctors and PT I've gone to, they told me there is nothing more they can do for me. I'm doing the exercises, I'm doing the stretches and strengthening and I just don't understand why I'm not improving. Yea, it may have something to do with me continuing to race every month this year so far (except in March), which I know has not been smart, but to my defense, those races were already planned and paid for before this particular injury occured, and I didn't do any running in between races ( yes, I know that sounds bad that I didn't even train, but I was hurt. I continued to ride bike and do other stuff). So now that all my big races are done for the season, I am officially on a running hiatus for a few months. I am not at ALL happy about this because summer is my favorite time to run and I think about all the precious time and good weather that I'm missing out on!

I'm not the only one that will be laid up for a while. As you may know, miss Baylee had surgery this week so all my time has been spent being dedicated to her needs. Baylee has several stitches on her hip wear a fatty mass was removed. For this reason she was not suppose to go up stairs or jump on the furniture. If you've ever had a Labrador then you know that these dogs will follow you everywhere! For that reason, I have been sleeping downstairs on our couch so I can be near her.  This worked well for the first three nights, but the on the fourth morning I woke up and saw this?

I opted not to put the dreaded cone around her neck because I was watching her like a hawk. She never once licked, scratched, or even acknowledged her stitches, so I pretty much figured she was safe.  Saturday morning she snuck up the steps. I tried to keep her from coming up but she snuck right by the baby gate that we have at the end of the stairs. Later that afternoon I noticed two of her stitches her missing. I felt like a horrible pet momma. How could this have happened? I've been watching her the whole time. Okay, so now it was time to put the cone on her head. Later that night I had gone shopping for a gift and Scott went to go get us dinner. When he came back he could not find Baylee anywhere. He looked upstairs, downstairs, in his bathroom, and in all the bedrooms ( he didn't check my bathroom because the door was shut). He started to panic because he saw the baby gate at the end of the stairs was all mangled up and broken. He thought perhaps I had already came home before he did and that Baylee fell on the gate and I had to take her to the ER.  What really happened was that Baylee busted through the baby gate to get upstairs and she went into my bathroom to find me. When she went to turn herself around, her big cone hit the door and she locked herself in my bathroom.   After I knew Scott found her, I did have a little chuckle.

I'm pretty sure that the stitches that came out were not from Baylee biting at them but probably from her jumping up on the furniture when she shouldn't have been. I don't know how many nights she jumped up on the couch to sleep after I had already fallen asleep.  I'm going to take her to the vets tomorrow just to make sure everything is okay.  But for now, we are both resting and not doing any physical activity for a while. If I have to take this time to rest, I am at least glad it will be with her! -M

What do you do when you take a rest from running? Have you ever had a pet have surgery?

A Peek in Our Week

Its that time of the week again where we review what we did and how the week went down.

I surprised myself and got a run in everyday this week. My motivation is that I know Marine Corps marathon is right around the corner.

Sunday- Ran my own half marathon as a long training run. Then relaxed in an Epsom salt bath with a glass of wine:)

 

Mon- Ran 3 miles before going into work. That evening went to a Thai restaurant I've been wanting to try.  

Tues- Completed 7 miles. Watched the movie A Million Ways To Die in The West. My opinion, don't waste your money. Has anyone else seen it? I also caught up on past episodes of Nashville....so good! Anyone else watch it?

 

Wed- Slept in since I knew I had to work that evening. When I awoke I was feeling refreshed and ready for a run. I completed another 7 miles.

 

Thurs- Headed out for a run later than usual. To bypass all the school traffic around that time I thought I would try a different route. I ended up getting a bit lost and had to stop another runner and ask for directions.  When I finally made it back home it ended up being 9 miles. 

 

Fri- Weather called for rain. So I did interval training on the treadmill and lifted weights. Of course it never rained. I always feel like I don't get as good of a workout when it's on a treadmill.  Anyone feel the same way?

 

Sat- Headed to Dallas for the weekend.     ~L

 

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My week was just the opposite of Lacey's. As you know, I was at Disney for half the week but when I came home I did absolutely nothing training wise. My last run was literally on Saturday night when I ran the TOT 10 Miler.  It seems to be a trend with me that I take a whole week off after a big race weekend. I hope that doesn't hurt me too much!

 

 

When I returned home I had a few fun goodies waiting for me. I received the same backpack Lacey did courtesy of Competitor, the Mizuno Wave Rider 18 Courtesy of Mizuno, a new Influenster box, and a Victoria's Secret gift card from an online contest I participated in.

 

 

 

As much fun as it is to get away, I enjoy being home. I missed this girl so much! It was so great just cuddling with her. On Friday we slept in together and then I drove her around with me when I ran my errands. It actually made me upset to think that I will be away from her the next several weekends. I just want to spend all my time with this sweet girl!

 

Baylee was chosen to participating in the Purina One 28 day Challenge and we just finished it up this weekend.  As you can imagine I am super concerned about the health of my dog and I am very picky with what dog food I buy for her.  I read the ingredients and the claims of the Purina One and decided that we would give it a try. 

 Purina supplied us with a trial size bag of dog food and then a coupon for a free full size bag.  Brighter eyes, improved dental health, increased energy, shiny coat, a great taste and easy digestibility are all the selling points of this item.  I can not attest for the taste of course but I certainly did not see a major change in Baylee after eating Purina One.   If you would like your dog to try Purina One you can get a coupon HERE.

 

I will try to do some intense stretching and foam rolling tonight and get back to my running schedule tomorrow!  ~M

 

 

Tell us how your week went. Have you seen any movies lately? Have you ever got lost on a run? How long do you usually rest after a big race?

 

Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to read about us.  We hope you have a good week!

A Peek In Our Week

This is the part of the week where we recap what we've done/accomplished and the new things we've tried. Sometimes it's eventful and sometimes not so much.

Here's  a peek of how the week went down for us.

I got all my Goofy Training miles in this week. Monday I did a good 5 miles. Wednesday I did 4 miles and when I was finishing up my run in a local park there was a guy mowing the grass and a blade of grass hit me in the eye. I didn't have my sunglasses on because it was a bit overcast. I guess that will teach me. Friday I did 8 miles ( my longest run since my injury and the Princess half). The run went fine, but my hip was very sore afterwards ( was sore all weekend actually). I may be doing a slow and short run tomorrow. -M

My Runs this week consisted of 4 miles on Sunday, 8 miles on Monday, 4 miles on Tuesday, 3 miles on Wednesday, 4 miles on Thursday, 8 miles with my sister on Friday, and 6 miles on Saturday. -L

After all the running we played a few friendly games of croquet.  A problem occurred when Miss Belle decided that she wanted to chase all the croquet balls and run off with them in her mouth.

                                She ended up going in the house while we played.  - M &L

New Things:

My Stride Box for August arrived with lots of new goodies.

This month's box includes: Hammer Recovery-Vanilla, Power Bar Wafers ( which my sister had before and she said she liked them), 2nd Surge Ultra Energy Gel-Pina Colada,  MRM hydration Factor-Natural Citrus, Sportlegs lactate Supplement, PowerIce Frozen hydration- Pomegranate Raspberry Rip, and Reflective Lock Laces.
I'm excited to try my Lock laces since my laces in my new shoes are too long. Does anyone know if the lock laces are interchangeable or once they are in your shoes they are locked? -L

I tried a new recipe this week. I found it in one of my old magazines and thought I'd give it a try.

Pre heat oven to 425
Prepare Pizza dough ( or use pre-made kind)
Bake dough for about 8 minutes.

You will need :
Olive Oil
2 links of Chicken apple sausage

                                  












   ( I used this Apple chicken sausage from Johnsonville)

1 medium sweet onion
I can of Apple pie filling
1/2 cup shredded cheese ( I used mozzarella)

3/4 of baby arugula

Heat 1 tsp of olive oil in skillet. Slice sausage and cook in skillet till brown ( about 3 minutes). Set aside. Slice and cook onions till caramelized ( about 8-10 minutes).

Spread apple filling, sausage, onions, and cheese on pizza crust. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until cheese is melted.
Top with arugula and serve!

We had this for dinner on Friday and then it actually made for a nice breakfast/brunch on Saturday. I can see making this again once fall hits!   -M


What did you do this weekend? Did you try anything new? Do you have lock laces?

Bits and pieces

Happy Monday! How was your weekend? I spent most of the weekend with sore legs. It actually started earlier last week. I was getting sore on a 5 mile run last Monday and then on Tuesday I could barely get in a 2 mile walk/run with my Labrador!
The pain is mostly on the sides and backs of my knees. I've been stretching and foam rolling like crazy but I still feel pain in places that I can't quite get with the foam roller. I tried using the tennis ball massage method but every time I put the ball in my hand Baylee thought I wanted to play and would try to get the ball!

After taking 2 rest days, I did a 10 mile walk/run with my mom. I felt like I needed this and it really helped me stretch my leg muscles out. I felt good during the run/walk but I was very sore afterwards.   I spent some quality time with this massager after this. This really does wonders for the calf muscles. Love it!