WHERE OH WHERE HAVE I BEEN?

I know, I KNOW! June?! Seriously? That was my last post? My apologies. Life has up and taken me away on so many adventures (both good and bad) that I just have not had much time or energy to post here.

Today, I decided to change that and give you (whoever is left anyway) an update on what the heck has been going on.

First the good news! If you follow me on social media then you already know that I have joined the Engine 2 Team as a blogger! Can we say DREAM COME TRUE!? I get to write about plant-based eating, traveling, running, living and come up with recipes! Hopefully you will follow them on Instagram and/or Facebook so you’ll get word when a new post hits their site. I am beyond grateful for this opportunity.

So writing for them has been keeping me plenty busy. In addition to that, I still work full-time at my regular job and occasionally I host Plant-Based Challenges for any employee that wants to participate. Last challenge blew me away.

In June I had 25 participants and overall we lost a total of 114 pounds in just 10 days! Some people reduced or dropped medication and all of them realized how beneficial plant-based eating can be not only for their body but also their heart and soul.

Now on to the not so great news. 🙁

If you remember I ran the Marin Ultra Challenge 50 miler in March followed by the Quicksilver 100k in May.  Both were successful, challenging races that I completed and was thrilled with each finish.

What I did not share way back then, is that post run (race or training) I had been having some nagging pains in my hamstring, my high hamstring to be precise.

After Quicksilver I promised myself that I would take a month off and I did. Nothing improved, if anything, the pain got worse.

Fast forward with a visit to a sports therapy doctor, an x-ray and an MRI later here I am. So what happened? Back in February I was doing a trial at a pilates place near my house. While in the reformer, the instructor had us open our legs into a V formation. Well, I wasn’t properly warmed up and that pull was a bit too much for me and I felt a pop. I pushed it aside as a normal “oh the body pops and aches all the time” but from that moment on, my hamstring hurt but only after I finished a run or when I sat for long periods of time. It wasn’t excruciating at first, it was more of a gradual pain until after Quicksilver when it wasn’t so gradual anymore. It hurt.

As it turns out, I most likely created micro tears in my high hamstring from that not so graceful pilates move.  My MRI showed some stressed and damaged muscle indicating there was some trauma to the area. Awesome.

First I had Shockwave Therapy done. That’s painful and usually quite effective but unfortunately, your high hamstring is so embedded in your bum, that it is REALLY hard to reach that muscle. Trust me when I say having this procedure done on this part of your body leaves you in a most unflattering position.

My next option was some physical therapy. Now I have been blessed to be able to visit the Kaiser Golden One Center Sports Medicine Department.

This place rocks in terms of therapists and the equipment available. I did a few weeks of PT without much improvement so my  next option, in order to try and “speed things along” was PRP or Platelet Rich Plasma.
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Click on the link above for a full description of what exactly PRP is but the gist of it is this: A doctor drew blood from me and put it in a centrifuge.  He removed all the platelets from my own blood and inserted them into a HUGE needle. He then took that needle and using an ultrasound as a guide, injected the platelets straight into the micro-tears inside my hamstring. Yup, that was fun.

The thought behind this process is that platelets are what heals our body so by injecting them directly into damaged area, the area should heal faster. Think of it this way, Platelets are the glue and the glue is being injected into the damaged muscle in hopes of gluing it back together.

I was on crutches and off my leg for 3 days following the procedure. The procedure itself didn’t hurt (for me) but the days following were VERY uncomfortable.

So here we are now. Next week will be six weeks post procedure and technically my window to start running again. Since the procedure I took two weeks off completely. That meant NO stairs, NO hills and NO stress on the hamstring (which is really hard when you think about it). I then resumed PT after those two weeks and have been progressively improving with each PT visit. So much so that my physical therapist says I am “ahead of schedule” with my range of motion and my ability to bear load or weight (I attribute this to my plant-based diet 😉 ).

truth

So here we are. I am doing my daily PT homework and making strides in the right direction.

I do think my return will be slow and even though I am hopeful that I will be 100% some day, I am not having the highest of hopes as I am still in a lot of pain when it comes to sitting. My hamstring does not like that one bit.

I miss running. I miss the woods and the trees and the dirt. I know that I am doing the right thing right now and I am listening and following all the orders that the PT gives me. Trust me, that’s hard as I don’t generally follow direction well. 🙂

Vans has been great and has been patient with my moodiness and allowing me to go on long ( PT approved) hikes on the trails in our hood. We even took a special trip to Tahoe one weekend to see Dave Matthews Band AND spend the night WITHOUT the kids (thanks to some family that was in town visiting and who are awesome).

I am very grateful for all that has happened though. I have a great doctor, I have a great physical therapist, a patient husband and a healing body. I can’t ask for much more. I just have to wait and be patient and let the magic happen. Soon though, soon I will be back on the trails with the wind in my hair and the dirt all over my shoes and it will be that much sweeter when it happens.

Happy Trails!

~Trailmomma

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HELLO WORLD!

Wow, I can’t believe I haven’t written a blog post since early December!? Happy New Year everyone! Time is sure flying already.

It isn’t that I haven’t wanted to write or had anything to write about, I just purely have not had the time to sit down and devote quality time here. This is sad because this used to be my creative outlet but clearly through the years, it has developed more into Race Reports and the occasional trip to Plant-Stock posts. 🙂

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Today I decided to file away some time to sit down and just “check-in” with all of you and this ol’blog. I’ve been coming here (or blogging to be precise) since about 2009! For you long time readers, you’ve been with me through my first ultra and the birth of Squeaker! Crazy where life takes us huh?

To recap, I have been running. Every weekend I am hitting the trails filling my heart with all things trail-running. Laughing, running and loving nature. I am blessed to live where I live.

Scenes from the trail.
Scenes from the trail.

My kiddos are deep into their winter sports season playing basketball which warms my heart like no other. I was a basketball player and I love the game but watching my girls play and learn to the love the game? Best thing in the world!

Peanut has so much more confidence this season.
Peanut has so much more confidence this season.
Squeaker is all DEFENSE baby!
Squeaker is all DEFENSE baby!

Overall 2017 was a pretty good year. I ran in some amazing races (see my Race Reports page), I traveled to Washington DC and became a Food for Life Instructor and I laughed, a lot.

laugh
When your friend gets a pot stuck in the fridge!

I also paced Pigeon the last 20 miles of her first ever 100 mile finish at the Tahoe Rim Trail.

2017 Crew
Pigeon with her crew AND her 100 mile buckle.

And I paced my friend Miss P into the night running 31 miles of her first 100 mile finish at Rio Del Lago.

Miss P with her pacers AND her 100 mile medal!
Miss P with her pacers AND her 100 mile buckle!

How awesome is that?! Watching someone run 100 miles is beyond motivating and spectacular. I adore these women.

Yet 2017 wasn’t all sunshine and roses though. Some chapters in my life closed but when one door closes, another opens right? The universe has a plan. I have always thought and believed in that. Sometimes it is hard to listen to it because it has been familiar, routine or comforting but all you can do is trust.

My hopes for 2018 are simple: Laugh ♦ Love ♦ Listen … MORE.

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I want MORE outdoor adventures with these two crazies!

My crazies

I want MORE roller skating adventures – YES I begged my friends to roller skate … the end result? THEY LOVED IT!

skating2

So I want to do it again!

Crazy is as Crazy does
Crazy is as Crazy does

I want MORE plant-based education whether in person or through social media. I recently taught an in-home cooking demo for my friend Beth. It was fun! Currently I am coaching 17 people at work and it is so rewarding and exciting to watch them discover the power of a plant-based way of living.

Cooking

I want MORE one on one time with this guy.

Vans

No one supports me and loves me like he does. He also loves being outside just as much as I do and I love how he is instilling that in our girls. Our family adventures are what I cherish most of all.

adventure

So that’s 2017 in a brief recap and 2018 wishes all in one post! Not bad for the first post of 2018!

Whatever your goals are for 2018 or whatever happened in 2017, be at peace with it and trust what unfolds before you. Sometimes it takes stopping the search, the quest, the need-to-know … to find what you are looking truly looking for in this crazy world.

Just breathe. Just be.

Happy Trails!

~Trailmomma

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