So, I never mentioned this in any of my previous posts, but I've been back to work for 4 weeks now. I'm not going to lie, when I walked into work that Monday I broke down into tears to my supervisor because I wasn't sure how things were going to go. The previous week I had been battling awful sternal pain that would keep me awake at night. It was to the point where I felt as though I had just come out of my surgery, and I was honestly worried I had re-cracked my sternum or done something else. My first few days back were slow and gradual. I came home at night exhausted and pretty much kept my personal schedule to a minimum so I could go home and crash on the couch. At status post 8 weeks when I returned to work, I still wasn't feeling my best, and I ached constantly, especially when I woke up in the morning. I was stiff and sore, so I'd be popping Tylenol even before I crawled out of bed.
Over the past four weeks I've noticed a dramatic improvement from my first day back to work, and I rarely have any pain now. The NP's and PA's I work with even said to me that one day it would feel like a switch went off and I'd magically feel better, and they were right. I can't tell you exactly when I felt better, but I'm sure glad I do. My co-workers have been amazing too. If I need help moving a patient or lifting something, they're right there for me.
Now that I've been feeling better I've slowly starting getting back into my routine of running after work with my co-workers. Linda and I have been able to run 3 times now I think, and hopefully soon we'll be increasing our weekly runs. Everyone is so busy now that it's summer, finding one day a week to run after work with my co-workers can prove to be challenging. This past week when Linda and I went out for our run, we ran our usual 3 mile route and we ran it in just over 35 minutes. I was pleased with that time because it was probably the 8th time I've run since surgery, and it proves that I didn't lost a lot of my cardiovascular endurance. Not only that, but I've noticed over the past few runs how much better I'm starting to feel. My legs don't ache like they used to. I still do interval running, but during my walk intervals, I feel myself recovering much faster than I used to.
I've also started back at our weekly RWB runs. I've only been to 2 or 3 since my surgery, but our Wear the Eagle Wednesdays is one of my favorite nights of the week. Last week a lot of my teammates did a 4 mile run as part of a Team RWB virtual run. I was running late, so I met up with them. I ran at my own pace, and only ran 3 miles (I was not registered for the virtual run), then met up with everyone at the end so we could venture back to the park together. Nita had snacks ready for all of us at the end (orange slices, bananas, watermelon and brownies)! As per usual, we always take a group picture as proof that we ran.
(Such a great turnout that Wednesday!)
Then, of course, Nita and I had to get silly...
(Pretty Fly Eagles - with orange slices)
Aside from getting back into the swing of running with my friends and coworkers, runDisney's Wine and Dine half marathon training started last week, so it is definitely time to kick it up a notch. Currently the training schedule is light. 30 minutes twice a week with a distance run on the weekend. The weekend runs right now are between 2 and 3 miles, then after a few weeks it will start to pick up.
This past Saturday, I met Linda early in the morning to go for a bike ride. Unfortunately, our bike ride did not start out as planned. I was putting my bike together, and when I attached my front wheel, it acted as though the disc brake was active. It would not allow the tire to move backwards at all, and would move forwards with some resistance. So Linda and I loaded my bike back into my car and drove to the nearest (open) bike shop. The employees at the bike shop were wonderful and more than happy to make the adjustment my bike needed so I could get back on the road. We were in and out within minutes, and then back on schedule. Linda and I rode just over 9.5 miles, and then treated ourselves to a delicious breakfast at the Village Bakery (this has become somewhat of a tradition when biking together).
(Sun, biking and food = life is good.)
QOTD: What have you been doing to keep active this summer? Do you have any post run or bike rituals?
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