The Cold/Laryngitis: I am better! Not a big surprise, I guess, but a relief to be able to breathe and talk…and run. I went for my first run in four days, an easy 40-minutes, on my break at work today. It was so nice to run without chest tightness or coughing. It’s also really beautiful here right now.
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| Thanks to the City of Boulder Facebook page for the picture! |
I’m regarding this cold as two things: Glass Half Full Me is
calling it a booster for my immune system-- I’m hoping it will be the last one
I get for a while now because surely my white blood cells are all on full alert; but
Realist Me is thinking of it as a warning; my kids are in a new
school, I work with the public and I’m going to be training hard; I need
to be smart with sleep, nutrition and hand-washing.
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| Constant Vigilance! |
A Visit to the Doctor: Last week before the illness hit I had my annual preventative appointment with my awesome doctor (he of the 2:50-on-a-bad-day-marathon). We did the usual check-up things (listening to the heart, discussing the past year's issues--everything but the female stuff), but he also did some sports doc things like testing my hamstring and hip flexor flexibility and discussing cheaper options for getting a shot in my back later if I decide I need one. It's always fun to talk to him, and I've never before had a doctor who "gets it" like he does.
Some of the outcomes were surprising. I got my blood test results back yesterday. My cholesterol numbers and glucose are good, and so is my thyroid, but the doc wants me to supplement. It seems that my iron is low, and while my Vitamin D isn't a problem right now, he's concerned that it's low enough that it could become a problem during the long days of winter and marathon training. Who knew?
So tonight will feature a trip to the drug store to get some special non-constipating iron, which I'll be taking for six weeks, and some Vitamin D, which I'll be on all winter.
New Shoes: If you've been reading this blog for while, you know I have no brand loyalty when it comes to shoes (or much of anything else). I've worn every brand of running shoe out there except some of the newer ones, and I will probably be this way forever. Since I started running again earlier this summer, I've been wearing Brooks Pure Flows. I like them just fine.
But last week, while I was having lunch with Kathy, Erin, Erin's mom and her coach (who were all in town for the Denver Rock n' Roll Marathon), her coach (a very interesting guy, and very knowledgeable) suggested I get another pair of shoes and alternate days wearing them.
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| Kathy, me and Erin after a fun and informative lunch (I stole this photo from Erin's blog; thanks Erin!) |
My husband thinks I'm the Imelda Marcos of running shoes ("how many pairs do you have?" he asks me sometimes when he looks in the closet). But I've wanting to try the Saucony Kinvaras for a while. With two races I care about coming up, I decided Coach Rick's advice was all I needed to justify taking plunge and buying 'em. So my plan going forward will be to wear the Pure Flows one day and the Kinvaras the next, all the way through the California International Marathon in December.
Any other non-brand-loyalists out there? Do you take iron? Do you alternate shoes?
