Ice, Ice, Baby

For those of us who tend to fly about with our hair on fire (busy, busy, busy), taking the time to ice an injury or an ache is - well - something we think about often but never quite get around to doing.

But two weeks ago I relented when my walking style turned into an unattractive hobble. Ice became my ankle and calf's best friend...and lo and behold  (side note: What exactly do "lo" mean?), my strain started feeling better within two days. What do you know!

It worked so well and so quickly that I put some ice on my achy shoulder that became very ouchy after one too many gorilla walks in the gym.  Hmmm....amazing. That seemed to help too.  Duh, Sherri.  First Aid 101.

Velcro ice packs from ankle to thigh...who
needs fishnet stockings?

Husband Scott has had several knee surgeries over the past 20 years and we still have all his large wrap-around-the-leg-secure-with-velcro ice packs. And if you don't secure them with velcro, they lay flat which allows me to rest my 46-year-old sacrum and lower back right on that cold surface and go to sleep with it under me.  In fact, after tonight's kettlebell swing-fest, I am going to do just that !

The point of all this? Don't ignore the aches and pains like I did with my ankle...because that ankle pull moved into my calf and sidelined me for a few weeks. Sidelined = frustration.

While aches and pains can mean you've simply pushed to a new level of asking your body to do something new and challenging, consistent pain is always something you want to explore.

So, after I take a hot, steamy shower to clean off the PRFitness stank from tonight's workout, I am moving on to an evening with my best friend and buddy Mr. Ice.

This Sunday I have a 20 mile run along the St. Charles river in Illinois. Provided I don't keel over at mile 17, roll down an incline, and fall into the river (heehee), you can rest assured that my ride home will involve 4 velcro ice packs, 2 encircling my calves and 2 wrapped around my thighs.  I iced up this way after the Circular Marathon this past March. After running/walking 26.2 miles followed by a 2 hour celebration at a local bar with PR Fitness friends, I wrapped up my legs and the next day I had NO significant pain in my legs or tush.  Part of that was being physically ready for that race BUT a lot of it had to do with icing my legs post race.

Speaking of the Circular Marathon, registration opens on Nov. 1 for this March 2013 event that lets you run/walk a 1-mile loop 26 times. It's a great, safe way to run/walk your first marathon since you pass by your "camp" each time and can grab a drink or bite of food - or even stop if your body say "enough"!!  Think about it!   Who's in????  C'mon - you know you WANT to do it !!  And more importantly, you know i won't stop asking you until you say yes!