My whole life i have always rooted for the underdog.
Superbowl... i want the team that has no chance of winning to win.
Best friend in elementary school... thee only african american girl in the whole school.My first child... down syndrome and so proud to be her mom.
Favorite bible story... David and Goliath.
Facinating historical events... Alexandar the Great defeats King Darius even though he was outnumbered, the battle of Myeognyang, and Harry Truman in the 1948 presidential election.
And now...
Bachelor... Chantal wins; not Emily!
I guess the underdog doesn't always win, but you can be sure of one thing. I will always be on the sidelines rooting for them.
Onto the matter of recovery...
I guess as a fairly new runner, i don't know much about recovery.
I've heard the saying, take a day off for every mile you run.
But i have never really taken it to heart, until a few weeks ago.
I usually go for my long runs on Saturday, recover on Sunday and hit speed or tempo on Mondays.
Mondays were always "hell days" because my body would never cooperate. Then 3 weeks ago i stumbled on an article on recovery. Number 3 hit home.
I've changed my speed/tempo runs to Wednesdays instead.
It goes to show you what a little information can do.
1. First make sure to rest and take at least 2 days off from running after the race. If your leg muscles feel OK, you can take easy walks to loosen them up and get the blood flowing to help clear out the lactic acid which causes soreness. Also, taking Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) can help ease the soreness and reduce swelling to aid in quicker recovery. Motrin, Advil, or Aleve work great for this.
2. If you have excessive pain, use the RICE rule, where you Rest, Ice the affected area, Compress the area or muscle afterward with an ace bandage, and elevate the sore leg. Continue to ice the area for at least 2 - 3 days. Do not apply heat or use a hot tub as this increases the blood flow to the swollen area. The goal is to reduce blood flow to the swollen area for quicker healing. Heat can be applied after the third day which will increase blood flow to the area and help heal it now that the swelling is gone.
3. Keep in mind that the general rule is to take it easy for at least one day for every mile you raced. So if you ran a Half Marathon (13.1 miles), you should take it easy for at least 13 days. This does not mean you can not run. It just means you should not do speed workouts, or heavy mileage. Plan your exercise routines around short easy runs, and cross-training activities such as swimming or biking. Some professional take 1 - 2 weeks completely off from running and only do cross-training to aid in a quicker recover. This also helps to keep yourself from burning out due to focusing on a single activity.
4. After 13 days, you should feel well refreshed and ready to start training for your next race. Start out easy, increase your mileage slowly, and sign up for your next race.
Did Chantel "win" because she isn't stuck with a man and his bad temper?
ReplyDeleteI'm always one for the underdog too :) Awesome recovery advice, wish I was running now to heed it (have a muscle thing going on, blah) I was going to ask about your daughter's diagnosis- I thought she had "one more" like my son, but couldn't def. tell. How old is she? Thomas just turned 8, he's a mess, lol. So glad to have found you, your blog is great!
ReplyDeleteRach..i guess Chantel DID win when you put it like that. NyceLife.. she was born with down syndrome and a heart defect, but she also shows many signs of autism. We have never tested her for autism. We'll just take the whole package! She is 12 years old. Tell me about Thomas. He is such a cutie!
ReplyDeleteT has Down syndrome too- no medical issues (well had a small VSD that closed by 6 months, no symptoms). He goes to public school in an inclusion classroom. Loves to play sports, but is getting harder to do so with "typical kids" and there is not a lot here for kids with needs. He also loves music and computers. I have a friend whose daughter with DS likely also has some form of autism (she is younger though, only 5). She's the same way, just rolling with what comes :)
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