My JourKNEE Back

  This morning, I was reading a post about a young man who was in a serious car accident four months ago. He suffered significant injuries, collapsed lungs, lacerated liver, and a traumatic brain injury. He fractured his neck, clavicle, eleven ribs, pelvis, skull, left arm in multiple places and dislocated his wrist. He spent eleven days on life support. His parents didn't think he was going to survive. Four months later, FOUR MONTHS, and he hopped on the family's riding mower and helped his dad mow their lawn this morning. That is miraculous! There's no other way to explain it. I do not personally know this family, but I have been following updates and they give all glory and praise to God.  I will be switching gears here to make a transition, stay with me please. This morning, I completed 2.68 miles at an 11:51 minute per mile pace. Folks, I have never been a fast runner. This was about my average pace before any injuries put my running on hold. What I consider my best ru...

  It has been sixteen days since my last post, and I am thrilled to report that I am still running without pain. As the weeks go along, my walk to run ratio is decreasing as my run time increases. Week one called for 5-minute walks and 1-minute runs repeated five times. Week two called for 4-minute walks and 2-minute runs repeated five times. This week, week three, calls for 3-minute runs and 3-minute walks repeated five times. I am running three days a week. My "Running Blueprint" plan tells me that my number one goal is to work on cadence because this will help with proper running form and prevent overstriding. I am supposed to be working toward 163-164 bpm. My pre-injury cadence was usually between 155-160 bpm. Because I am still walking half of my miles, I am not able to go by the average cadence that I see on my Garmin watch. In these few weeks that I began running again, my cadence has been all over the place, ranging from 153 to 167 bpm. As the running time starts to i...

"Forward is forward, no matter the pace." is the slogan on a shirt I have from a virtual 5K my family participated in to benefit the non-profit organization "To Write Love On Her Arms" in April of 2020 (twloha.com). This morning, I ran for the first time with intention since January 11, 2024, almost 6 months, and it is just about the first-year anniversary of my meniscus surgery which was completed on August 17, 2023. When I went out the door this morning, I certainly had no goal for pace. I have been putting in the work since May when I signed up for The Running Blueprint program (compedgept.com). Although, to be 100% honest, getting sick in late June, followed by going on vacation in July has made me a bit of a slacker. I missed a few days of workouts here and there, but up until that point, I was faithful to follow the plan. I do feel like I am back on track with the exercises. My eating has not been as great, but that's a story for another day. I've done...

With graduations, family vacation, graduation parties, and a busy summer work schedule (thank God for His blessing of provision), I haven't written any thoughts lately because they all kind of seem mundane in the day to day. Progress tends to seem slow, but looking back on it, I feel like I have come a long way. Now I have to catch you up.  During the month of May and most of June, I was following "The Running Blueprint" (TRB) to a "T". I maybe missed a day or two here and there but was pretty consistent. I felt changes, as I wrote before, but none that I could really pinpoint. I was beginning to feel my strength improve. Toward the end of June, I got sick which made me miss three days of exercises and I decided to just "call it a week." After that, we had our family vacation planned. I knew I wasn't taking weights along and I knew I wouldn't stick to the schedule. However, I gave myself grace. We did a lot of walking over the course of the vac...

Upon arriving, we formed a line at the door, waiting for them to be open. Our goal was to find the perfect seat. This moment had been anticipated for the past 4 years. The stage was set. Family and friends of the graduates poured into the gymnasium. I looked around but felt no ties to anyone there except my immediate family. I felt no ties to the school, no pride or school spirit. I did, however, have direct eye contact with my girl. This girl who was about to become a college graduate. My heart swelled with pride; tears fell down my face. She glanced my way a few times but refused to make direct eye contact. Her goal was to not cry. I saw plenty of tears over the years as she cried over assignments and pressures of adjusting to college demands. I was there on the days she fought against crippling anxiety that literally kept her from attending classes. I heard how she stood up for what she believes in, knowing it would not be the popular opinion. There were classes she hated and ther...

  I have a bracelet that says, "Progress Not Perfection" that a friend gave to me as a gift. At the time, I was frustrated with the little progress I was making as a runner. I wasn't as fast as I wanted to be. I couldn't consistently run as much distance as I would have liked. I suppose I am somewhat of a perfectionist, but not in a crazy OCD way. Rather in a way that I hesitate to start things if I know it can't be done "perfectly." I have shied away from setting certain running goals because of this. I have hesitated to tackle certain projects because of this. I have even pushed away friendship opportunities if I didn't feel I could give that person complete time and attention to be the "perfect" friend.  The question I dread the most these days is "How's your knee doing?" as I am not quite sure how to answer. The pain is not clearly in one location and the discomfort level can change from day to day. I started Week Five of ...

In my last blog post, I reported that I reached out to a Physical Therapist who specializes in getting athletes back to running after meniscus surgery, among other common injuries. I did receive a call from Kevin Vandi with Competitive Edge ( www.compedgept.com ), located in California for him to learn more about my specific situation. After listening and asking his own questions, he said he thinks his program could definitely benefit me. He would not guarantee that I will get back to running pain free, but he did think he could help. After pouring out money in co-pay after co-pay for countless therapy sessions, this program seemed to be a good option. I signed up for "The Running Blueprint" program and he threw in the "Run Safe - Run Strong" program which educates on the causes and specifics of meniscus injuries and/or tears and how to safely return to running after you've had a tear or surgery.  I received my first email for the program on April 23rd. I began ...