"Not until we are lost do we begin to understand ourselves" ~ Henry David Thoreau
I think that all endurance athletes like to feel like they're doing epic things. Myself included. The longer, hotter, harder, more difficult, the better. My problem, however is that I tend to do epic things, and then get carried away...and then bad things come out of it. Example(s): 11 mile run the day after NCAA nationals=decimate already strained IT band. 10k,5k,1500 @ conference meet=decimate knee. These are extremes but you get the idea. This is a pattern that is seen quite often in my life.
Luckily enough nothing that drastic happened this time (hopefully this means me getting smarter???? maybe...) Anyways, yesterday as you may know here in Wisconsin it was like...a bajillion degrees (93) plus then you have the heat index of 100 and then some. Heat is always worse in Wisconsin because we can't have warm weather without 99% humidity too. I didn't think the heat would be as much of a factor at 8AM...It was.
I headed out on my bike after PT...I ended up riding a total of 26 miles which really isn't that far if you think about it....but in 100+ heat I guess it is. By the time I was done I was dripping with sweat so much that I left wet spots wherever I stood. gross. but epic nonetheless.
I went to deliver pizzas after that at my glorious college-kid job. At first I was just tired but then my stomach started hurting, then my head, then my whole body. Heatsickness anyone? So there I am at Domino's chugging water and powerade and vitamin water and eating watermelon. Even now, just to think about it is pathetic. I'm guessing that the majority of my tips yesterday came from just how pathetic and exhausted and hot I looked. Delivering pizzas that just came out of a 500 degree oven in 100 degree is not necessarily the best thing to cure heatsickness.
After a decent night's sleep my headache has finally gone away but I'm still feeling the residual effects. This week's lesson: Do NOT take heat advisories lightly. Just because you can bike 26 miles in 100 degree weather does not necessarily mean you should. I think I'll swim tonight.
Also I'm going shoe shopping this week. It's kind of my way of mentally getting back in the game a bit. Now that I've started running again I need to reset everything....Starting with my feet. I'm absolutely not ready to give up my wonderful Brooks Glycerin. But I think I'm going to be getting a second pair as well. I'd really like to get a pair of minimalist shoes to do some leg-muscle strengthening. However, I'm still clueless as to which ones would be best for me of IF they would even be good for me so I'm trusting the people at the running shoe place to help me out.
And finally this weekend I get to try back to back days of running. Fingers Crossed!
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Friday, July 15, 2011
Real Life Running
And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music. - Nietzsche
4:00AM. My alarm goes off. Normally waking up at 4am would leave me tired and groggy and mostly one cranky girl that no one should talk to until a minimum of 3 cups of coffee have been consumed. Not today though. Today, waking up at 4am is OK. Today I'm glad to be awake.
4:45 Hop onto bike and ride to Physical Therapy in the semi-darkness.
5:00AM-6:00AM Physical Therapy.
At the end of physical therapy my therapist and I started talking about what I should do. I had done a couple of runs in segments--you know the old run/walk routine. This time, however, he looks at me and goes "3 miles Go run a 5k. "
I leave and I'm all excited that I get to try running again for real. I pull up to my super secret run-walking-where-nobody-can-see-me spot and get off my bike. "Go run a 5k". I know my therapist said this without realizing what it meant, but what it meant to me was that I FINALLY get to run the 5k that I was supposed to run at a last-chance track meet 2 months ago. I know it's not the same and it's not technically a race. However, it is still a 5k.
I like to think that I'm really tough, but when I realized what I was about to do, that I finally got to run my 5k, that I was really going to run, I got really choked up.
I forgot what a real life run feels like.
I need two puffs of my inhaler (thank you asthma.) I always start off too fast. I always have. I probably always will. So about two minutes into my run I pull up a little bit. I have to remember to take it easy because well, I am injured after all....I mean I was injured.
I forgot what it feels like to change your stride. And I forgot how dry your mouth gets while you run. There are little twinges in your legs letting your body know what's going on for the first couple minutes until you ease into your pace. You get so hot while running. In biking there's windchill and in swimming the water is usually cold. I forgot how hot running can be. I forgot what full-on 100% gravity feels like. I forgot what the grass feels like on your toes and the way the ground feels when you step in mud. I forgot that your shoes get all soggy from running through the the morning dew. I forgot that when you run barefoot your feet get full of grass clippings and turn green. I forgot that the sunrise looks that much better when you're running. I forgot the tiredness, the feeling of completeness.I forgot what it feels like to fly across the ground.
Some wonderful groundskeeper came and turned on the sprinklers for the last few minutes of my run as I completed my last lap around the fields.
I forgot what it was like to be in love with running.
Thankful for every minute. every step.
4:00AM. My alarm goes off. Normally waking up at 4am would leave me tired and groggy and mostly one cranky girl that no one should talk to until a minimum of 3 cups of coffee have been consumed. Not today though. Today, waking up at 4am is OK. Today I'm glad to be awake.
4:45 Hop onto bike and ride to Physical Therapy in the semi-darkness.
5:00AM-6:00AM Physical Therapy.
At the end of physical therapy my therapist and I started talking about what I should do. I had done a couple of runs in segments--you know the old run/walk routine. This time, however, he looks at me and goes "3 miles Go run a 5k. "
I leave and I'm all excited that I get to try running again for real. I pull up to my super secret run-walking-where-nobody-can-see-me spot and get off my bike. "Go run a 5k". I know my therapist said this without realizing what it meant, but what it meant to me was that I FINALLY get to run the 5k that I was supposed to run at a last-chance track meet 2 months ago. I know it's not the same and it's not technically a race. However, it is still a 5k.
I like to think that I'm really tough, but when I realized what I was about to do, that I finally got to run my 5k, that I was really going to run, I got really choked up.
I forgot what a real life run feels like.
I need two puffs of my inhaler (thank you asthma.) I always start off too fast. I always have. I probably always will. So about two minutes into my run I pull up a little bit. I have to remember to take it easy because well, I am injured after all....I mean I was injured.
I forgot what it feels like to change your stride. And I forgot how dry your mouth gets while you run. There are little twinges in your legs letting your body know what's going on for the first couple minutes until you ease into your pace. You get so hot while running. In biking there's windchill and in swimming the water is usually cold. I forgot how hot running can be. I forgot what full-on 100% gravity feels like. I forgot what the grass feels like on your toes and the way the ground feels when you step in mud. I forgot that your shoes get all soggy from running through the the morning dew. I forgot that when you run barefoot your feet get full of grass clippings and turn green. I forgot that the sunrise looks that much better when you're running. I forgot the tiredness, the feeling of completeness.I forgot what it feels like to fly across the ground.
Some wonderful groundskeeper came and turned on the sprinklers for the last few minutes of my run as I completed my last lap around the fields.
I forgot what it was like to be in love with running.
Thankful for every minute. every step.
Random Facts for Friday
"In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer." ~Albert Camus
1. My favorite color is lime green.
2. My current favorite song is "Dog Days are Over" by Florence + The Machine. (love the song. video? judge for yourselves) Dog days are over? heck yes they are!!!
3. I feel very strongly that on days that I do pool workouts I do not need to shower. Being immersed in water for over an hour totally counts for showering.
4. I go to physical therapy 5 days a week right now. A lot of people complain about physical therapy but I really love it. I TOLD you. I go to the best physical therapy place in the world.
5. I'm posting two things today. Usually I try to appropriately space out my posts but I've been computer-less for the past week so since I'm a bit overdue I threw out this rule.
6. I love watching Wizards of Waverly Place on Disney Channel. I don't care what you think about this.
7. I have always wanted a horse. I thought it would wear off eventually but it didn't. I still want one.
8. Someday when I'm out of college and have a real job and I order pizza I will CERTAINLY tip the delivery boy/girl a minimum of $10 because I've been there and I know how hard it is to live off of tips from delivering pizzas (disclaimer: if the delivery person is a creeper or hits my mailbox they will not be receiving my $10 tip)
9. In gradeschool I was the only girl on my school's cross country team. This is why I can spit while running better than the guys on my college team.
10. I was only spanked once as a little kid. I stepped in dog poop and then dragged it in my house. my dad makes fun of me for it to this day.
11. I still refuse to run on anything except grass. I still insist on doing portions of it barefoot because it feels soooo amazing on my legs.
12. Yes, I'm still afraid to hurt my knee.
13. I eat too much peanut butter. It's so horrible but I don't really eat meat so it's one of my only sources of protein therefore I feel like my immense consumption is justified.
14. I did a speed workout in the pool yesterday and for some reason. I'm particularly tired and sore. And no. I didn't shower.
15. During track season I got down to 7 toenails. ew.
16. I can't touch change. It's disgusting and germy and it smells funny. When I buy something I usually put the receipt in my hand and make the person put the change on top. From there I slide it into my wallet where it stays until I dump it into my change jar at home. I don't remember the last time I intentionally touched change.
17. I hate people who go to the gym and run on a treadmill when it's sunny and 70 degrees outside. Seriously? Come ON!
18. At the beginning of my first "real-life run" this past Tuesday I got all emotional. Refer to today's other post.
19. On that subject being injured taught me a lot. I could have lived without Patellofemoral syndrome but not without what it taught me about myself.
20. Today was my longest run since the beginning of May.
1. My favorite color is lime green.
2. My current favorite song is "Dog Days are Over" by Florence + The Machine. (love the song. video? judge for yourselves) Dog days are over? heck yes they are!!!
3. I feel very strongly that on days that I do pool workouts I do not need to shower. Being immersed in water for over an hour totally counts for showering.
4. I go to physical therapy 5 days a week right now. A lot of people complain about physical therapy but I really love it. I TOLD you. I go to the best physical therapy place in the world.
5. I'm posting two things today. Usually I try to appropriately space out my posts but I've been computer-less for the past week so since I'm a bit overdue I threw out this rule.
6. I love watching Wizards of Waverly Place on Disney Channel. I don't care what you think about this.
7. I have always wanted a horse. I thought it would wear off eventually but it didn't. I still want one.
8. Someday when I'm out of college and have a real job and I order pizza I will CERTAINLY tip the delivery boy/girl a minimum of $10 because I've been there and I know how hard it is to live off of tips from delivering pizzas (disclaimer: if the delivery person is a creeper or hits my mailbox they will not be receiving my $10 tip)
9. In gradeschool I was the only girl on my school's cross country team. This is why I can spit while running better than the guys on my college team.
10. I was only spanked once as a little kid. I stepped in dog poop and then dragged it in my house. my dad makes fun of me for it to this day.
11. I still refuse to run on anything except grass. I still insist on doing portions of it barefoot because it feels soooo amazing on my legs.
12. Yes, I'm still afraid to hurt my knee.
13. I eat too much peanut butter. It's so horrible but I don't really eat meat so it's one of my only sources of protein therefore I feel like my immense consumption is justified.
14. I did a speed workout in the pool yesterday and for some reason. I'm particularly tired and sore. And no. I didn't shower.
15. During track season I got down to 7 toenails. ew.
16. I can't touch change. It's disgusting and germy and it smells funny. When I buy something I usually put the receipt in my hand and make the person put the change on top. From there I slide it into my wallet where it stays until I dump it into my change jar at home. I don't remember the last time I intentionally touched change.
17. I hate people who go to the gym and run on a treadmill when it's sunny and 70 degrees outside. Seriously? Come ON!
18. At the beginning of my first "real-life run" this past Tuesday I got all emotional. Refer to today's other post.
19. On that subject being injured taught me a lot. I could have lived without Patellofemoral syndrome but not without what it taught me about myself.
20. Today was my longest run since the beginning of May.
Friday, July 8, 2011
Random Fact Fridays....
Put your heart, mind, and soul into even your smallest acts. This is the secret of success. ~Swami Sivananda
1. When I'm rehabbing on the Alter-G treadmill I listen to the song "Defying Gravity" from the musical Wicked every single time. And I laugh every single time.
2. I bite my nails compulsively. In traffic. Before races. At work. During any kind of crime show. The list goes on...I told myself that when I was mature enough I would stop. I'm unsure that I'll ever be mature enough.
3. I work at a really snazzy office. Everyone here drives convertibles and BMW's and such. I drive a green 2001 Buick LeSabre. I'm sure all the lawyers are jealous.
4. My second job is delivering pizzas for Domino's. I feel that the Domino's customers appreciate my green Buick more.
5. I don't believe that I would be the same without at least 2 cups of coffee before I leave my house.
6. I'm convinced that running barefoot for the last 5 minutes of all of my runs is going to help me stay injury-free.
7. Because of this....I really want a pair of minimalist shoes but I have no idea which ones to buy so I haven't bought any.
8. My room has to be clean before I can go to sleep at night.
9. I own a collie. His name is Dakota...but every single person I've ever met automatically assumes his name is Lassie.
10. I'm a psychology major. Someday I want to work with criminally insane people.
11. Now that I'm rehabbing I refuse to run anywhere where people I know could possibly see me because I don't want them to see me run/walking.
12. I still have not fallen off of my bike.
13. I'm an only child
14. I've never been on a roller coaster. Not because I'm scared. I just haven't.
15. The quote doesn't really have a lot to do with this post. But I still felt the need to put one up there.
16. I played the flute for 12 years of my life. I don't have time anymore but I miss it now and again.
17. As soon as I'm done with collegiate running I plan on training for a half Ironman.
18. Though I'm 21 years old I'm really really excited for the new Harry Potter movie to come out.
19. Sometimes while running if a good song comes on (and I'm far enough out of town) I stop and have a random solo dance party.
20. I'm convinced that if I start talking about how good my knee is feeling and how good my recovery is going I'll jinx it somehow and get re-hurt again.
1. When I'm rehabbing on the Alter-G treadmill I listen to the song "Defying Gravity" from the musical Wicked every single time. And I laugh every single time.
2. I bite my nails compulsively. In traffic. Before races. At work. During any kind of crime show. The list goes on...I told myself that when I was mature enough I would stop. I'm unsure that I'll ever be mature enough.
3. I work at a really snazzy office. Everyone here drives convertibles and BMW's and such. I drive a green 2001 Buick LeSabre. I'm sure all the lawyers are jealous.
4. My second job is delivering pizzas for Domino's. I feel that the Domino's customers appreciate my green Buick more.
5. I don't believe that I would be the same without at least 2 cups of coffee before I leave my house.
6. I'm convinced that running barefoot for the last 5 minutes of all of my runs is going to help me stay injury-free.
7. Because of this....I really want a pair of minimalist shoes but I have no idea which ones to buy so I haven't bought any.
8. My room has to be clean before I can go to sleep at night.
9. I own a collie. His name is Dakota...but every single person I've ever met automatically assumes his name is Lassie.
10. I'm a psychology major. Someday I want to work with criminally insane people.
11. Now that I'm rehabbing I refuse to run anywhere where people I know could possibly see me because I don't want them to see me run/walking.
12. I still have not fallen off of my bike.
13. I'm an only child
14. I've never been on a roller coaster. Not because I'm scared. I just haven't.
15. The quote doesn't really have a lot to do with this post. But I still felt the need to put one up there.
16. I played the flute for 12 years of my life. I don't have time anymore but I miss it now and again.
17. As soon as I'm done with collegiate running I plan on training for a half Ironman.
18. Though I'm 21 years old I'm really really excited for the new Harry Potter movie to come out.
19. Sometimes while running if a good song comes on (and I'm far enough out of town) I stop and have a random solo dance party.
20. I'm convinced that if I start talking about how good my knee is feeling and how good my recovery is going I'll jinx it somehow and get re-hurt again.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Adventures in Physical Therapy-ASTYM
Healing is a matter of time, but it is sometimes also a matter of opportunity. -Hippocrates
So the newest thing at the best physical therapy clinic on the planet is a process called ASTYM. ASTYM stands for "a stimulation” of the body’s healing response, which results in the remodeling/resorption of scar tissue and the regeneration of degenerated tendons. " according to the website.
Let's be honest. I'm really willing to try anything at this point. I'm ready to cut my IT band in half...But before I do anything too drastic I gave some alternative massage a try. The idea origionated after one particularly dreadful experience on the Alter-G My leg was done "hurting" but in reality I hadn't done any type of weight-bearing activity in weeks. Everything from my toes to my butt was tight and sore, as though I was being punished by my body for shocking it into running again. My evil IT band saw my weakness as an opportunity to strike again and immediately after the run became so tight that instead of PF syndrome coming back my biggest worry turned to re-developing IT band syndrome instead!
After one of the therapists heard that he asked me if I'd be up for trying something a little different, but that may help more than just stretching alone. That's how I was introduced to ASTYM. I've had massages and ultrasounds and stimulation therapy and ice and heat and even deep tissue massages. But this was something very different from anything else I've ever tried.
ASTYM is a little scary at first. It consists of plastic tools which kind of resemble those things you use in the winter to scrape ice off your car. Only instead of scraping ice they're used to fix your degenerative tendons. In my case they're used to iron-out a few stubborn bumps in your IT band so that my knee moves up and down like it's supposed to instead of diagonally.
The therapist starts out but putting coco butter on the affected area. Treatment that fixes my IT band AND my dry over-chlorinated skin? yes please.
Next he (or she) runs the plastic ice-scraper things up and down your legs. It's not necessarily "painful" but it does feel kind of strange. The areas that have scar tissue or degeneration feel kind of bumpy when the tools go over them. So in theory this stimulation, in connection with stretching and strengthening exercises (HIP EXERCISES!!!) is supposed to make the healing process super speedy.
I give this technique two thumbs way up. Though I was skeptical at first I haven't had any pain while running since my first treatment with ASTYM. I would most defiantly recommend it to anyone who's combating any sort of tendon or muscle issue.
Healing, is a strange and complicated process. It takes a lot of patience and hard work and rest all at the same time. Sometimes, when none of that works you may want to try ironing out your tendons with a windshield scraper.
Friday, July 1, 2011
A Minute of Thanks
"And when you can run, keep going, and thank God for what you've got"
I used to run 13 miles at a time. Like it was easy no less. And O.K. I'm going to be the first to admit that I frequently took this for granted. There used to be a lot of days when I would stop in the middle of a run and look around, marveling at how awesome it was that I could comfortably run ten miles away from my house and know that I could make it back. I felt so blessed and so lucky. Every run was an adventure and each time I was able to make it that much further.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that running for me used to be like swimming and biking is now. It used to be exciting and challenging. Don't get me wrong, I never stopped loving it. But I did defiantly start taking it for granted. Instead of how many miles can I run, it was how many miles must I run. It became a chore. It stopped being about the act of running, pure and simple. Instead it was about how many miles I could get in during a week, how many miles I had to run to equal the times that everyone expected me to run. Running was just training miles that I had to do to equal the end result-the times I was supposed to be hitting.
It's not that times and racing aren't important to me. They are. In fact, I think they're even a bit too important. But all those miles and all that running for all that racing was for all the wrong reasons. It wasn't for the love of running anymore. Instead it was for the winning of races, the expectations of other people. Running never used to be about what other people wanted for me. It was the only thing that I had all for myself, something that no one else in the world could understand. All of a sudden it was never enough, never good enough, never fast enough. So what happened to that gift?
My love and appreciation got lost somewhere along those 50 mile weeks when the focus was not on running, but on winning. It wasn't fun anymore because the fun doesn't come with the winning. When you win a race they don't reward you with a good time. They give you a trophy, or a t-shirt.
Now I'm not running 50 miles a week. I'm lucky if I get 5. Winning? no. Happy? yes. I used to get annoyed when I "only" had a 30 minute run. I figured that it was hardly worth it if I only got 4-5 miles in. I thought that to be "worth it" a run should be loooooong. 10 miles a day anyone?
.What I miss most about running didn't come from being injured and not able to run. Being injured is frustrating, I'm not saying otherwise. But I think that it was going to take being injured in order for me to realize that I need to re-vamp my running. I mean where is that girl who used to be a midfielder in soccer just so she could run more? Where is that tough little girl, the only girl in fact, on the cross country team in gradeschool just because she loved to run? Who wore her running shoes under her prom dress in high school?
What I miss is that freedom and that pure joy that stems from running across a green field and feeling fast. During track season I wondered a lot what it would take for me to get that love and joy back. Maybe a 15 mile run during the summer? Maybe running a really really good 10k?
As it turns out for the first time in my life running was not the answer. In fact the answer was not running. Nothing makes you appreciate the ability to run when you can't do it. Remember that girl who thought she was too good for measly 5 mile run? Enter the new Katie who 2 days ago got to go on a real life run for the first time in weeks. One minute run, one minute walk...alternating every minute for 20 minutes. a.k.a. 10 total minutes of running. And you know what? I was thrilled with each and every one of those 1 minute segments.
Yesterday I broke through again comfortably running 3 whole miles on the Alter G. Real-life running is just around the corner!
But now there's a new challenge in it for me. Instead of the usual running 60 miles/week, working on my core, yada yada yada, the challenge is to cherish every single minute that I get to run. Every minute is a blessing, each mile a gift. Running isn't about me, but about something greater than me. The triumph of endurance, the discovery of strength, and the celebration of the God-given abilities each of us has.
So run faster, and give thanks every step of the way.
I used to run 13 miles at a time. Like it was easy no less. And O.K. I'm going to be the first to admit that I frequently took this for granted. There used to be a lot of days when I would stop in the middle of a run and look around, marveling at how awesome it was that I could comfortably run ten miles away from my house and know that I could make it back. I felt so blessed and so lucky. Every run was an adventure and each time I was able to make it that much further.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that running for me used to be like swimming and biking is now. It used to be exciting and challenging. Don't get me wrong, I never stopped loving it. But I did defiantly start taking it for granted. Instead of how many miles can I run, it was how many miles must I run. It became a chore. It stopped being about the act of running, pure and simple. Instead it was about how many miles I could get in during a week, how many miles I had to run to equal the times that everyone expected me to run. Running was just training miles that I had to do to equal the end result-the times I was supposed to be hitting.
It's not that times and racing aren't important to me. They are. In fact, I think they're even a bit too important. But all those miles and all that running for all that racing was for all the wrong reasons. It wasn't for the love of running anymore. Instead it was for the winning of races, the expectations of other people. Running never used to be about what other people wanted for me. It was the only thing that I had all for myself, something that no one else in the world could understand. All of a sudden it was never enough, never good enough, never fast enough. So what happened to that gift?
My love and appreciation got lost somewhere along those 50 mile weeks when the focus was not on running, but on winning. It wasn't fun anymore because the fun doesn't come with the winning. When you win a race they don't reward you with a good time. They give you a trophy, or a t-shirt.
Now I'm not running 50 miles a week. I'm lucky if I get 5. Winning? no. Happy? yes. I used to get annoyed when I "only" had a 30 minute run. I figured that it was hardly worth it if I only got 4-5 miles in. I thought that to be "worth it" a run should be loooooong. 10 miles a day anyone?
.What I miss most about running didn't come from being injured and not able to run. Being injured is frustrating, I'm not saying otherwise. But I think that it was going to take being injured in order for me to realize that I need to re-vamp my running. I mean where is that girl who used to be a midfielder in soccer just so she could run more? Where is that tough little girl, the only girl in fact, on the cross country team in gradeschool just because she loved to run? Who wore her running shoes under her prom dress in high school?
What I miss is that freedom and that pure joy that stems from running across a green field and feeling fast. During track season I wondered a lot what it would take for me to get that love and joy back. Maybe a 15 mile run during the summer? Maybe running a really really good 10k?
As it turns out for the first time in my life running was not the answer. In fact the answer was not running. Nothing makes you appreciate the ability to run when you can't do it. Remember that girl who thought she was too good for measly 5 mile run? Enter the new Katie who 2 days ago got to go on a real life run for the first time in weeks. One minute run, one minute walk...alternating every minute for 20 minutes. a.k.a. 10 total minutes of running. And you know what? I was thrilled with each and every one of those 1 minute segments.
Yesterday I broke through again comfortably running 3 whole miles on the Alter G. Real-life running is just around the corner!
But now there's a new challenge in it for me. Instead of the usual running 60 miles/week, working on my core, yada yada yada, the challenge is to cherish every single minute that I get to run. Every minute is a blessing, each mile a gift. Running isn't about me, but about something greater than me. The triumph of endurance, the discovery of strength, and the celebration of the God-given abilities each of us has.
So run faster, and give thanks every step of the way.
Friday, June 24, 2011
Running On Air
He who would learn to fly one day must first learn to stand and walk and run and climb and dance; one cannot fly into flying. ~Friedrich Nietzsche
What is it like to fly? Flying is something that I've always put together with running. The two have always gone hand in hand for me. Running, I've always thought is the human version of flight. Luckily I got my chance to try my hand at running on air yesterday.
Besides being the best physical therapist in the world, my physical therapist has one other thing to offer that most do not. An alter-g treadmill. The alter-G is an anti-gravity treadmill developed my NASA scientists to mimic running in a zero gravity situation. No joke.
In preperation to run on this treadmill my therapist had me put on what I like to call the bike tutu. The basic construction looks like a pair of bike shorts...spandex that came down to a little above my knee. Around the waistband however is a circular piece of fabric, making it appear that I am wearing some sort of biking short/running skirt hybrid. In other words, if Lady Gaga were to write a song about athletics...she would wear this outfit for a concert.
Next you step onto the treadmill. You raise the "enclosure" to your waist and zip it to the bike short tutu. Press start, and gravity starts to disappear. How it works is that the treadmill weighs you as the chamber fills with air.
After this you start running. The machine starts out at 100 (i.e. 100% of your body weight) and from there you can press the + or - button to choose what weight you want to run at. The lower the percentage the more the chamber inflates. The air pressure lifts you off the ground to match the weight you selected. Pick your speed and you're good to go.
But what does it really feel like to run in zero gravity? It's weird. It took me a solid 15 minutes to get used to. Because you're not pounding like you usually do when you run you really have to concentrate on your foot plant. I found myself having to think about putting my feet on the surface of the treadmill. A lot of this was due to the fact that I legitimately felt like I could just lift up my feet and float away. Yes...that it how weightless it feels. The closest thing I can equate it to is aqua-jogging....but without the resistance of the water...plus your feet are making contact with solid ground.
I only ran two miles on it for the first time. Though the Alter-G provides the same amount of cardio that regular running does, without the pavement pounding your body isn't stressed nearly as much as it is with normal running. So besides the intial "noodle legs" feeling your legs aren't half as taxed as they would be with a regular run.
Getting off may have been the hardest part. Remember when you were a little kid and you played the game where you jumped on a giant trampoline and then you got off and felt how strange it was to jump on solid ground again? That is the final feeling of the anti-gravity treadmill. In everything I read no one ever described what it was like to get off of the treadmill. It's a terrible feeling really. Coming down from running in the clouds is never easy. The first few steps that I took my legs felt like lead. When the anti-gravity chamber released I was pretty convinced that I would sink into the ground.
I'm so thankful for the opportunity to run pain free. I realize that actually finding an anti-gravity treadmill is next to impossible. Finding an anti-gravity treadmill and not having to second mortgage your house to find the money to run on it (most charge $15/half an hour for use)-that IS impossible. I can't believe that I was the .001% of the population who found a physical therapist who happens to have an Alter-G. Maybe the entire world isn't working against my love of running after all?
So here's to running on air until I can run again for real.
What is it like to fly? Flying is something that I've always put together with running. The two have always gone hand in hand for me. Running, I've always thought is the human version of flight. Luckily I got my chance to try my hand at running on air yesterday.
In preperation to run on this treadmill my therapist had me put on what I like to call the bike tutu. The basic construction looks like a pair of bike shorts...spandex that came down to a little above my knee. Around the waistband however is a circular piece of fabric, making it appear that I am wearing some sort of biking short/running skirt hybrid. In other words, if Lady Gaga were to write a song about athletics...she would wear this outfit for a concert. Next you step onto the treadmill. You raise the "enclosure" to your waist and zip it to the bike short tutu. Press start, and gravity starts to disappear. How it works is that the treadmill weighs you as the chamber fills with air.
After this you start running. The machine starts out at 100 (i.e. 100% of your body weight) and from there you can press the + or - button to choose what weight you want to run at. The lower the percentage the more the chamber inflates. The air pressure lifts you off the ground to match the weight you selected. Pick your speed and you're good to go.
But what does it really feel like to run in zero gravity? It's weird. It took me a solid 15 minutes to get used to. Because you're not pounding like you usually do when you run you really have to concentrate on your foot plant. I found myself having to think about putting my feet on the surface of the treadmill. A lot of this was due to the fact that I legitimately felt like I could just lift up my feet and float away. Yes...that it how weightless it feels. The closest thing I can equate it to is aqua-jogging....but without the resistance of the water...plus your feet are making contact with solid ground.
I only ran two miles on it for the first time. Though the Alter-G provides the same amount of cardio that regular running does, without the pavement pounding your body isn't stressed nearly as much as it is with normal running. So besides the intial "noodle legs" feeling your legs aren't half as taxed as they would be with a regular run.
Getting off may have been the hardest part. Remember when you were a little kid and you played the game where you jumped on a giant trampoline and then you got off and felt how strange it was to jump on solid ground again? That is the final feeling of the anti-gravity treadmill. In everything I read no one ever described what it was like to get off of the treadmill. It's a terrible feeling really. Coming down from running in the clouds is never easy. The first few steps that I took my legs felt like lead. When the anti-gravity chamber released I was pretty convinced that I would sink into the ground.
I'm so thankful for the opportunity to run pain free. I realize that actually finding an anti-gravity treadmill is next to impossible. Finding an anti-gravity treadmill and not having to second mortgage your house to find the money to run on it (most charge $15/half an hour for use)-that IS impossible. I can't believe that I was the .001% of the population who found a physical therapist who happens to have an Alter-G. Maybe the entire world isn't working against my love of running after all?
So here's to running on air until I can run again for real.
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