What Is Going On?!

Help.

The pain (burning) in my knee warranted a doctor visit with some not-so-great news. I most likely reinjured the previous meniscus tear or am having complications from scar tissue. All I know is it hurt really really bad when he pressed into the back of my knee. Soon, I’ll begin the X-ray, other assorted scans, PT regimen to ensure we’re treating it correctly. This means no running, no volleyball, no cycling. He pointedly said walking and elliptical only. Me?! Never!

I won’t pretend I’m surprised. Fireworks in your knee isn’t the norm so obviously something was going on. But I really expected cycling to be included in the can-do list.

In the meantime, he encouraged walking, so that’s just what I’ll do. Starting with a lengthy weekend stroll! On the bright side, I guess I’ll have more room for clothes since I won’t need to travel with running shoes. By the time you read this, I’ll have defended my proposal. Stay tuned!

____________

I ask you –

Has anyone ever licked your forehead?

If you said yes, then I need a full explanation!

Any recommendations for New Orleans?

(The post What Is Going On?! first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)

(No Fancy Title)

I used to wonder, what’s a girl gotta do –

To win a wing-level award. To clear the smaller but no less significant hurdles of winning at the squadron and group levels. Then, I did it. Twice. Walking across the same stage where I received my master’s diploma was awesome. Now? I’m chasing that annual award. Stay tuned.

To get a PhD. Something about the sound of doctor preceding my name seemed out of my league. I would say “that’s not me”. But, why not? Doctor…loading.

To position myself as a presenter at a leadership conference, established in my field as a policymaker. To make policy! I’ve mentioned if the opportunity presented itself to do this at the services level, I’d have a tough time turning it down. Post-doctor, for sure.

Credit: unknown via Instagram

To find a lost city. According to this article, it’s not out of the realm of possibilities. Of course it was a PhD student. He was looking for his sanity.

__________________

I ask you –

Have you been a conference presenter?

Seriously, what does a girl gotta do?!

Tell me some things you wonder about!

(The post (No Fancy Title) first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)

When it’s busy

In several years, this is the first time I’ve had a full staff. Every position filled, with both new and seasoned employees keeping me on my toes. Yet, I’m the lucky one. Nearly daily, I marvel at the opportunity to be their leader. Someone believed in me, chose me, to lead them. It’s an honor unlike anything else. We have frank, real, deep conversations. I feel their respect when I explain the why.

Get it together. Some days it feels as if everyone is a psychology major. Words from the DSM (current edition DSM-5-TR) are now buzzwords. For example, imposter syndrome. Never heard of it until recently, now we can’t unhear it. I believe the concept is real; however, using it as an excuse for not stepping up is irritating. Sometimes there is no one more qualified than you, regardless of what your insecurities tell you. Be the leader. Do good things.

A small portion of Team Fitness

Nevertheless, transitioning from employee to mentor to leader is not for the weak. It is a lot of needs to balance! I do my best to share the big picture, the budget constraints, always the why behind decisions, yet some are reluctant to grasp the entire narrative. How many times have I done the same.

Tis the season for a million demands on my time. From a weekend with multiple events to planning upcoming holiday activities, it can be hard to take a deep breath. I don’t know how some people manage to float from one busy weekend to the next. My brain is tired just contemplating what’s on the agenda

______________

I ask you –

How often do you use the term imposter syndrome?

What’s on your calendar?

Advice for the break takers!

(The post When it’s busy first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)

How Dare You Suggest!

Garmin has lost its mind; specifically, the suggested workouts function. This thing suggested I do a 30 min run at 10:35′ without a warm-up. I’m old. I require a warm-up. At least 5 mins!

Then, the following day, it suggested a temp run, 6×1:00 at 7:20′. 7:20′! I’ve never run that pace in my life. 7:20′ is like running from a pack of hungry lions. I think I’ve played in the 8-8:30’s – never a sustained 7-anything for 1 min. Craziness.

So you know what I did? I ran it. Because “can’t” isn’t in my vocabulary. And you know what happened? I ran like hungry lions were chasing me. It wasn’t pretty, it hurt a lot, and I disliked every interval, but I did it.

Then the next day I made an appointment because I suspect something is wrong with my meniscus again. It feels like fireworks inside the inner knee, and the tell tale stretched rubber band. Or maybe it’s all related to my feet. Remember, I had planned to have double toe surgery the early part of 2024, then I scrapped those plans altogether. It is still on the horizon sans date. The suggestion was to handle it sooner rather than later. Like stop signs, right? Just suggestions.

But I continue to run, to make time for exercise, no matter the consequences. At this point, I’d rather be in pain than stop all activity, to the detriment of my body. Maybe that’s why I have spare parts.

_________________

I ask you –

Do you follow Garmin’s suggested workouts?

What type of workout did you do last? Strength training.

Might you be willing to donate a healthy knee to my cause?!

(The post How Dare You Suggest! first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)

Dear Diary

Dear Diary,

Today, I was the voice of reason. Do not recommend. Ever.

Start over.

Dear Diary,

Today, I was forced to be the voice of reason. It was awful. I had no idea what I was doing. But I did it without much noticeable discomfort. And, I’m a better leader for it.

Dear Diary,

Today, I kept myself on pace, no fly-and-die issues at all.

Try again.

Dear Diary,

Everyone was running so fast and I attempted to keep up. It didn’t go well. I was burnt toast at the end of mile 1. I had to take a break. Twice my watch went into critical incident mode and attempted to perform life saving measures by notifying next of kin. Fortunately, I was not dying, so was able to cancel the notification.

Dear Diary,

My doctor is a lying arsehole who doesn’t understand my dietary needs.

Not again.

Dear Diary,

I have conceded to working on my rather high cholesterol levels in order to prevent a medication regimen. Of course I can do better to manage my diet. Instead of super fatty foods, I will make small, significant changes which will benefit my cardiac health.

(end of chapter)

_____________________

I ask you –

Did you ever have a diary? Maybe you do now.

Has your watch ever panicked without cause?

Tell me…you’ve never read someone else’s diary!

(The post Dear Diary first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)

I’m a Forgetter

Long live volleyball! I just wish I didn’t hurt myself so easily. Yes, I own knee pads. Several pairs. But did I remember to bring them and put them on? Clearly not.

My kind doctor said I had 6 months to fix my high cholesterol levels. In his defense, he’s given me 3 yrs thus far. The good stuff is getting better but it’s still overall too high for comfort. I blame my parents. In the meantime, I’ve made some easy switches – less fat, more good stuff. Turns out turkey bacon is really good, and I definitely enjoy balsamic vinegar on my salad. More avocado, less fried stuff. We’ll see what happens. I’m always up for an experiment!

Me: I know it’s Saturday morning at 0500, nearing FY end, so let me check my email and really test these new anxiety meds. My brain: Dondnekndicngmeixnwkffiend🤯. Long story short – now I will worry and feel ill the remainder of the day for forgetting for 4 months! to order something I agreed to.

Volunteers, team of 2

Definitely needed a run to clear my head from that disaster. Later in the day, I saw the victim of my forgetfulness and apologized profusely. She didn’t seem to mind much, which was a big change from my anxious brain telling me to escape. Ugh, such a liar.

_________________

I ask you –

Do you enjoy any healthy alternatives to your favorite foods?

What is your go-to activity to clear your head?

Tell me about forgetting something important!

(The post I’m a Forgetter first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)

The Waiting

It’s frustrating when I’ve requested an article or document from a particular author who wants to charge for said document. Granted, I understand their time is money and knowledge; however, the sites I use are reputable and notable academia journals so they must understand students are typically the ones searching for materials here. Yet, I fill out a giant form indicating why and how I need access to said article with often little or zero response. Undoubtedly, countless requests just from me for articles sit in a queue somewhere, forever in a holding pattern. It’s not like I have forgotten; instead, I wait and wait and wait without response.

A few nights ago, my chair and I had a brief conversation, with me mainly insisting I’m attempting to be patient in the waiting for committee response and her insisting all is well. As she’s the expert, I defer to her in nearly every way. But if I had known. I could have made a training plan for a half marathon. I could have done something else with my time. But, life is funny like that. Surely, I needed an unstructured break. Surely.

Parts invited her boss – something I could never do

I also attended a comedy show, titled Moms Unhinged. It started at 7pm, practically the middle of the night, but it was fun and the jokes were great! I’ve watched football. Cowboys, wth. I’ve developed a new outline for a different research interest. Yeah, Kel, that’s exactly what you needed. I’ve begun watching a new television series, Brilliant Minds. Fantastic, btw. I’ve sat on my couch with mini, or read trashy novels for hours on end.

But, at the end of the night, I’m still waiting.

_____________________

I ask you –

How long is too long to wait? Does it depend?

Who is your favorite comedian?

Tell me your bedtime.

(The post The Waiting first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)

I Have (even more) Questions

Do football players wear underroos? I had a mosquito bite on my butt and nearly caused a scene. I can’t imagine having to dig my underroos out of my ass during a 3 hr football game.

Blue Bell, why do you tempt me so? Chocolate brownie truffle sounds like heaven on earth. How much cholesterol is in it? Does it have good fats?

Finally, I suppose this isn’t a question at all, more of an observation. Let me start with my level of dumbness. It’s high. Possibly off the charts. I sort of (absolutely did) move away from strength training in favor of running. This happens regularly, where I forgo balance and hyper focus on one thing. Totally normal.

The more I ran, the more my body hurt in more places than just my feet. My shoulders, my biceps, my knees. You get the idea. So when I got tired of hurting and switched my focus back to strength training, I wasn’t motivated because I thought I had injured myself doing something else, probably at work.

All this to say it was mostly because I wasn’t strength training that everything was hurting. I’ve been back to regular training for several weeks now and my shoulders, triceps, etc feel a thousand times better, nearly zero pain. I didn’t need a break! I needed to focus on making these areas stronger.

Late to the party, but always on my way there.

_________________

I ask you –

Do they…wear underroos?

How often are you doing one thing, forgetting about another?

Tell me your thoughts on the newest Blue Bell flavor!

(The post I Have ( even more) Questions first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)

Just in Case

Performance Optimization

Believe it or not, there’s a lot I don’t mention on this blog but that I do talk a lot about in person. Such as performance optimization, specifically for women. What. Is. That?! So glad you asked. Essentially, it’s pairing exercise according to the menstrual cycle. While some women are textbook, 28-day cycle specimens, most women do not conform to the textbook and range from a 21-40 day cycle. This means many women are not training their body according to their cycle; instead, they’re probably winging a workout then wondering why today was so damn hard or, alternately, cheering themselves on for having a kickass run while failing to acknowledge the reasons why. Been there.

Let me tell you how. The first step is tracking your cycle. The problem is it depends on dozens of factors, such as hormonal birth control, which, no one wants to hear it, means you do not have a natural cycle at all. However, consistent tracking of a hormone birth control user can still result in a performance optimizing workout routine. So don’t knock it. Anyway…once we know some of the factors influencing our ability to have a stellar performance, life sort of gets easier. I jest.

All this to lead me here – I’ve had some pretty great runs and workouts lately. Despite the humidity and 100+ degrees, for the second year in a row, I’ve sustained a routine of running outdoors. It takes some creativity, some sacrifice, and sometimes even a little humility, but it can be done. Not to be dramatic, but my world did change in 2018 post-heat illness. I try not to give it too much power in my head. Alas, I maintain an awareness of being conscious of the limitations surrounding it. It is what it is.

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I ask you –

For my lady friends, do you practice performance optimization?

Do you have other routines you follow?

Tell me how running and exercise have been going for you!

(The post Performance Optimization first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)