Back in the saddle

Great news! My knee is doing MUCH better. I had my follow-up appointment last Monday. The discomfort in my knee had lessened and I didn't need to take the anti-inflammatory medicine daily. I finally got my knee brace which is great. It only took 3 weeks! Sheesh! So my doctor told me that as long as I'm not experiencing more discomfort and that my knee is getting better instead of worse, there's no reason for me to come back. If I start having more pain, then to give him a call. Woo hoo!

With that great bit of news, I started back with the Chubby Jones 5k podcast on Saturday. Today was my second day working out to it and my knee still feels fine. I'm back to square one with the 5k training but that's okay. I least I can train again!

Update - My Knee

I went to see an orthopedic doctor last week. He took x-rays of my left knee, pressed all around my kneecap, asking if this hurt, did this hurt. Well, you keep pressing long and hard enough, yeah, it's going to start to hurt. His diagnosis was this: Patellofemoral Syndrome. In laymen's terms, normal wear and tear and inflammation around the kneecap. The solution: a cortisone shot to ease the discomfort, a pamphlet that demonstrated exercises that I should do, a Rx for an anti-imflammatory meds, a knee brace and an appointment to see him in 3 weeks. I can't do any running but I can walk on the treadmill and workout on the elliptical. So there goes my 5k training until my knee starts getting better.

So I'm going to continue walking on the treadmill and doing my exercises. Hopefully my knee will be in better shape at my next appointment.

These are the ugly hospital shorts I had to wear when I was having my knee x-rayed. Not cute.

Side note: I will never get another cortisone shot ever again. That was the most painful experience in my life! I've had an epidural and wasn't in that much pain! My knee didn't feel better until the next day.

Where have I been, you ask? Well, let me tell you...

Sorry! I know it's been two weeks since my last post. It's the holiday season and life has gotten in the way. You know how that goes. I haven't trained since my last post which completely sucks because that sets me back. By how much? I won't know until I hop back on that treadmill. Last week I was lazy; pure and simple. I felt so bad about my laziness that I thought I could make up for it by going to the gym over the weekend. But Mother Nature had other ideas. We got hit with a buttload of snow starting Friday night and ending Sunday morning. The only exercise I got was digging out my car for 2 hours. My back is still recovering.

The first couple of days after "The Blizzard of 2009" (That's what the local media is calling it. So dramatic!) driving was still treacherous due to the melted snow re-freezing overnight and many sidewalks had not been shovelled. I rushed to get home before the sun went down. Once inside, I knew I wasn't going back out.  I have to manuever around black ice and chunks of unshovelled snow that has chunks of ice underneath. Once I get to my car, I have to make sure I don't bump into the 3 foot pile of dirty snow that's next to my car. My point in mentioning all this is to say that I can barely get to my car in the morning to drive to work without it being a process. There's no way I'm making a second trip outside to go to the gym. Plus, it's Christmas week. I've missed out on 3 days of shopping because of the snow. I have a lot of catching up to do. My goal is to be back in the gym this Saturday. Yeah, we'll see about that.

I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas and Happy Holiday!

2009 Goals Revisited

There's just 30 days left in 2009. Whew! I can hardly believe the year is almost over. I had grand plans for 2009. I had a list of 9 things I wanted to accomplish this year. Did I succeed? Can I cross out everything on my list??  Let's see.

1. Run a 5k race. I'm still working on that one. I have not been consistent with my training. I have let laziness get the best of me. I haven't given up. If I run a 5k this year, then I am happy. If it doesn't happen until 2010, I'm okay with that too.
2. Read a Great American Novel. Mission accomplished. I read The Great Gatsby. And I plan on reading many more. Over the summer I bought To Kill A Mockingbird for $1.99. It is one of my all-time favorite books.
3. Be a better world citizen. This is something I try to do daily. It will forever be one of my goals.
4. Stop sweating the small stuff. Still easier said than done. I still have my moments but I'm more cognizant of when I'm doing it and I check myself.
5. Stop using negative phrases. I think I've gotten better. I'm not completely sure. Maybe I should start recording myself?
6. Take a writing class. I haven't signed up for one YET. I tried to make up for it by signing up for National Novel Writing Month. Ugh! It was so hard for me! I used to write all the time, off the top of my head with no problems. I can't tell you how many times I wrote and deleted what was on the screen. I will definitely try again next year.
7. Decide what I want to do with my career. A work in progress. I did switch jobs and am working for a new company. So far, so good. We'll see what happens when the "new car smell" wears off.
8. Finish swim lessons. I haven't even attempted this one. This will be on my list for 2010.
9. Continue to improve. Ongoing year after year.

That's where I stand with my goals. It's been a crazy year. It's been a busy year. I'm looking forward to 2010 and all that it will bring.

Fall into Reading Challenge - Update

One week into the challenge and I've already finished two books and I'm halfway through my third. Woo! I am on a roll. Thanks to the challenge, my summer book purchase pile is slowly dwindling. I think I may actually be able to finish my book list by the December deadline.

Here's my updated list:

Books I need to Finish:

Black Hills

The Autobiography of Malcolm X

Living Dead in Dallas

Morrigan's Cross

Books I've purchased but haven't read:

Feminista

For Colored Girls...

Master (currently reading)

Club Dead

Valley of Silence

Push

Say You're One of Them

I'm tempted to add more books to my list since I'm on a roll. But I don't want to get ahead of myself.

Happy Reading!!

Goals Update

We're almost halfway through 2009. Boy time does fly! Here's a quick update on my 9 Goals for 2009.

1. Run a 5k Race - Unfortunately, I haven't done that yet. I was hoping to be ready for my first 5k last week (The National Race for the Cure). No excuses - I let laziness get the best of me. But I'm back on track now. I'm 4 weeks into my training and it has been kicking my butt - in a good way. I hope to run a 5k by August if not sooner. I will be walking in a 5k race next Saturday. I'm going to attempt to run/walk so that I can get the feel of running outside.

2. Read a Great American Novel - In my last update I mentioned I read "The Great Gatsby". My intent was to read another novel. I haven't as of yet. I don't know what to read. I may just close my eyes and point and whatever my finger lands on, that's what I'll be reading.

3. Be a better citizen of the world - I have been keeping up with this but not as much as I would have liked. My efforts have been steered more towards recycling and going green. I've started purchasing "green" cleaning products. I recycle as much as possible. And I now use reusable bags for my groceries. No more plastic for me! The little things go a long way.

4. Stop sweating the small stuff - I find myself still doing that. It's a hard habit to break. But I intend to break it. I just need to be more cognizant of doing it.

5. Stop using negative phrases - I think I have gotten better. I do make the conscious effort to suppress the inner pessimist. The best way for me to do that is to keep my mouth shut. Period.

6. Take a writing class - I hope to sign up for a writing class in the Fall. I was going to sign up for a summer class but I waited too long. Hey - another goal should be for me to stop procrastinating!

7. Decide what I want to do with my career - I know what I want to do. It's just a matter of getting there. I know that I want to work in a Library. But the jobs I've looked at all require a Masters in Library Science. I need to get off my arse and research and find out what I need to do to make that happen.

8. Finish swimming lessons - I was hoping to have this done before we go on vacation this summer. It doesn't look like that's going to happen. I'm tempted to ask hubby to give me lessons in my father-in-law's pool. It's free! But I think we'd argue too much. Let me rephrase that - I will be arguing too much! LOL!

9. Continue to improve - This is ongoing. I'm slowly getting there. Baby steps, baby steps.

2009 Goals update

We're 3 weeks into the new year and I figured I'll provide an update on how I'm doing with my 9 goals for 2009. I've started a couple of my goals. I've started training for a 5k race. I was gung-ho about running and was going to the gym on a consistent basis. This lasted for two weeks. And then it started getting cold...really cold. I've slacked off and I'm really disappointed in myself. I am slowly getting back on track and I am trying not to let the winter weather prevent me from doing what I need to do.

I have made a conscious effort to stop sweating the small stuff and to be more positive. It's not easy. When I've slipped, I've acknowledged that I shouldn't have let something get to me. So I think that's progress. Normally I would fuss and steam over it for at least 30 minutes, if not the rest of the day.

I just received "The Great Gatsby" in the mail this week. It's much thinner than I'd thought which means I'll probably end up reading a couple of great American novels. I'm planning on starting TGG later this week.

I've started 3 of my 9 goals which isn't bad. It's only January. I have 11 months to complete my list.

I'm looking forward to becoming a better Marquetta.