Battling Back From The Icy Grip Of A Cold

 Dec. 13, 2012

The great thing about colds is that you never know when they will attack, and you're never quite sure when they are going to let go of the death hold they have on your body.

The only thing you know for sure is that when you're done with having a cold, the cold just doubles down and holds on for dear life.

Tuesday I decided to just get out and move, so I took a long walk for the first time in a week. That was good -- a little sweat, a little heart rate increase, some sun.

A little comfort food always helps quicken your recovery.

So if walking was good, how about a run? Note to self: Don't push too hard after a week off from running.

So I decided to take an easy run on Wednesday just to see if there was any fitness left in my body. My goal was to run and walk as far as I could go while listening to my body and shutting down when it decided it was time to slow down.

The first half mile wasn't bad. The lungs and legs were working, and the heart was soon to follow. I made it three-fourths of the way up the big first hill and walked to the crest before starting to job again.

The long downhill was a welcome relief, just as it has always been for the past three or four years I've been running. I could feel the fatigue mounting in my legs and lungs and kept a steady pace until the next round of tiny rollers.

About midway through the second hill, I heard my body say uncle, so I backed down to a walk, which was greeted immediately by a big "thank you" from by out-of-shape, cold-riddled body.

I walked a bit and then jogged another descent and long flat. At this point, I decided walking it on in would be fine. If I could get three miles of walking and running in that would be good, so I ran when I could and walked when I had to and completed the loop.

Man, that post running soreness you get right after a run and the next morning felt good. It felt good to have the little aches and pains that let you know you're a runner.

Sounds like mild weather again this afternoon. No excuses. It's either a walk, run or a walk-run for these old bones.

You've Got To Walk Before You Run

Dec. 11, 2012

It's always important to remember to walk before you can run.

OK, so maybe it's the advice you'd give a 5-year-old, but when you're nursing a cold that rasps with a snap, crackle and pop on every exhale, just the act of walking should be exercise enough.

After nearly a week off of running -- or any exercise for that matter -- today seemed like the day to get back out and get moving. You have to figure if you're well enough to feel guilty and bored, you must be just about well enough to get back out on the road.

I, like so many others, am guilty of using cold medicines and other medications to mask my symptoms in the name of getting back on the bike or lacing up my running shoes. Back in high school, the coaches would always tell you a good sweat would make a cold move through you faster.

While that might have worked when you're 16, some 30 or 40 years later that isn't always the case. Sometimes fatigue and body aches are nature's way of telling us it's time to take a day off and rest. 

But then there's that little voice that sneaks up inside of you and says it's time -- time to get off of the computer and put on the old running shoes.

Well, I listened to the voice, but I heeded my own warning -- walk before you run.

I decided after a few errands that a little cool air and brisk walk might not be so bad, plus it might help me sleep better. Besides, the sun was shining and the road was calling my name.

I climbed my familiar first hill with little trouble. My breathing was labored but not all that much by any standard. And my lungs weren't wheezing, so I continued on down the path. 

The sun shone brightly as I rolled down the hill and made the turn. It felt good to be out in the fresh air. It felt good to get my legs into an uninterrupted rhythm and feel my heart pounding its familiar exercise cadence. I could even feel a bit of sweat start to drip on my back and down my chest.

When I turned the corner for home I felt good about climbing one last hill. It was good to breathe deeply and engage my climbing muscles -- even if it was just a walk and not a run.

Tomorrow is a new day and hopefully a new walk -- maybe even a little run. It's tough taking time off for a cold or an injury, but I'm just going to remember to walk before I run.

Don't Let Stress Ruin Your Run!

Dec. 10, 2012

Today I won't be any pounds of rolling thunder. 

In fact, I won't be running at all. I've got one of those creepy bad cold that sneaks up on you, and before you know it you've got every form of over-the-counter pill, tablet and liquid known to man rumbling around in your system while you try and seek some relief -- or at least a few hours of uninterrupted sleep.

But that's no excuse for not blogging. Lately, there hasn't been a lot of running but a lot of stressing.

Between working, volunteering with the Boy Scouts and fighting this cold, there hasn't been much time for writing.

It's amazing what stress can do to your body. I've been running for three or so years now on a steady basis, and you would think that it would get easier, but up until this summer I still made frequent walking stops while I was running.

Normally, I just chalked it up to getting older and not starting out as a distance runner. I was not what you would call an early adapter when it came to lacing up the old running shoes and going for a job. I was more the ball-and-goal athlete most of my life.

But something convinced me I needed to improve my fitness, mainly to give me more wind when I was out biking. So I hit the streets. I didn't like it, but I hit the streets. And after a while it started to pay off on the bike. I could climb hills and not be winded at the top.

But somewhere along the line, I started having to walk more and run less. Again, I attributed it to just being a poor runner and didn't put much onus on the role stress can play in your life.

But this fall and summer, I've been able to push through more distance and hills than in the past. Somehow the promise of the endorphin rush at the end of the journey made the pain worthwhile.

Recently, however, I've been stressing more about work and life in general. And the more I stressed, the less relaxing the runs became and the more I was tempted to slow down and walk. I could even feel a physical tightening in my torso that would not allow me to breathe as easily.

It was as if the weight of the world was on my shoulders as the stress monsters took over my consciousness. What was once fun had begun to become a chore, and blogging about it didn't seem to have time on the agenda.

But now I'm back blog fans. Atlas shrugged and the weight of the world did not run me over -- although this cold just might. I'm anxious to shake this creaky feeling of sinus infection and body aches and get back out on the streets with the sun shining in my slow-moving face.

So until you see the world's slowest human out there again, wish me luck and don't stress.