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Down

Okay, pain.  And frustration frankly.  I decided during my walk that I really couldn’t do 3 miles, so I tried to at least get 2, which I did.  By the time I got home, my knee hurt more than is should.  I’m frustrated because everything had been going so well in the Spring, and now I can’t seem to get on track.  My eating is poor, my exercise is erratic.  Things just feel completely out of sorts.

As long a I get in 3 miles total during the day I guess, but still.  I was going to get back to my full plan in October and now I’m dealing with this knee pain that came out of nowhere.  It feels like my body is just working against me.  I’m doing something wrong, but I really don’t know what it is.  I don’t want to overdo it, but how is an hour of exercise overdoing anything.  I feel a bit confused and defeated today.

I need to get some sleep.

[Walk #347, 2.33 miles]

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Stress?  Lack of Sleep?  Not Enough Dogs?

Why, oh why is my VO2 Max score going down?  I honestly don’t get it.  I do have a bit of injury to my knee, and injury can lower the number.  But so can “overtraining.”  3 miles a day is a lot for me recently, but I have trouble believing that it is excessive.  Do I need to cool it?  Do I need to alternate days or do I need to let my knee get better before doing more walks?  These are all good questions and I have no answers.  I need to know a trainer!

I finally got a chance to pay the guy who mowed the other day, and he offered to let me walk his dog for the additional upper body exercise.  He’s not wrong actually, but I don’t really want to burden myself with a dog on my walks.  I know he’s been really busy and doesn’t want to have to stop and do that, but I also feel busy and don’t want to do that.  

I’ve been mush today.  Just absolutely worn out.  I don’t know if there is a reason for it.  My average sleep time is a little low recently.  Maybe I’ll try to force myself to stay in bed.  I tend to just get up for the day if I wake up after 4:00am.  By that point, I’ve usually gotten a full night’s sleep, but I have been getting to sleep a bit later.  I just need a day to completely sleep in and not stress over broken things in my house.

I also haven’t been getting in the reading I want to get in.  I keep stopping and starting.  Stress?  Lack of sleep?  Something is going on.  I just need to chill out and figure out what my problem might be.

[Walk #346, 1.18 miles]

  • Location of Walk: Banner Park, Guthrie, OK
  • Magpie: trumpet vine seedpods

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I Am Not Waiting for the Train!

So, I feel a little bit guilty for so strongly encouraging Justin to walk so far.  Only a little bit though.  It is good for him, even if he doesn’t like doing it.  I need to be nicer about it though and signal him when we are at half a mile, so he can decide if he wants to head back home.  We went up to the train tracks; I intended to go across and under the bridge next to the creamery, but a train not only came through, but stopped.  It would have taken a long time.  We started to hear the train moving again around the time we got back to the house.  I can’t be waiting half an hour for a train.

I started taking glycine yesterday on some recommendations I had seen.  I’m going to do it for a month and see if I notice any results.  I’m pretty skeptical of supplements, so I don’t think I’m likely to attribute just anything to adding glycine.  I also got some more B12 as mine has been missing for a few months.  I misplaced so many things during the move!

Hopefully I can get the rest of my walk in, but I’m going to take it easy until then.  I really want this knee to stop hurting.  I will say it does feel better today, but not ideal.  Even with the naproxen I took, there is a twinge of pain.  

[Walk #345, 2.18 miles]

  • Location of Walk: home to train station & back, Guthrie, OK
  • Magpie: black walnut

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Hot Water & Cat Warriors

It’s so nice to shower in warm water after a few days of not having access.  The hot water tank is in.  Now what will break next!?  I don’t actually mind a cold shower, but a hot one is so amazing after a few cold ones.

I finished my walk.  My knee is feeling better.  I’ll keep wearing a brace.  I don’t need a full on injury.  All in all, I feel accomplished in spite of my lack of accomplishments.  I guess I did get in my exercise for the day, and that’s not nothing.

Last night, as I returned from downtown Banner Park was host to a group of cats.  I didn’t think anything of it, but this morning there was a copy of a Warriors book sitting on one of the park benches.  Since it was still there this afternoon, I brought it home as my collected object.

I think I’ve decided to put the collected objects in the hollow part of the elm tree.  Whatever happens to them, happens.  Maybe I’ll document them like the important specimens they are first.  I’m not sure.  

[Walk #344, 1.53 miles]

  • Location of Walk: Banner Park, Guthrie, OK
  • Magpie: paperback copy of Warriors #5: A Dangerous Path by Erin Hunter

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Any Personal Trainers Walking By?

What is wrong with me!?

I was expecting the plumber this morning, so I sort of hung out here at the house instead of going for a walk first thing.  Recently, there has been a guy staying in a house at the next intersection, cleaning up the yard.  I’ve been intrigued by him, but I don’t know what is drawing me to him.  There’s nothing I need to know, but I find myself avoiding staring at him as I walk by.  I feel like I’m being a little creepy, but I don’t think I mean to be.

This morning I was enjoying my coffee and social media outside when that man walked by with his dog, and on seeing my overgrown lawn offered to mow it for $10.  That’s far too little, but I agreed.  He returned after taking his dog home and did an excellent job; I really appreciated it.  He strikes me as a decent person who is going through some stuff.  I doubt we would agree on much about life, but he’s clearly just trying to get through it honestly (maybe only just now), and I liked his whole attitude.  

Whatever draw he’s had might have subsided.  He rarely wears a shirt, and I’ve been afraid he’ll think I’m being lecherous.  I’m really not; I don’ think so anyway.  

After he mowed, I went for half of my daily walk.  No plumber yet!  I am not that bothered by the wait; I have other things to do.  And I wanted to split my walk up anyway because of the pain in my knee.  It’s a little better after sleeping with he brace on, but I just need to remember to use it during my walk as well.  

Now, if a man could walk by and offer personal training help…and then if a man could walk by who is interested in me…

[Walk #343, 1.54 miles]

  • Location of Walk: Banner Park, Guthrie, OK
  • Magpie: elm twigs

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Refreshed, Reset, Ready to Go

I’m feeling good today, is spite of the unexpected expenses.  Life happens and there’s not a lot that can be done about it!  The plumber came a day early & they are bringing a new hot water tank tomorrow morning.  There’s a relief to that, especially since I have a home warranty for the first year.  This little hiccup was expensive, and left me with no flooring in two rooms, but that’s okay.  There are bigger problems in the world.  

My knee continues to hurt a little.  I should be wearing a brace until it feels normal again, but I have no clue where mine is.  I hate to just buy another one, but I think that’s where we are!  

Probably because my knee was hurting, but I found it disappointing that to downtown and back is about a quarter mile short of three miles.  That means I have to add tangents to make up for it, so I probably need to do that going.  After the second mile, all I want to do is get home.  I think when I get to the point where I can do two miles to downtown and then stop for shopping or coffee or whatever before returning, things will feel less daunting on the walk back.  Or maybe when the knee is not hurting.  Otherwise, my breathing is good.  My pace could be better, but I feel good on the walk.  It’s a nicer walk  overall than rural Glencoe was.  I do have things I love about those rural walks, but I think this one is just slightly better.  There’s greater opportunity for variation certainly.  One thing I might try is just going until I reach 1.5 miles and see where that is.  That would at least give me a walk I could do that would guarantee I meet my 3 mile goal.

[Walk #342, 3.13 miles]

  • Location of Walk: home to downtown, Guthrie, OK
  • Magpie: cypress cones

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Fievel Goes West

Life happens.  It’s useless to stay upset about it.  The hot water tank needs to be replaced; I’ve got a call in with my home warranty, so it’s going to be in their hands.  Meanwhile, the flooding, as little as it was, got under the flooring and since I don’t really know what the nature of my subfloor is, I felt like I had no choice but to pay for mitigation.  The wall between the laundry room and hallway got the worst of it, and it’ll dry in time.  They removed the baseboards and have fans on it.  They ripped up the flooring on either side because there was no way for the vinyl floor to dry out, and nobody knew what was underneath.  Concrete!  It would probably have been okay, drying really slowly.  But it likely would have dried.  I feel like I wasted $1700, but I am also happy that I won’t end up with any mold issues.  There is some value in peace of mind.  I’m going to have to live without flooring in those two spaces until I figure out what kind to go with.  I really do want rolled vinyl, but the water tank needs to drain properly!  

My walk was interrupted earlier, so I went downtown this evening to finish my miles.  There was a big screen where Fievel Goes West was playing, which I thought was fun.  I like how alive downtown feels here.  There are too many vacancies, but it seems like it is holding on.  I hope that continues.  

Cold showers for now.  That is a problem with Justin’s eye issue.  He really needs to stay on top of cleanliness.  Big fans (loud!) are on until Sunday.  Plumber comes Thursday for the hot water tank.  Hopefully they can get a new one quickly.  While I’m annoyed that it went out, it is fortunate that it went out within the year that I have this warranty.  

[Walk #341, 2.54 miles]

  • Location of Walk: home to downtown, Guthrie, OK
  • Magpie: magnolia leaf

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