• My knee has been killing me lately so I’ve been limiting my running and sticking to the bike or elliptical. On the latter I always worry that I’m not getting a good enough workout so I’ve been doing lots of great intervals. My favorite this week has been alternating between a crossramp of 4 and resistance of 3 at 190 strides per minute (almost a sprint) and a crossramp of 16 and resistance of 5 at 160 strides per minute (still an uphill battle!). I end the workout sweaty and with every part of my legs tired. Though it can’t replace running, I’m glad I can still get in some similar movements and keep my legs in shape. 
    Jan
    27
    2012

  • This morning was absolutely gorgeous so I was really looking forward to a bridge run. Both knees have not been loving me lately so the run was a bit of a challenge. I decided to mix it up with some light intervals which at least kept things interesting. I didn’t have time to strength train today but this run was a reminder that I’ve got to get back to doing the moves Maura taught me to strengthen my legs and help support my knees. 
    May
    28
    2011

  • PT day 1 - happy camper

    I went to PT today for the first time. The PT office is right down the hall from the orthopedic doctor I went to, so it was very convenient. The therapist’s name is Oscar and he is fantastic. So intelligent and so nice. He has run a few marathons so I felt even more confident listening to his advice. After we talked for a bit, he felt around my knees. As my cousin Maura guessed, it was actually my IT band that was causing the problem. A strain of the tendon had caused my kneecap to move slightly out of place, which was causing the pain. He assured me that with some stretching I would be fine to run the marathon. I’m sure my grin was from here to New Jersey I was so excited to hear that.

    Once he determined the problem, he got down to business. I sat with a heated blanket over my knees for ten minutes to warm them up. Then he did 5 minutes of a heated ultrasound on my left knee. Apparently this sent heat internally, but I wasn’t supposed to feel it on the outside. It didn’t start to hurt until just before he was done, so I was relieved when it was over. After that he massaged the IT band around my knee. It hurt, but felt amazing afterward. He showed me how I should ice after running, about which I’ll probably post on Saturday. Then he got down on the floor and showed me how I should stretch my IT band on a roller. They have one at the gym I can use, but since I’m moving tomorrow and am canceling that membership, I may just buy one to keep at home. After that he taped my kneecap into place and we scheduled a few more appointments. The PT office was incredibly kind and made sure to tell me that because my co-pay is pretty high I should feel free to not attend every session if it’s too difficult. I told them I would think about it. I will hopefully do at least two more sessions before the marathon, maybe one more and one after, we’ll see how things go. Either way, I left the office in a little less pain and with infinitely less weight on my shoulders!

    Oct
    22
    2010
  • Today I went to the orthopedic doctor to have him take a look at my knee. They did x-rays and checked out my movement. Thankfully the doc said the x-rays were clean so nothing major. He prescribed some PT which I will start Friday. I breathed a big sigh of relief. The doc did say something that threw me off a bit, he said, “and either you’ll be able to run the marathon or you won’t.” Just like matter of fact, as though he said “either you’ll have pizza for lunch or you won’t.” It was bizarre. It got me thinking about how once I started training for this, there was no doubt in my mind I could do it. Everyone says our generation is jaded in that they think they can do anything they want. They always spin it to the negative, whereas, in my experience, my peers have taken this notion and actually taken on seemingly impossible goals. They take the steps, make the sacrifices and work hard to make them happen. I have countless friends who have run marathons, biked cross-state, climbed mountains. Friends who have quit their jobs to pursue their dreams, started their own companies and created non-profits. We are the generation who was told we could do whatever we want and because of our perseverance, that’s what we’ll do.

    Today I went to the orthopedic doctor to have him take a look at my knee. They did x-rays and checked out my movement. Thankfully the doc said the x-rays were clean so nothing major. He prescribed some PT which I will start Friday. I breathed a big sigh of relief.

    The doc did say something that threw me off a bit, he said, “and either you’ll be able to run the marathon or you won’t.” Just like matter of fact, as though he said “either you’ll have pizza for lunch or you won’t.” It was bizarre. It got me thinking about how once I started training for this, there was no doubt in my mind I could do it. Everyone says our generation is jaded in that they think they can do anything they want. They always spin it to the negative, whereas, in my experience, my peers have taken this notion and actually taken on seemingly impossible goals. They take the steps, make the sacrifices and work hard to make them happen. I have countless friends who have run marathons, biked cross-state, climbed mountains. Friends who have quit their jobs to pursue their dreams, started their own companies and created non-profits. We are the generation who was told we could do whatever we want and because of our perseverance, that’s what we’ll do.
    Oct
    21
    2010

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run cahill run

This blog served as my day-to-day training record for the New York City Marathon with a little bit about how I have fun in the city. I finished my first marathon in 4:17:48 and had the time of my life. I also raised over $2000 for Camp Casey. Post marathon this blog will follow just some of my continued healthy endeavors and races and will provide me with a place to record great running articles, quotes or facts I read. Enjoy!
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