I got a new tattoo on my ankle on Friday last week. I'm very excited about it. It hurt like hell. You always forget how much is actually hurts but the pain goes away fairly quickly so I can live through 45 minutes. It is beautiful and I'm very happy with it.
Wait let me backtrack since I haven't written here in a while. About a year ago I wrote that I had started working out again. I didn't go into much detail and I haven't because I've been afraid that if I started writing about it then I would stop and I'd be a failure all over again. But for the most part I've stuck with it over this year. The last six months of 2015 I mostly stuck to my same old routine, indoor video workouts and that was fine. I lost a little weight and was feeling healthy and better about my body. But Christmas came and the same thing that always happens happened. I stopped. For about 6 weeks, I didn't do much of anything. I think I had gotten bored with the same old. But about mid-January I thought alright, let's do this again and after much discussion decided to do the Couch to 5K program. There were some logistics to work out but I started with just walking outside. I like to work up to things. I did that for a few weeks until I started to get antsy to start running and then I thought What the hell and started the program. I was trying to wait out until I was back from vacation but when it's time, it's time. Truth is it was brutal at first. But my husband was a cross country track star in high school and he gave me some pointers and I figured out my breathing was all wrong and had a lot to do with why I hated running so much. So I stuck with it and finished it which is really one of the prouder moments of my life. We did a "fun run" around my birthday and that really was fun and we are planning on a few more 5ks. Because, oh yeah, my running inspired my husband to get back to it! The amount of time we spend talking about running in my house is ridiculous. I'm pretty sure most people would be bored by our conversations. I digress. So the point is that I'm a runner now. I'm working my way up to a half marathon but am now running an 8k training program to move onto a 10k program to move on to a 13.1 program.
Back to the tattoo. Super excited, showing it off to family and friends and, as I'm talking to one of them and he mentions going to the gym, it dawns on me. I can't run with this while it's healing. Fuck. Not only that I can't do much of any outdoor activities or things that will make me sweat. Fuck fuck. Why it didn't occur to me before I'll never know. I knew no swimming. It's why I waited until after a trip to the beach to get it. But no bike riding. Part of running training is cross training, swimming/biking/etc. So all my cross training in the outdoors for what a Google search told me was at least 5 to 7 days was a no go. Fuck fuck fuck. I'm not going to mess up something permanently inked into my body in
pursuit of something that honestly can hold off for a bit. I thought okay well I'll spend the week hitting my weaker areas like yoga and Pilates and do some exercise videos. But other than Sunday when I actually did Pilates I haven't been doing a good job. Somehow I can get up before dawn to run but can't make myself get up for yoga. Is a week off going to kill me? No. I feel lazy but other than that I'll be fine. Part of me worries that I'll never go back. But that part is stupid and should shut up. I really love running. I'm not the best but I'm getting better. I have a goal and a plan and I don't want to give it up. So I won't. Maybe a week without running will make me stronger. I guess we'll see the next time I get to lace up.
