I'm Ready To Administer Justice in Australia

The saga of my sprained ankle hasn't improved much.  I've been going to physiotherapy for the past 2 weeks, but my progress has been slow.  So with the recommendation of my therapist, I now have fancy new footwear.

If I don't look down, I can imagine myself looking like this when walking around:

So much rest is prescribed for my recovery.  Which I promptly threw out the window tonight by deciding it would be ok to try a nice and easy bike ride.  The first push of the pedal showed me the error of my ways and probably set back the healing process by at least a week... or at least that's what the "pop" I felt tells me.

This will not be the Summer of Matt.

Back To The Couch

Here's a riddle: What goes "pop" and shouldn't feel like that?

Answer: My Achilles tendon!

Last night, not even halfway into my first Ultimate Frisbee game of the year (and of ever, for that matter), while starting to run, I hear a loud (to me) pop and a feeling like something hitting me in the back of my foot/leg. I look back, but nothing's there. What is there is a growing pain and an inability to walk. I had to be helped off the field, got it wrapped up and iced and lay there trying not to be too uncomfortable. I went into the walk-in clinic (or should I say hobble-in clinic) today and luckily it doesn't look like my tendon is actually separated. Just a nasty sprain. Anti-inflammatories and ice packs for all!

I had even gotten back into doing 5k a few times a week, but that's on hold for now.

Moral of the story: Stuff can happen when you get off the couch.

Off The Couch

Sometime around May, I found a rare nugget of motivation and decided that enough was enough... I was going to get some exercise. I had come across a running program called "Couch to 5k" and it looked like just the thing for me.  The last couple summers, I've dabbled in jogging, but I never got that far, because I lacked a real goal, or direction... and it was really, really hard.  But this program starts you off with only 60 seconds of running with 90 seconds of walking in between, for a total of 20 minutes.  I totally can do that.

And I did.

The program is supposed to last 9 weeks.  It actually took me 11 weeks, because I had to redo some of the later days.  But I don't mind, because I miraculously stuck with it, and now I'm able to run for 5 km no problem, just under 40 minutes.  It's not blazingly fast, and people running with strollers are going faster than me, but the speed will come on it's own time.

By product of all this is that over the summer, I've dropped almost 20 pounds. Now this is due not only to the exercise, but I've also been eating a bit smarter.  Not Weight Watchers or anything.  Just less fast food (much less), cut out a lot of pop, and chips are the devil.  Also, to be fair, my weight was really out of control and the most it had ever been, even more than when I started WW both of the last 2 times.

Today I ran my fastest time for 5k (36:35) and ran my farthest run (7.25 km in 53:27). I think the cooler weather helps.