Monday, March 12, 2012

And I said that I would never get….

A tattoo and now I have three—well three tattoo dots…. These are markers for radiation, which I start this Thursday.
I am four weeks out of surgery—the recovery has gone much slower than I expected and I think that it is due to the two surgeries in one day and the loss of blood. I have found myself much more tired than usual (the doc said I am anemic) and am wiped out after workouts. From this I have learned that I need to get my workouts done early in the day. If I wait too long, I am just too tired and very unmotivated. Last week was a solid week with three swims, two long bikes (2.5 and 3.0 hours), three runs (with the “long” run at an hour) and a couple of strength sessions.
I am 8 weeks out of St. Croix and 21 weeks out of the IM…. I am focusing now on building back my base and building back some strength. I have lost about 5 pounds over the past month or so—good for running, but not so good on the bike as I am very “weak” on the hills. I rode last week with a group of five guys and just could not hold on---very frustrating as I am not used to having people wait for me (they were nice and did). I keep telling myself what I would tell my athletes, “be patient, it takes time and you will get your fitness back.”
So, I am plugging along, slowly increasing frequency and duration each week—I will keep St. Croix in perspective, looking at it as a workout, not a race and just enjoy being out there. I have two clients attending and it will be good to be there to support them. Spring is here in NC and my kids are home for spring break—life is good!
Enjoy,
Karen

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Hi Karen I just want you to know I'm thinking of you and your mom. It sounds like you have an early stage bc which is so much better since you don't have to endure chemo. I just finished radiation last week and only have targeted chemo every 3 weeks til October which has very mild side effects to the chemo I was on prior to radiation. Sorry I haven't responded back earlier. I lost my bookmark on my iPad of our blog. Glad you are doing well. Are you still coaching at Ridgewwod. Allison will be a senior next year. She is coaching for a summer swim team close by. We still miss our Ridewood days.