Oh January...

First of all - HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!  I have been a real delinquent in the posting department....oops!  I blame it on being too lazy after picking up extra shifts to cover for sick calls!  I have yet to post my annual "year in review" post which will come soon.  I just wanted to post a little update on what I have been up to! ;)  Well, I guess I have really not been up to much.  After the holiday break I am back in the pool and am getting my speed back.  I was out of the pool for almost three weeks due to closures and cancelled practices.  The first week was pretty brutal but I am almost back to my pre-Christmas pre-elbow sprain speed! :)  I have been practicing yoga about 3-4 days a weeks and am loving it.  And that is pretty much it! :(  My poor hammy is still very unhappy.  I had a follow up appointment with the doc last week because there has been little improvement.  My hamstring will hurt just after 15min of walking at the insertion point.  It will also hurt if I am standing for about 25min (I discovered this when I was Christmas cookie baking and standing at a code at work one night).  So with this, and not having run for 3 months now, my good ol' chiro sent me back to the doc.  Up next, an MRI to see what is going on that the US may have missed.  Depending on those results, I may resort to PRP (platelet rich plasma) injections or a higher dose of shockwave therapy.  For now, the doc told me I could try to start running as he doesn't think I am at risk of tearing the hamstring or the tendon.  So aimed with this little bit of good news I went out for a run the very next day!  Ha! That was a bit of a body shocker!  I am so not in run shape!  My plan is 20-30min max and honestly, that was all I could do.  I started my runs at my normal run speed and that lasts for all but 5min!  Then it is all downhill!  I cannot keep my normal run speed and I am hurting.  The first run I was almost ready to puke for the effort I was putting in to try to run at my normal run speed! Lol!  I probably should not be running with my Garmin so I don't get frustrated when I see how pathetically slow I am going.  I really should know better and I really should not be expecting much of myself.  The best was the next day - my muscles felt like I ran a marathon! Haha!  I was quite sore!  The bad news - my hammy hurt just as much as it did back in October! :(  Ok...maybe not as bad but if I kept on running it may have been just as bad.  I walked home on my first run because it became so sore.  This was the most frustrating!  I have put in the time, the therapy, the rehab and it seems like I got no where! :(  At this point, I honestly do not know if I should keep running or not.  I tried again the next day and although my running muscles remembered a little more what to do, my hamstring was still sore.  I may try again to see if it actually hurts more or if it is just the same pain.  I will be smart about this as I have an Ironman planned for this August.  I also really should start on the bike training to see if I can at least maybe become an uber cyclist! ;) Haha!  So that is where I am at now.  Still injured and not much training!