It is so strange not taking classes anymore…now that I am done with my MBA I have some free time on my hands. It will be my first full week at work without any classes. What do people do with their free time?! I have already made a list of hobbies and things I want to do so I can keep occupied. It is nice though to have some more flexible time in my schedule though…especially for working out.
I set my alarm for 4:30 AM before I went to bed last night and quickly realized – wait I can sleep in and just go go to the gym after work. It was fantastic. Especially having a few days off from the New Year, I needed to gradually get back into the groove and needed a little more sleep.
So I headed to the gym after work. I went on the Cybex Arc Trainer for about 45 minutes. I set the incline to 7 and resistance to about 30. My pace was pretty quick and I made sure my arms flowed like they would if I were running. I broke a sweat quickly and burned about 700 calories. I looked at the time and wouldn’t let myself leave the gym until I stretched and used the foam roller for a good 20 minutes. It is extremely challenging for me to dedicate time to stretching (since I have never been so good at it) so I sort of have to force myself to do it. I know this probably contributes to some of my injuries/pain. I promise to dedicate more time to this now in my training.
My ankle/foot feels a ton better compared to Sunday. I can stand on it comfortably and don’t feel a sharp pain up my leg. I wore flats today at work with the Dr. Scholls inserts in them. These helped a lot. However, I know while the pain isn’t as apparent, it is still there. I jogged in the gym from the machine back to the locker room because I left my water in my locker…yikes, felt some of the pain again. I think it is best to take it easy the next two weeks. When I told my dad about it a couple days ago, he suggested when I get back into running to start off 2-3 miles instead of longer runs. My body needs to gradually get back into it after an injury. Luckily I have some more free time to dedicate to recovery, stretching, and cross-training.
