Session 4 Begins: Working Through Injury

Enjoying a birthday dinner with my sweet family!

When I signed up for my fourth session of Body Back, I was feeling great!

But, by the end of session 3, my left leg was toast!

I'm not exactly sure what happened. I think it was a combination of six months of 5-6 intense workouts a week without enough stretching, and then ramping up my running too fast.

It felt like a tight IT band was causing my hip and knee pain. It was especially uncomfortable to twist my leg or bend it very far.

After our assessment run last Tuesday, it got really bad. And I don't think our treacherous paddle boarding trip last weekend helped matters.

During the last week, I've tried massage, chiropractic adjustments and acupuncture - which I think provided the most relief. I've also been stretching, using the foam roller and doing yoga.

And I think it's finally getting better!

For the first time tonight I am able to sit cross-legged, which is such a relief because I constantly find myself unconsciously try to pull my leg up and I'd get a sharp shooting pain every time.

I'm surprised how hard it's been to rest and skip workouts. In the past I'd be happy (or at least relieved) to have an excuse not to exercise, but since Body Back, I'm actually sad to miss workouts, or even modify.

I tried to take it easy during today's "rounds" workout, but there was so much energy and excitement in the room it was hard to hold back - it's contagious!

Luckily my leg felt better as the day went on, so I think I found the right balance.

I think this injury was my body's way of telling me to slow down a little and make sure I warm up enough before intense exercise, stretch enough after and take enough rest days.

Going forward I plan to make every effort to get in a yoga class once a week, and my dear friend Kate got me a Groupon to StretchU, and I plan to start going next week.

My goal for this session is to figure out how to maintain my results and find a balance of exercise that I can sustain long term.

I'm so thankful to feel good again and I want to stay this way!

I also really want to learn how to stop the 5 lb weight fluctuation! I gained almost 5 lbs again over the week between sessions... It was my birthday week, but I still thought I could get through it without causing too much damage!

I'm back on the wagon now. And once I get back to my goal weight, I really want to learn how to maintain my weight loss long term.

The journey continues...