Posts Tagged pain
Cramps – why???
Posted by Adam Ainbinder in Ironman Training on May 30, 2009
Today I ran a little over 12 miles. Like the half marathon I ran about a month ago and the 10 miler I did the next weekend, I got a bad stomach cramp. This is the kind of cramp that makes you run bent over so you minimize the pain (think grandma), which of course ends up causing back pain and stiffness. I try to avoid walking, but sometimes, I just can’t help it.
I believe I get these cramps for 3 reasons
- Bad dieting (read stomach problems)
- Dehydration
- Pushing too hard
I think each one of these runs was the result of one of the problems above. In my half marathon, I went to the bathroom four, yes FOUR, times before the race. Pre-race jitters, plus I want to make sure I don’t have to go on the run. I’m sure for all those runners reading this out there, you’ve encountered the stomach bubbles/pounding that resulted in a sprint into the bushes or to the nearest gas station.
Having gone to the bathroom four times, I didn’t rehydrate myself enough to make up for it. Surprisingly, #2 bathroom trips do dehydrate you. Without the water, I started cramping around mile 5 and just ran through the pain till the end of the race. If only I had a few more cups of water…
The week after, I was feeling pretty good having taken the entire week off and coming off breaking 100 minutes in the half, so I pushed myself too hard. I was doing 7:20 miles for 10 miles, and around mile 8, the pain was unbearable. As I slowed it down, the pain eventually subsided.
Today was diet. Last night we had our final MBA banquet to celebrate our accomplishments, and I had some pretty greasy food, cheescake, and a bunch of different alcoholic drinks (whiskey, beer, wine – in that order – not good). Despite drinking water all morning, my body was not meant to run. Around mile 7, the cramp began.
When I get cramps, I’ve tried a few things. First, I slow my pace down about 10%. That usually keeps the pain constant. At that point, i pound water, if possible. Sometimes that makes the pain worse, but sometimes it makes it better within minutes. I’ve found the best remedy though is to pound water and walk for 30 seconds to a minute. This gives you enough time to walk off the pain without killing your time. The water usually helps the cramp (or stomach issue).
If you of course have the stomach issues resulting from bad diet, sometimes the bushes are the best solution. Fortunately, I’ve always been near a gas station when this has happened.
Tomorrow I’m hoping to do a 50-60 mile ride to Long Beach. This has been a step back week where I’ve cut my mileage to about 25 miles running. Next week, Ill ramp it back up.
living with loss
Posted by Adam Ainbinder in Life on March 5, 2009
This week has been rough. I sat in line at the family court house on Wednesday to file my divorce papers. I can honestly say I haven’t felt that bad in a long time. I don’t know if anyone else out there feels this way, but as I was sitting and waiting for my number to be called, my heart pounded, I had high anxiety, and I felt pain and sadness, but I could not let it out. In this moment, I had to bear with it. It felt like I was squealing in my chair, trapped with no choice but to wait for C-323 to be called. For this is CA, and this is now a court house I’m dealing with to end my marriage.
How messed up is that? I submit my paper work to the clerk, she stamps a bunch of things, asked me for my $350, and the end of my marriage BEGINS. In six months and one day, it will be over. Seriously CA, can you make this any shittier?
So that made this week rough. But like a lot of this pain, each day seems to get better. When this started, it seemed like an hour of pain for an hour of joy (or better, no pain). Later on, it was 2-3 hours of joy for each hour of pain. Now 6-7 hours. So time does heal wounds. The one thing I’ve learned though is when you hit those times of pain, it really hits hard. It hits as hard as the first time, and it doesn’t seem to get easier. I hope with time, this too will dull.
But what’s the best way to deal with that? At the onset of that feeling tonight, I decided to watch Eagle Eye on Blu-Ray. Not the best movie, but it kept me entertained for a good two hours. Then the movie ends, the pain returns. It doesn’t make sense! How can that distraction be literally a temporary gap for a feeling of pain, only to have it return when it ends.
It made me realize that avoidance isn’t a cure. Maybe avoidance buys you team so the heart can heal faster. Maybe avoidance is the fast forward button in life. But is it? Will the heart heal if you avoid? Or will it just hit you one day when the feeling of loss becomes real again? Maybe a different type of loss? A death? A move away?
I’ve heard from several people that a divorce is like a death. A death of us. A death of the future. Is it also a rebirth of individuality? Of me? Timothy Hsu made a great comment to my we vs. I post when he said “Studies show that divorce exacts a greater and longer-lasting emotional and physical toll than virtually any other life stress, including widowhood.” If this is a death, how do you move on? How do you keep a friendship when it is a death of us? Can the relationship and friendship be separated, and you think of the death of the relationship, but not the friendship?
Life is confusing. I don’t know what the next few weeks will bring, but despite these low moments of pain, I feel like there are good moments ahead. I look forward to each. I leave you with two quotes. For me, they help me get through the day.
“We must embrace pain and burn it as fuel for our journey.”
Kenji Miyazawa
“When you are sorrowful look again in your heart, and you shall see that in truth you are weeping for that which has been your delight.”
Kahlil Gibran
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