Mile One, Nearing the End

Last evening after work I did something I thought I would never do again, went for a run.  The last time I ran was in 2020, during covid lockdowns which had all gyms closed.  I started periodically running up and down the parking garage at work.  It felt like a challenging workout and a decent way to challenge my cardio during the lockdown.  After one of those runs I developed really bad knee pain in my left knee which is my “good” one.  My right knee has been scoped twice.

Anyway the pain was bad and long lasting, I was walking with a limp for close to two months.  My theory was the incline/decline did me in.  It was after that injury that I swore off running, accepting that the risk/reward at my age was out of whack.  Since then I didn’t have established cardio training I would do other than the cross trainer cardio machines at the gym.  Maybe 6 months or so ago I started road biking once a week to challenge myself again.  Cycling is great no impact cardio although it definitely has an ass pain penalty,  I am not comfortable in the seat for long periods of time.

A week or two ago I was riding one of my EUC’s by the school where I did the majority of my running.  I commented on video that maybe I should give it a go again, just to see how it felt.  So I picked last night as the time to do that test.  I only wanted to run a mile, it made no sense to try to crush myself the first time back in a year and a half.  I just wanted to see if I could survive it, no speed tracking was utilized.

The first couple laps always used to be uncomfortable and they still were, to an even larger degree.  It felt like my body was saying, “WTF, we don’t do this anymore for a reason”  I just kept moving forward at my slow and steady pace.  Even with the discomfort, it felt good to be out there running, pushing myself to do the hard thing.  I completed the four laps and even tried to “sprint” to the finish.  My sprint was really just using longer strides, I don’t think my foot cadence improved much.  Even though it was only a mile, I felt a sense of accomplishment.

I had a funny moment after the run.  I was stretching on one of the parking lot islands as I always did.  When I came out of the hamstring stretch I guess I winced.  A teacher was walking out to her car and evidently saw me.  She asked with concern if I was ok, I must have not looked that way.  I told her I was fine, it was just post run aches and pains.  She followed letting me know if I needed any help there was a deputy near by.  I thanked her but assured her I was ok.  Man, I must have looked like I was having a grabber.

So even though the run was only a mile I was breathing much harder than I ever do while cycling 10 miles.  When I cycle my average heart rate is normally somewhere around 140.  When I run that number jumps up to the 160 area.  Those additional 20 HB’s a minute make a big difference with my perceived exertion level.

I was glad to have survived the run and I still feel human today.  I have lower body soreness which will probably be worse tomorrow but all in all I don’t feel awful, which is good news.  I have a loose goal of trying to do a 5K at the beginning of March.  I would like to do a weekly run AND road biking session if I can pull it off.  I have a small fire in my gut that is starting to gain fuel.

It looks like I may be losing another chicken, soon.  Cutie has been lethargic the last few days.  She has been mobility limited for well over a year. Walking has been painful for her and I have always tried to assist whenever possible, moving her around the yard to her hang out spots when it seemed to me like she wanted to go there as well as putting her on the perch every night.  She had fallen off the perch over night over the weekend which concerned me.

However the last two days she started doing something that is a pretty tell tale sign she is dying based on my past experiences with the birds.  She started tucking her head under her wing.  I have had multiple hens do that when they started acting sick and every one of them died.  This morning I set her up in the run in a nesting box with food and water right next to her.  When I get home tonight I am pretty sure she will have passed on.

I was already crying saying goodbye to her this morning.  Tonight will be even more miserable.  She is one of my favorite hens we have ever had.  She knows her name and we have bonded from the hundred of chicken Uber rides I have given her.  I am really tired of loss…..