Thursday, March 31, 2011

Three Things Thursday - Paint, injections, and exercise plans

Preface: As anyone who's ever been benched due to injury or illness knows, it's hard to blog or read blogs when benched. I'm trying to find topics that might be vaguely interesting and avoid getting trapped in the "woe is me" space. Please bear with me as my blogging and commenting may be sporadic for another month or so.

1) Last weekend I painted the kitchen. This is something I started, then stopped almost 5 years ago. During that time, the color that I picked out no longer was available at the place I buy paint. So I had to choose another color. It's all done except for some touch ups and a small area on one wall that I will take care of on Friday. Next on my list is the great room. I've been struggling with color selection for that one. I think I'm going to get some color samples to paint onto the wall to help make the final selections in there. The little swatch cards just aren't big enough. Anyway, it's a big room with some complicated surfaces (adobe bricks and lots of wood detail) so I hope I don't stop mid-project for five years again.

2) Yesterday I received my second injection for my left knee. Apparently I didn't look so good when he came into the room because he asked what was wrong. Last time, the injection really hurt (not the needle so much, but the pressure in the joint from the gel). He quickly said "Let's try it with numbing medication this time." This involved an injection of numbing medication immediately preceding the HA injection. MUCH BETTER. I think I will ask for numbing next week as well. Right now I'm icing my knee. I think it should be good enough to finally be able t get out for a walk tomorrow.

3) I have been reading A LOT about arthrosis of the knee aka osteoarthritis aka degenerative joint disease. One of the things that strikes me is that when it comes to exercise, the experts recommend "short and frequent" stressing the importance of finding the right balance between rest and exercise. What strikes me most about this, is that I have been approaching running in a "longer and less frequent" manner. When my knee is run-ready again, I just might try something on the order of 5 days per week with runs in the 2-3 mile range (long runs maybe 5-6) at first and see how that goes. I had been running 3 days per week with runs in the 4-6 mile range (long runs 6-9). If more frequent shorter runs works better for me, I may also need to change my focus to 5Ks and 10Ks instead of half-marathons.

12 comments:

  1. Glad you were able to get something to manage the pain this time around!

    Keep reading! The more you learn, the better.

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  2. Ouch, that sounds painful. I hope you can get out there soon. Painting...I love DIY paining jobs at home! This winter we are emptying and painting the pool.

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  3. I'm laughing about the paint...the paint in my bathroom might still exist, but the store I bought it from doesn't.

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  4. My mom has degenerative joint disease, I really hope you dont have it

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  5. Chin up...I'll keep reading no matter what.
    I hate picking out paint...I am the worst at it.

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  6. yes! keep trying new things. that makes it fun :-) don't worry about material for your blog. We love to hear whatever pops into your mind...

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  7. Stay positive!

    And good luck with that painting - what a chore that is!!

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  8. I know what you mean in the "preface." I'm not injured, but because I'm not running right now, it's been tough feeling committed to blogging.

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  9. Good luck with your running. Glad the shot didn't hurt so much this time.

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  10. Choosing paint color might be just about the most stressful thing ever! I just want to hire someone to come in, choose the color, paint it, and make it look nice. I have no eye for color at all. (This is why all of my walls are a neutral cafe' color except the one room where a contractor suggested green...which I would have NEVER picked on my own)...

    Oh Lisa...I am so sorry about your knee. I hope it gets OK soon. I've been thinking the same thing lately (I seem to be OK, so long as I run less than 5 or 6 miles...anything longer than that and I get hurt). It sucks...I like the longer distances, but I fear that there may not be many more in my future.

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  11. Your painting "progress" sounds a lot like mine. It's just not as fun as it looks on HGTV!

    Happy healthy thoughts to your knee!

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  12. This is why I never paint as much as I always want to when I move into a place....

    I'm really sorry about the injury and you being benched. I wish there was something I could say or do to make it better.

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