Foam Roller Triumphs
Heyyy 😀 It’s almost Friday! Thank goodness, no?
B-fast this morning was two parts…
One (before yoga):
(Banana with almond butter, mesquite and cinnamon)
Then I went up to the yoga room which was heated to 90* to see what I could do with my post half mary knee situation.
I put in this DVD:
But kept getting distracted by this guy staring me down:
The foam roller.
Shiva lost the battle. I turned the DVD off within 20 minutes because I couldn’t do a lot of the poses comfortably and instead rolled around on the foam roller. It felt extremely bueno and now I’m icing the ol’ knee.
Not gonna lie to you guys, the knee situation is seriously bumming me out. The weather has been GORGEOUS lately (perfect dog-walking and running weather. Thank goodness it’s pouring today so I don’t feel like I’m missing out) and when I couldn’t teach Zumba last night, it made me sad. Even after Pilates (which I could only do about half of), I really wanted to grab a magazine and chill on the elliptical. When I don’t get my sweat on for the day, I’m antsy and kinda cranky. Poor pilot 😉
The thing is, I’m making myself take my own advice. So many of ya’ll have sent me emails about dealing with injuries, and I don’t have a lot of experience with them –last time I was injured was when I tore my ACL freshman year of college in dance (doing 16 fouettes and then landing in the splits). I was foolish and kept dancing the rest of the year and even did recital knowing that I could seriously hurt myself.
I always tell you guys to REST. Take time off and let your body heal, so that you can recover and get back in the game more quickly. The more you tear you body down, the longer it will take to heal and the longer you’ll miss out on the active things you love.
Sometimes it’s hard to take your own advice. I’m working on it, but it’s not fun. So today, instead of going for a run, I’m getting a massage on my leg and IT band. Hopefully it will help the ol’ leggie and knee out.
*speech ovah*
After my foam rolling sesh, I had the second half of bfast:
Blueberry oats (oat bran with organic blueberrries, cinnamon and vanilla)
And a 3 egg white puff with nutritional yeast and cayenne:
With a vitamin:
I’m off to work for a little while, having a conference call, then it’s massahhhhhhhge time 🙂
xoxo,
G$
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I could foam roll for hours…pleasure + pain! I love doing it on my upper back – just rolls all the knots right out.
I’m great at doling out advice but when it comes to following my own? Yikes! I need to be better at practicing what I preach….including using my foam roller!!! That thing makes me cry, literally. I have tears streaming down my face when I use it. IT Band SIZZZZLE!
girl, i understand the knee frustration…i’m in the same sort of battle. i’ve found that taking the time to stretch it and nurture it definitely makes my other workouts better too. i can get more done when my knee isn’t screaming at me…it’s so hard to take your own advice sometimes!
Good for you Gina 🙂 Have an awesome massage. I need one of those right about yesterday!!!
Hang in there Gina! Good luck with the massage – IT Band work is NO FUN but soooooo helpful! I’ve written myself into one of our practitioner’s books for next week for similar work. Ouchie!
Not sure if anyone else has suggested it – but you could try some Traumeel. Both orally and as the gel or cream you apply topically. It can be found at most health food stores and the brand is “Heel” (Heelusa.com if you wanna check it out). It’s homeopathic, and the liquid drops/topical cream combo have gotten myself and my boyfriend through injuries as bad as cracked ribs before. I keep a bottle of it in my car, in my bedroom, my bath, even my work place. Crazy I know.
Sometimes, acupuncturists also use sterile preparations of Heel products in a procedure called “biopuncture’ which sounds creepy but is awesome. They will do their acupuncture magic, then inject some of the Traumeel or arnica etc directly into the area that is damaged. Gets it to the source.
Best of luck to you and congrats on taking your own advice! <3 to you!
good to know- thank you!!
Hey Gina,
I know it’s hard recovering from an injury or recouping after a race. I think that it’s awesome that you are recognizing the need to take time to properly heal. Looking at it from the perspective of an outsider, I think that you should consider how active your day to day life is. Maybe your next race should be shorter than a 1/2 marathon, and possibly less taxing on your body. That way you can recover more quickly and get back to doin’ what you do so well. You are so awesome for always pushing yourself! Keep up the good work!
I love the foam roller! I always roll myself out before Pilates and I love how it opens up the hips (you know, around the time it stops hurting). I need to invest in one, stat. Do you have any brand recommendations?
Hope you feel better! Your breakfast looks delish!
Ahh I know how hard it is to take your own advice especially when it comes to working out. I know its super frustrating to take long breaks to heal but in the end you’ll be better off! Hope your massage is helpful!
Hah – I’m back. I just realized that your title “Foam Roller Triumphs” reminded me of a Spaceballs line “Evil always triumphs over Good, because good is dumb.” and now I’m cackling like a gaggle of teenage girls. Had to share. 😛 Yes – I am a geek.
Never thought of putting cinnamon on my Banana & PB, need to try that asap.
Hope the massage helps!!
I really loved this post! Thanks for sharing your feelings about taking time off to let your body heal. I see that advice all over the place but it is so awesome to actually see someone who does take their own advice, like you said. There are so many places to get inspiration to eat right and exercise but I love your blog because you also inspire me to just treat my body right, period. Thank you!
Enjoy the massage! You are doing all the right things. I love foam rolling, but (and this is embarrassing to admit) my arms get tired from holding myself in the right position! I wish there was an easier way. also, my sweatpants slide all around sometimes. any tips?
I hope your knee feels better! Have you ever heard of the stick(http://www.thestick.com/)? When I was in physical therapy for IT band pain they used it on me. I ended up buying it at a local running store. It works like the foam roller but you can have someone else use it on you (I had my husband do it since he is stronger than I am) or you can use it on yourself. It hurts (like the foam roller) but then when you’re done you leg/knee feels a lot better! Hope your masdsage goes well! 🙂
I totally understand. I’ve been dealing with knee pain for years. (Not the kind of expert you want to be.) Foam rolling tight IT bands really helps knee pain as does stretching tight hamstrings. I really hope this injury is just a blip for you!
Ah, IT band issues are the worst. I have been struggling through mine since January, and I keep just wanting to run through the pain, which is idiotic. So frustrating to know there is nothing you can do except rest and wait.
I really don’t have any experience with injuries either, but am battling an achy knee right now – though I don’t think close to how yours is feeling. As you know, probably resting it is the best thing, but rest is tough, isn’t it?
I hope your knee feels better soon. I’m training for an 8K (8 days away) and my knees are both bothering me. Plus I keep straining my back form not doing enough stretching. 🙁 I’m getting a massage tomorrow to help losen up my back since I”m also supposed to do a 5K on Saturday.
Good job on resting! I’m in the same boat– my back pain has kept me from running for almost two weeks! Torture!!!!! But you know what? I finally feel better, and feel like I can get right back on track. Totally worth it!
Blueberry oats sound delightful! 😀
Glad your taking your own advice and taking it easy. Hope you feel better soon. The bromelain in pineapple and curcumin are great for inflammation.
BTW- I went to my first zumba class last night and it was so much fun! I used to dance too and I loved it!
I’m dealing with the same sitch right now, G. Right now I’m prescribing myself rest, lots of ITB rolling (hurts so much but I know it’s good for me) and giving myself a break. I’m sorry you’re going through this. But hey, at least you got to run the race first!
I completely related to your “injury blues!” My normal cardio routines feel so good and keep me in-check and I haven’t been able to workout for 2 weeks now. I developed a stress fracture in the ball of my foot and after re-aggravating the injury, am on a strict RICE treatment – to the point where I’m working from home so that I can make sure to let this injury heal sooner rather than later.
My activity level has plummeted but I’m trying to remind myself that 1) my body probably needed some rest, 2) if this fracture doesn’t heal properly now, I’ll be really sorry for many, many years to come, and 3) I’m not going to gain a ton of weight or lose a tremendous amount of muscle mass in a month. I can and will recover from this injury!
I hope your knee feels better soon. Thanks for the reminders to rest – it’s tough but is sometimes the best medicine 🙂
Sometimes taking your own advice is one of the hardest things to do! I bet the massage will help and you will be back in action before you know it 😉
isnt telling others the right thing to do infinitely easier than convincing ourselves? glad you’re being inteligente and listening to your bod. ooh, and getting a massage? that’s pretty sweet icing on the cake 🙂
Resting is SO hard when you LOVE to be active all the time. But our bodies need to be listened to. And it sounds like yours is saying “REST ME UNTIL I’M COMFY AGAIN!” Glad to hear that you’re taking your body’s advice, much to your discretion. Love you Gina! You can do this. [:
hope you recover soon, so glad you are being smart and taking the time to rest & heal! i thought i was going to cry when the doc told me NO EXERCISE for 2 weeks, plus no cardio for 3 weeks after i just had my tonsils out… let’s just say i’m in week 3 now enjoying some yoga and taking the time off really has not been that bad at all. my body will thank me in the end and things will be back to normal in no time 🙂
Enjoy the massage! I sure could use one right about now too. It’s always harder to listen to your own advice than dishing it out in the first place, maybe because we feel like (hope?) we are the exception to the norm, but deep down we know that it’s best – keep on taking it easy, and feel better soon!
Rest is definitely the best idea. I just had a similar situation. I am running a double half marathon next weekend and suffered an injury 3 weeks ago. As much as it killed me not to be training, I took off an entire week and then slowly added the miles back. So far I have been right back on schedule!
Ooh, those oats look so blueberry-y! 🙂
And this reminds me I’ve been meaning to roll my IT bands more often. Hope things are feeling better soon!
That is such a bummer about your knee. 🙁 Feel better soon!!!
I’m sort of in the same boat – although my problem is being sick, not injured. I know I probably just need one, maybe two days of real rest, but then I feel lazy, end up working out and end up tired and worn out again. Today I’m with you though and plan on going straight home, curling up on the couch and staying put!
I experienced some major IT band problems last summer and had to take some time off from running. But with the help of a foam roller (love it!) and some rest, I was able to come back stronger and more excited about running than ever. Enjoy your massage!
So sorry you are having to deal with that girl. I feel your pain as I have had no cardio in 2 months. At first, it drove me NUTS! I was a huge mess. But then I realized that I was doing what was best for my body and if I fought it, if i continued to exercise, I was going to make the recovery time even longer. And now, I have my bad days still but I know that I’m doing the right thing and that I’ll be back at what I love in no time 🙂 Best of luck to you!
Good for you for taking your own advice, Gina. Hopefully you’ll feel better in no time with some time off the knee.
Hope you have a great massage!
Here is one situation where you should definitely follow your own advice. I speak from personal experience. I injured my IT band last October and worked through the pain for about a month (big mistake!) before seeing a doctor. I was referred to PT and had to refrain from cardio for two months while it healed. I hope the massage is helpful to you. I received IT band massages from my physical therapist and while they weren’t comfortable, they certainly helped with the healing process. Good luck and listen to your body!
enjoy the massage! glad to hear you taking your own advice. sometimes it’s the hardest thing to do simply because youre biased in the situation. but youll bounce back and be stronger than ever 🙂
I want a roller, and a massage, and some egg puffs. lol.
Also, what is mesquite, exactly?
-Blogger Boy
so sorry you knee is not doing well……yes rest!
enjoy the massage! the blueberry oats are so pretty 🙂
i just read that that yoga dvd is one of the 10 ten workout dvds! do you recommend it?
one of the 10 best! oops
Aaaahhhhh! Just had to share this. I’ve been following your blog (and a few other healthy eating/lifestyle ones) for a while and have really utilized the recipes and advice I’ve found on here and for the first time in a long time I’ve stopped focusing on the numbers on the scale and now rely more on how I feel. Well, I just pulled a shirt out of the back of my closet that hasn’t fit in a while and IT FITS! Perfectly. No rolls, no love-handles! I may have jumped for joy a bit. 🙂 Thank you for the continuing info. I know this blog helps a lot of people and its definitely helped me.
whoo hoo! that’s wonderful.
thank you so much for reading and keep it up!
xoxo
I just bought a foam roller last night and can already tell I’m going to be in love. also, I had blueberry oats too! great minds think alike 🙂
SO want that DVD and a MASSAGE!!!!
Ohh the foam roller brings tears to my eyes…. (the pain)
mmm, your blueberry oats look amazing. I injured my foot/calf playing tennis last Sunday and, while I have been able to do my weights, I have not been able to run my intervals. So sad. Tomorrow is weights again, so maybe by Saturday I can run! I know how you feel- not doing my cardio makes me feel like a huge bum.
exactly! i feel LAZY. and i hate it
I can’t wait to find out how your massage went. I struggle with IT Band issues and never considered massage before…(funny story — I used to get ITB and IBS mixed up…one is the band syndrome, one is the bowel syndrome! whoops!)
After my first halfy in January I got a massage the next day… It was heaven! Enjoy it!
Hi Gina:
I have been following your blog and another (Choosing Raw) for a few months now and have decided to really try and integrate more “living foods” into my diet. The problem is, I’m tired of eating salads every night, but I can’t afford a dehydrator! I have tried several of the raw recipes on your blog (most recently the chocolate-avacado pudding — yumm), but I was wondering if you could recommend a few low-to-no fancy equipment raw food cookbooks? From the reviews on Amazon, most of them require tons of time and dehydrating. I need some that will allow a poor law student to get her raw fix! Thanks!
definitely check out ani’s raw food kitchen and natalia roses’s raw food detox diet. both have very simple recipes (but delicious!) and require little to no dehydration 🙂