tennis

by

The Tennis – Running Dilemma

I have played tennis for years and have many friends that I have met through tennis.  We do lots of things together.

heading out to see a play

Then I discovered running.  My love for running surpassed my love of tennis.

Usually I can fit them both in.

First:

a run in Chestertown

and then:

MANY sets of doubles

So this weekend is Tennis Ladies at Schroon River.

our group last summer

It will be a lot of fun.  I plan to run AND play tennis!!

Now here’s the BIG DILEMMA:

Every year, I go to the US Open.

Me & Catalina

This year, I have tickets for Wed, Aug 29.  It is always a good time. You get to see all the GREATS playing tennis (in person.) I hope to even watch my favorite guy play:

Roger. ❤

Several weeks ago, I submitted my story for this:

And I got an email that I was one of the 25 selected to RUN WITH JOANIE!!!

In Albany on Wed, Aug 29!!  (Yeah, right?! What are the odds??)

Sooooooooooooooooo what do I do?

I tried to find someone to buy my US Open ticket.  No success!  I don’t want to waste $98!!!

But I want to RUN WITH JOANIE!!!

See we wore the same color bib.. and we’re around the same age…she’s a little faster!! LOL

Happy Running! What would you do if you were me?

by

Weather Wimp

Check out the humdity!

Still on the fence about Saturday’s 10K.

Tuesday, I skipped my morning run because I would be playing tennis after work.

Tennis went poorly.  I was tired, hungry, thirsty, my foot hurt, whine, whine, whine.  So I bought new tennis sneakers as a motivator.

Wednesday, I was too tired to run before work. A mistake since it was cool and 90 degrees after work.

Today, I had an very early meeting at work and a hair appt after work…NO time for RUNNING!!

I have Friday off so I could run but don’t want to run the day before a 10K. Besides, the weather does not look great…if it isn’t raining, it will be very humid! (If I were a REAL runner, it won’t matter, right?)

I’m not there yet!

Happy Running!  Are you a weather wimp?

 

 

by

July Recap – Where has the summer gone?

What happened in July?

The Good:

  • My mileage has increased. 64 miles this month!!! Woo Hoo!
  • I ran several 4 milers. (It’s still a struggle but it’s a start.)
  • I ran in a 5k race. (My pace was better than the last one. Love.Racing.)
  • I played tennis 4 times. (I’m rusty but enjoyed it)
  • The weather has been perfect for boating and relaxing on the weekends. (YAY!!)

The Not So Good:

  • Lunchtime hour walks have disappeared. (lazy, lazy, lazy – boo!)
  • Biking has been nonexistent. (no time & bike rack is on my hubby’s truck)
  • Stretching & icing- oops – none of that either. (Bad Girl!)
  • Running is still a struggle aerobically…too much walking…pace too slow…blah, blah, blah
  • Ankle is still painful…(almost all the time) YUCK!

Basically my plans for August are almost exactly the same as for July:

  • running (4 times per week)
  • faster running (fewer walk breaks)
  • longer runs (5 miles or more)
  • another 5K race (hopefully faster than the last one)
  • tennis (once a week)
  • boating on weekends
  • reading (when not watching the Olympics)
  • fun times with friends & family

In addition, I should go back to stretching, to walking at lunch & to biking (on non-run days).  No promises here but I will try!!!

Sorry Ankle…I’ve neglected you!

Happy Running!  How was your July?  Anything different planned for August?

by

TTT: Heat, Tennis & Running

1.  It has been HOT in the Northeast. 90’s!! It has also been HUMID in addition to being hot. I have been feeding my friend’s cat before work while she has been on vacation. So I am been doing my activities outside AFTER work. (Not smart, I know.)

my friend’s car on Tuesday

2.  On Tuesday, I played tennis for the 2nd time.  Doubles again and I felt a lot more comfortable. (with my tennis not the weather)  I even won with 3 different partners.  Afterwards. we all went to one player’s house to go swimming in her pool.  YAY!

pavillion where we started

3. Yesterday I ran the 2nd Run with Mizuno sponsored by FleetFeet. It was held this time in Central Park in Schenectady.  Again, a very small group of runners – ALL FAST!!  I tried similar Mizunos as last week but in a different color.

Again, they felt pretty comfy.

We ran the Cardiac Classic / Run 4 Your Life 5K Course which I had done in 2011 and 2009.  I ran alone and was way behind all the other runners. My pace is still VERY SLOW but I ran the whole time (but it was a struggle!)  I had no idea where I was going and wound up missing .5 miles of it. (I added another .5 mile afterwards to make it 3 miles for the run.)

This park is a beautiful place to run

I love these runs because it forces me to run in a new location and run faster. My time was a 33:xx rather than 29:xx in 2011.  I am not going to beat myself up about it.  (My ankle was not happy last night…so I have to be PATIENT.)

Today the humidity and temps are down finally.

Happy Running! How are you dealing with the heat?

 

–

 

 

 

 

by

Return to Tennis

my attempt in May

I hit the ball a few times while on vacation in Florida but last night was my first time playing doubles since December.

I couldn’t move well but I could move.  I wrapped my ankle for psychological reasons and it didn’t hurt or swell any more than usual.

I have a lot of work to do to get back into being competitive shape. But I was able to play!!! That’s what counts now. (I hope to play 1-2x  per week indoors starting in Sept.)

I played with 3 different partners…all very understanding. (The scores were 0-6, 4-6, 4-6, my first set was with the weakest player.)

I am glad to be out there playing again…cross-training has been lacking in my routine. And some of my closest friends are those I see playing tennis.

Next up…YOGA??

Happy Running!  Do you do any other sport besides running?

by

It’s All About the Ankle

Yes, I had a great time eating, drinking, socializing, laughing, shopping, tanning… and just plain relaxing.

But…

Doesn’t this look like a nice place to run??

and

isn’t this even more inviting??

I just wanted to be running!!!! 5 months of NO RUNNING!!

I’ve had enough!  Anyway, enough said…

  • I rode a bike every morning  between 8:30 and 10:30 am. 
  • There was a gym with an elliptical, bike and treadmill but the weather was too nice to be indoors.  I kept waiting for rain but it never happened.

  • I hit the tennis ball one day between lessons and it felt fine so I hit with the instructor for 45 minutes on another day!! Of course, he didn’t make me run for the ball.
  • I found  2 paths with crushed stones and then one with clay (hard tru) and I ran out and back on them everyday…not sure how far (maybe 1/2 mi?). My gait is still awkward since my ankle is not fully bendable but I RAN!!!!
  • I walked a lot…in town…on the beach.

  • I wore sandals…yay!

Yesterday I went to PT for the first time in 2 weeks.

They said they saw a big improvement…I ran on the treadmill for 20 minutes as usual but I was able to run for 3 min and 4 minutes at a time without walking!!!! 

They said:  “You are no longer sounding like a Clydesdale!!”

Of course, I replied, “When can I run outside?”

The answer: “We’ll watch your ankle on the treadmill next Wed and maybe you can run on a track!”

It’s all about the (still stiff) ankle!!  Arghhh!

Happy Running!

by

Vacation is Over!

I’M

8 days of vacation went by so fast!!  Here are the highlights:

bike riding every morning around World Tennis Center

my birthday – 59 on 5-9

birthday dinner at my favorite restaurant – The Turtle Club

cooling off in the pool

shopping trip in Saint Armand’s Circle – Sarasota

playing Scrabble at the beach

It feels great to hold a racquet

heading out to see a play – Steel Magnolias

our annual group photo at The Dock

hitting a few tennis balls

hosting a dinner party in our villa

group photo with our tennis instructor

More details in my next post.

Happy Running! It’s good to be back blogging!

by

Vacation Time is Here!

This is our 8th trip together to Naples, Florida. (For some of us, this is our 16th tennis trip – 1 Palm Springs, 5 Las Vegas, 1 Dominican Rep, 1 Delray Beach)

our group & our coach – May 2011

There are 10 of us and we rent 2 villas (from the same lady) in World Tennis Center.

They will be playing tennis everyday from 8-11 am.  I will be bike riding, walking, swimming, photo taking and a combination of these activities while trying not to be depressed.

The highlight of the vacation used to be running every morning and then playing tennis & taking lessons from Billy Bob (love him!)

getting ready to go for a run

 playing tennis

I considered not going but staying home & working while my friends are away having fun would be even worse.

If I get though the mornings, we will be busy the rest of the day with a variety of fun activities such as shopping, eating, theater and of course, hanging out at the beach.

So my vacation will not be perfect but I will be away and with my friends and in a sunny warm climate.  What could be better?? (You know what I would say…)

I won’t have a computer so no posting on this blog for 8 days but I will bring my iPad and if there is wifi, I will be able to post to FB and read your blogs.

I will post pics here when I return.

Happy Running! I will Miss you all!

by

Looking Forward to May…

I bet you are tired of me whining about my ankle & how I can’t run….

Yeah, me too!

So I’ll talk about how excited I am about May (and it has unfortunately nothing to do with running.)

1.  Anna is coming to the US.  In April 2002, 2004 & 2006, I participated in a teacher program where we went to Kursk, Russia to visit schools & we stayed with a family.  My family was Anna.  So I haven’t seen her since 2006.  The last time she came to the US was 2003.

hiking in Vt during her 2003 visit

I am going to see her in NYC on May 5 and then she is staying with me on May 6. I am super excited to see her again.

2.  I am going to Naples, Fla for the annual tennis ladies trip.  Although I can’t play tennis, I loves Naples and the beach and the warm weather.

at the beach 🙂

group photo at "The Dock"

I will be there May 8-15. Can’t wait for this vacation!

3. It’s the beginning of the Lake George boating season.

Our marina opens on May 15.  We may not stay there until Memorial Day weekend

.

4. Lastly, my birthday is May 9!!

 Happy Running!  What is your favorite month?

by

TTT+1: Week 4 Injury Report

1.  I have been getting out of the house:

  • wheelchair trip to the mall 🙂  lost a hat & gloves 😦
  • carried up a flight of stairs to a Jimmy Buffet-themed birthday party
  • tennis dinner at an Italian restaurant

    yes, I cropped it at the knee...

2.  I am working!  That is, I am working from home.  So that means I have moved off the family room recliner into working at the kitchen table with my leg elevated on a chair.  It’s a start.

3.  My tennis friend, Mady, is an orthopedic nurse and works at the same place as my doctor so she pumped him for info on my ankle. According to Mady, the Dr. said that I will probably be able to play tennis again but NOT run.

 4.  From Runner’s World yesterday – “Injury is something that happens to you as an athlete. Others might tell you that you’re done. But if you keep at it, you might be able to get back…” —Abdi Abdirahman, third-place finisher in the men’s 2012 Olympic Marathon Trials.  How timely!!!!

As Tug McGraw (from the Mets) said in 1973 “You gotta believe!!”

Happy Running!  Do you have any motivational  quotes that you want to share?