Friday Funny 1024: Pinterest Fails

Lots of funny stuff posted every day on steveinaspeedo.tumblr.com.

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Friday Funny 1023: Shot Put Faces

It's always the right time for some "shot put faces."

More funny things posted 10x a day on steveinaspeedo.tumblr.com.

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Friday Funny 1022: Christmas Cards

This guy made his own Christmas Cards and left them at the store:

Get the full-size files to print your own HERE.

More funny things posted all day long on steveinaspeedo.tumblr.com.

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Slowing Down the Blog

So in my last post, I shared my MRI findings and what's been going on lately. I didn't really mention what I'll be doing about it.

I guess I'm still just doing my forearm exercises and waiting for it to get better.

I'm going to start posting less because computer work aggravates it. I'm actually "typing" this now by using the Blogger app on my phone while speaking these words to Siri (so I'm NOT typing). I have a big week on my computer with classes and finals coming, but then hopefully I can lay off a bit. I'll still probably post weekly (and I always like to post Friday Funnies), but I'm not going to stress out trying to make sure I have posts most days. It's not worth it.

Here's to resting my elbow!

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MRI Update

So my MRI results came back. It showed some marrow edema (fluid in my bone) which isn't all that weird, apparently, and it also showed what has been expected: medial epicondylitis.

AKA: (the really wussy title of) "golfers elbow."

To recap my experiences so far:

• Slight elbow pain showing up in late May. The doc thought it was probably brought on by being a summer-time stay-at-home dad and CONSTANTLY lifting up a 1-year-old. (I first gave a lot of details about this in this post from Aug 1st.)

• Stopped lifting weights (with upper body) in early June.

• Started some forearm exercises and stretches pretty regularly in July.

• Started seeing an acupuncturist and chiro (to get Graston Technique) in July. Also had A.R.T.

• Tried an ibuprofen regimen for a few months, but all that gave me was an upset stomach. I tried an elbow brace too.

• Pain still getting worse, so stopped swimming after my last tri in mid-August.

• Daily pain (still) when doing ANYTHING: washing dishes, brushing teeth, carrying my children, opening mail, shifting my car from park to drive, holding/carrying ANYTHING, cutting soft food with a fork, etc. I do stretches, some self-A.R.T., and some self-Graston with the back of a butter knife.

When I posted about this in August, I noted that I might have to take a break from the pool. I said "Of course I'm bummed because I've been making so much progress in the pool, but I've come to terms with a 1 or 2 month break - I'm pretty sure I can get back to the level I'm at now quicker the second time. Right? RIGHT?!?" Well, that "1 or 2 month break" is already at 4 months and counting...

My doc was in contact with me via email, and said I should try to heat pre-exercise, and use an ice pack after. He said I could have a cortisone shot for pain, but it wouldn't do anything to speed up healing (so I declined). I should continue with stretching and doing isometric exercises (I did a lot in church yesterday morning). He also said "swimming would be fine as long as there is no increase in pain."

So I actually tried swimming on Friday, and again today. Friday, I did 300 of freestyle, 400 of different kick drills, and then another 200 of freestyle at the end. My forearm/elbow felt just like it did when I stopped swimming 4 months ago: it hurt for the first 100 yards, and then disappeared over the next 100 yards. The rest of the swim (both Friday and today), my arm felt about 95-99% normal. Today, I did 3x500 to "test" my arm. I'm not planning on starting to swim again, but I wanted to see how bad it would feel during and after swimming, and I was kinda wanting to see how much swim fitness I lost. I did 4x500 about 2 weeks before stopping swimming, and my average was 7:33. Today's shortened 3x500 (with longer rest) averaged over 8:10. To be expected. I'm OK with that. That's actually right where I figured I'd be. Around 1200 yards, my forearm gave a twinge which was no good, so I only did 300 of my last 500. (Oh, and being I haven't been lifting or swimming, my triceps got sore after 300 yards - THAT was a new feeling!) I'd like to email my doc later today and see what his thoughts are on these 2 swims.


In doing my own research in recent weeks, I made 2 discoveries:

First, this issue can also be called "swimmer's elbow." How did I not know this? It's usually NOT brought on by a freestyle stroke (which is all I do), but improper technique of certain strokes can be to blame. In a "swimmer's elbow" forum, I found this potentially helpful quote: "In dealing with a mild shoulder strain I focused on not rotating my hand "internally" (that is, leading more with the little finger side and keeping my palm parallel to the soles of my feet). This also seems to take the strain off of my elbow as well." I tried that in the pool today, and I realized that's how I normally swim anyway. And being I just swam for the first time in 4 months and the pain had not been getting better, we can't attribute it 100% to swimming. Swimming was maybe PART of it, but if it was the culprit, it should have gotten a LOT better over these last 4 months!

Secondly, I just found a website also noting that it can be brought on by "computer work." I've been suspecting this was an issue for a month or 2 now, and I confirmed it last week at work where I spent about 3 straight hours working on my school computer - it was extra achy the rest of the night. MANY months ago, I thought it could be "track pad" related from working on my laptop, so I've been trying to do the majority of my mouse work with my left hand. (It's not hard to do when ACTIVELY thinking about it, but it's easy to slip into using my right hand when not thinking about it.) But even when "being good" about using my track pad with my left hand, my right elbow would still get extra sore. So I've come to believe that general computer work and typing causes pain and issues with my medial epicondylitis.

Finally, as I was part way through writing up this depressing "it still hurts" post, I got a REALLY well-timed Facebook message from a "race buddy" this morning:

That's really sweet. I think she's referring to last night's post:

Caption: "Educational iPad games by the fireplace. ‪#‎christmas‬ ‪#‎christmastree‬ ‪#‎tistheseason‬"

Or maybe she's referring to last week's post rant:

Caption: "Shout out to Rosedale Chev who remodeled their bathrooms 2 years ago and
took out the baby changing table in the men's room. The new bathroom is modern
and looks quite nice. I mean what guy REALLY takes his kids to the dealership.
And if some doof would do that, it's much easier, safer, and more hygienic to
change a diaper on some salesman's desk, right? Totally. ‪#‎SARCASM‬"

Or maybe she's referring to this post from about 2 weeks ago:

Caption: "First time cutting our own tree."

Or maybe she's referring to Charlie's first sled ride (that I showed in this post):

So really, life IN GENERAL is good.

But my sore arm can go. Suck. My. Balls.

p.s. Most of those photos were from my Instagram. Follow me here as "stevestenzel."
p.p.s. Here's some related injury posts: getting an MRI last month, acupuncture photos from late August, and my first mention of my stay-at-home-dadding injury from early August.

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Spotted in a Banner at an Expo

My sister ran the Mankato Half Marathon for charity back in October, and I don't think I shared how she did. I posted something on Facebook, but not here. I'm SUPER proud of her: she finished her longest race ever in 1:45:19 (8:03 pace), finishing 11th out of 129 in her age group, and in the top 200 of nearly 1500 runners overall! Congrats Sis!

Running for clean water for Team World Vision!

My sister sent me these 2 photos saying that Bree (my niece) spotted HERSELF and me on a banner at the pre-race expo:

That was from the North Mankato Triathlon 2 months before my sister's race where my wife I and I raced (and my niece and nephew cheered and then did the kids race). Bree and I both made the edge of banner! Ha! And we briefly chatted with the 2 women in the photo during awards.

Here's my North Mankato Triathlon RACE REPORT, and here are photos of me from that race that ended up in the newspaper in case you missed it.

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Friday Funny 1021: An AWESOME Shirt (and funny links)

So there's a shirt that pushes your fat up to look like muscles:

But you need to go to their website.

No, you don't understand. You HAVE to go to their website.

REALLY. THIS IS NOT WHAT YOU THINK IT IS. GO TO THEIR WEBSITE.

It's been a few weeks since I've last done this, so here are a dozen of my recent favorite posts from my tumblr page:

Athletic-Related Funnies:
• The truth about meeting another runner on the trails.
• The truth about men and women at the gym.
• Swimming.
• Me while water running.
• Use your name for an awesome workout.
• Me, because of working out.
• Thanksgiving Dinner BINGO for runners. (Would also work at Christmas.)
• I've nearly done this at the gym.
• Pilates?
• Life with bikes.
• WhenwWeiner dogs run.
• Here's a "hard body of the day:" hurdler Michelle Jenneke is cute and looks good in a bikini.

Non-Athletic Funnies:
• I'm going to play this bingo game in my class.
• Sweet Tinder profile.
• I like this teacher.
• A dirty, dirty joke.
• I don't know what he expected.
• It's hard being a single mom.
• LIFE.
• 2-3 glasses of wine a day...
• The best joke ever.
• Me falling asleep.
• Taco Bell vs Old Spice. I think Taco Bell won.
• Sweet light switches.

And as always, stop by steveinaspeedo.tumblr.com for funnies all week long. Happy weekend!!

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Friday Funny 1020: Grammar Humor

I'm a HUGE fan of the Oxford comma.

More funny stuff on steveinaspeedo.tumblr.com.

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Friday Funny 1019: Dating Advice

The funny guys at "ObviousPlant" left these in a floral section of a grocery store:

Lots more funny things on steveinaspeedo.tumblr.com.

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Friday Funny 1018: All-Nighters in College

My students are getting ready for finals in just over a week. This seemed to be appropriately timed:

I swear I remember having that same thought about "if anything, I'll be done TOO early" in college. I was wrong. I'm always wrong.

Lots more funny stuff posted all week long on steveinaspeedo.tumblr.com.

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Thirsty (for knowledge) Thursday: "Crash and Burn" Running Workout

I came across this article from a few years ago on Runner's World. The beginning intrigued me:

The weekly fartlek for elite and aspiring-elite runners in the Kenyan training hotbed of Iten starts fast and stays fast. Hundreds of runners try to stay with the leaders - they go as hard as they can, and when they can no longer keep pace, they drop out in droves. It's a puzzling concept for visiting Americans who have long been taught to calibrate their pace to ensure that they finish their sessions. But for Kenyans, this crash-and-burn style of training pushes them to test their limits.

I try to be a good pacer. I try to start my intervals at a pace I can maintain throughout (if not NEGATIVE split). So this idea of go-fast-from-the-start-and-stop-when-you-can't-maintain is new to me.

The article states how we start "normal" speed-work is a pace that's determined ahead of time in our head rather than by how good we may feel at the moment. "The Kenyan approach, in contrast, is to start each session - whether it's fartleks or track repeats - with lofty goals and hang for as long as possible. It's a high-risk, high-reward style that requires you to ignore the warnings from your legs and lungs for as long as you can." The author (and the Kenyans working out like this) believe that once you master this, you'll respond better to race-day challenges from your competitors, and avoid finishing with "unspent fuel" in the tank. Here's 3 points on how to do this workout:

KEEP IT FAST
Runners in Iten always have someone faster to chase, but you can replicate the effort even if you're training alone. Start an interval workout at a pace more ambitious than you can normally sustain—up to five percent faster—and pick a threshold that's two percent slower than your target as your stop signal. Do as many repeats as possible at your target pace, and once you slow to your stop-signal threshold, stop. If you're doing intervals of 400 meters or less and miss your goal due to a pacing error rather than fatigue, you can take one more crack. Otherwise, one strike and you're out. (If you try to stagger through progressively slower intervals, you'll dig yourself into a recovery hole that will take too long to emerge from.)

STAY IN THE MOMENT
It's hard to adjust to not knowing how long a workout will last. Conventional training teaches us to ration our energy evenly over a given distance, but that doesn't work here, which is why crash-and-burn sessions are such a useful stimulus. They simulate the demands of racing a competitor who suddenly surges ahead. You don't know how long the surge will last, but if you want to win, you have to follow and hang on. As you complete your efforts, don't think ahead—you'll be tempted to start conserving your energy. Consider each repeat a separate battle that could be your last. As you fatigue, break the effort into halves or quarters and think only about successfully completing the current segment.

REMAIN VIGILANT
Crashing and burning doesn't literally mean running yourself into ruin. If you're careful to follow the Kenyan example and pull the chute when you can no longer maintain the pace, you should recover about as quickly as you would from any other hard interval session. That said, limit these workouts to once or twice a month. The mental strength you'll gain from these runs is invaluable, but useless without the good pace sense developed in traditional interval training. Mix up your workouts to master both skills.

That idea in the initial point about starting 5% faster would be if I were to run 400s in about 71 seconds instead of 75 seconds. And then I'd have to stop once I was 2% slower (so once I slowed to 73 seconds, I'd be done).

I can't promise that I'll try this soon, but if/when I try this (probably in the spring), I'll let you know how it goes. It sounds horrible. But worth it.

For more "Thirsty Thursday" posts that highlight workouts, body science, and all kinds of interesting information, CLICK HERE.

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Semi-Wordless Wednesday: Dead Toe Watch, Day 70

I first posted about this dead toe near the end of September, with an update in early October. Well, the "new" toenail has been growing out underneath it, and it was time to make the dead toenail go away.

Getting ready to clip my nails.


Part way into hacking my dead nail off.

The dead toenail sits oddly on top of the fresh toenail. So I actually had to use the nail clippers perpendicular to my nail to clip off the dead parts:

All done, with the weak new nail growing in.
And notice the dried blood chunks all over my toes. Yuck.

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