I am still working hard towards my fitness goals. I know it seems like every post lately is a running/fitness post, but well… all I do these days is take care of my kids and go to Orangetheory. HA! I promise I will post some cute kid pictures soon, but for now, here is some more about what I am dealing with.

First of all, Orangetheory Fitness.

I’m back on my Orangetheory schedule. I originally was planning to stick with a 2-3 times per week schedule, but I’m aiming for at least 4x per week now. I feel like I am really not going to see what I’m looking for unless I amp things up. I’m really enjoying the workouts and have gotten back into the swing of things. My metabolism is still not too happy right now, so the weight loss is extreeeeemely slow going, but I’m making some changes and hoping that the weight that I had put on during the stress of our move to GA will fall off soon — especially with eating better and working out more.

Also, I am really loving my new studio, Orangetheory Suwanee-Brookwood. I know I said it before in a previous post, but it’s true. In Florida, I felt like I had a little “home” at OTF in Coral Springs & Parkland, along with a wonderful friend of mine, Ann, whom I worked out with every week (and miss dearly). I loved my trainers. They were so amazing, motivating, and knew my strengths and weaknesses. They pushed me to go FAR beyond what I thought I was capable of, and I am still amazed by what I can do now compared to where I was nearly a year ago when I started taking classes. I was so worried when I moved, because I thought that my new studio would not compare. However, I worried for nothing. Seriously, all of the trainers at my new studio have all made me feel so welcome and part of their little orange family. I feel like I have been there forever. I have now taken classes with all of the coaches at my new studio, and I can honestly say that I really like each of them and they are doing the best they can to make the classes outstanding.

Over the weekend, as part of my Mother’s Day celebration, I took my studio’s first #Orange90 class! Woooo. What fun! I hadn’t taken a 90 minute class in several months, but I was ready for the challenge and it was great to be a part of a milestone event for the studio. It was not easy, but I was excited that I burned nearly 900 calories. I was also excited to wear my new orange & blue headband and Florida Gators tanktop, just to tease my coach, Shelley, who is an Auburn girl. 🙂 Shelley, if you’re reading this… GO GATORS! 🙂 Doing a 90 minute OTF class was the perfect way to spend an afternoon to celebrate the strength it takes to be a good mom – both physically and mentally – because that’s what you need to get through a long class! I can’t wait for the next one!

Second, dealing with pain.

I’ve been dealing with some pain in my right hip and lower back, which has made life & workouts a bit more challenging lately. After I ran my first Atlanta 5K at the Oakland Cemetery about a month ago, I noticed my SI joint hurting A LOT. Now, a little pain was nothing new, since I popped it out several months ago while laying on the floor playing with the kids. It was awful! My Chiropractor had popped it back in for me, but it sometimes got sore, so I tried not to aggravate it.

Well, as I wrote in my last post about the 5K, I had no idea that Atlanta was so hilly… and it did aggravate this injury and put a lot of stress on my hip flexor/quad (according to my orthopedist). Then, I went ahead with another 5K two weeks later, the Cumming Fiesta 5K, and SURPRISE… there were more hills! I overdid it, and I knew it as soon as I finished the race. I scheduled an appointment with an orthopedist that week.

Not surprisingly, the doc recommended an MRI and Physical Therapy to help with the pain in my back and hip. I had my first PT appointment the other day and learned a lot of great exercises to do at home.. The MRI is scheduled for another two weeks, so hopefully that will give more information about what is going on.

Thankfully, the doctor and PT both said that I can continue doing Orangetheory (thank goodness) as long as I take it down a notch by walking instead of running and modifying any exercises which will cause too much stress to my lower back/hips or feel uncomfortable. So far, so good. My only issue is “taking it down a notch” and I really have to keep myself in check because running is so much more fun than walking, and I certainly burn more calories when I have the opportunity to run.

As a child, I always had problems with one of my knees (thankfully grew out of it), and I actually used to use it as a way to get out of doing PE at school. I hated PE & all exercise. So, while I can’t stand that I am in pain and it’s making things harder when it comes to everyday life & workouts, a part of me is a little amused that I have an “exercise-related injury.” Even 10 years ago, if you had told me I would have made exercise part of my daily life, I would have told you to keep dreaming.

Hopefully the stretches and whatever the doctor prescribes will be good for me, since I do have the Haw Creek Park 2.85 mile trail run on June 20th! I am SUPER excited for my first trail run (already ordered appropriate shoes), and look forward to tackling this new challenge… hopefully with less pain!

Have you ever head a running or sports injury? How long did it take to get better?