Mom in the Mtns

If you’ve been following my blog at any point over the last year, you’ll know that my SI joint was injured after overtraining for the Columbia Gorge Half Marathon back in 2015.  Ever since then, I’ve had a really tough time getting back to running, and I miss it like crazy!  So back in January I started seeing a new physical therapist to try to get back to running and finally be pain free.  From day one she has been so helpful and positive, which is a huge change from the last PT I saw last year.  And the best news is that what she’s doing is actually working!  Here’s what a typical session at PT looks like for me:

1. 7 minutes on the stationary bike
2. Various hip exercises back and forth across the room
3. Hip exercises across the room with exercise bands on my knees
4. Squats
5. Balance exercises
6. Pilates reformer exercises

It takes me about an hour to get through all the exercises.  It was definitely tough in the beginning, but because I do many of the same exercises each week I get to see progress every time I go.  It’s been amazing to try and fail the first time I do something, and then try again a month later and be able to do it!

The best part of PT is definitely the Pilates portion.  I did Pilates a few years ago and really liked it, but cancelled my studio membership in favor of a full gym membership instead.  I actually think after I’m done with PT I’ll cancel my gym membership so that I can continue to do Pilates and stay injury free!  I don’t think my PT was originally planning to spend most of my sessions doing Pilates, but when she saw how affective it was at strengthening my abs versus all the other exercises that ended up hurting my back it became a permanent part of every PT session.  I love how much of an ab workout it is, and I can definitely tell that my core is a lot stronger now.

Now here’s the super exciting part:  after a month and a half of doing two sessions a week and doing my PT homework the other 5 nights of the week, my PT finally thinks my core and hips are strong enough to attempt running again!  Next Monday I’m going to run on their pool treadmill during my PT session.  I’ve never run on a pool treadmill before, but my PT says it’s going to put less strain on my SI joint and will help me adjust to regular running easier.  I’m really nervous because all I can think about is what happened last time I tried to get back to running, but my PT is really confident that I’m ready for this next step.  I can’t wait to update you all on how it goes next week!

Have you ever needed physical therapy to recover from an injury?  How long did it take you to get back to running?  Have you ever run on a pool treadmill before?