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No doubt year 2020 was very different to me and not only because of covid-19 but also because I climbed to Kilimanjaro and after that didn’t climb or run for the next 8 months. My IT band inflammation was a complete surprise to me and extremely hard mentally to cope with.
I am used to exercising and that being taken away suddenly in addition to home schooling, working from home and covid restrictions I admit I was not coping well. I tried to psyche myself by putting my energy to something else and that is when modelling /tv/movie extra roles came into play. They have saved many days when you want to do something, but cannot run or even go to the gym. At least you can act!
Nevertheless I have been able to do quite a lot of training, but it’s just been a bit different kind than before and there has not been any kind of goals this time. After my injury and verdict from the doctor finally early spring I at least knew what was wrong and could plan on how to get better.
Naturally in this case less is more so had to cut back on training extensively and concentrate on handling the inflammation. Took the inflammation pills I got from the doctor, but they had pretty bad side effects and practically my heart was pounding and blood pressure went suddenly up and then down. They just did not agree with my body.
I did take the prescribed amount, but decided that I cannot risk being forced to take them again or at least would have to find another brand. Anyway luckily I then discovered ginger and turmeric and took capsules meant for joints that contained those for a few months and also drank shots of them regularly and still do every now and then. Late summer I didn’t feel the pain anymore and by September I wasn’t constantly watching out the leg and thinking about the pain and could slowly start running again.
At the same time I also started doing light exercises for hamstrings and glutes to get strength back which tshould support running. Apparently loosing significant amount of weight (16 kilos read more in “My Weight Loss Journey” -series) and all that training caused the center of gravity to change and imbalance on the muscles. So more training to the butt that is!
I also found softer sports like Yoga which has been a life saver. It has helped me to keep myself flexible and also grow overall strength with movements based on my own body weight. It has definitely helped with getting the center of gravity back to where it should and my posture has improved so much! Four babies definitely caused changes to my body and I am glad I noticed now that I need to do something and not when it’s too late.
Anyways so year full of resting and softer sports with a bit of increase by the end of the year.
Let’s call year 2020 a year of mercy and recuperating <3
Total 2020
- 2020 total 184 Activities, ascent 8927 m (2615 m was Kilimanjaro)
- 2019 total 236 activities, ascent 18363 m (wow this was a lot..)
- 2020 Running total 294 k’s, trail 76 k’s and basic 218 k’s
- 2019 Running total 610 k’s, trail 307 k’s and basic 303 k’s
- 2018 Running total 440 k’s, trail 190 k’s and basic 250 k’s.
- 2020 total Hiking 67 k’s
- 2019 total hiking 179 k’s (Impressive!!)
- 2018 total hiking 56 k’s
- Trekking 55,62 km (this was the Kilimanjaro Climb)
- None earlier used this for Kili
- Walking 141 km ( I had to start recording walking at some point when I could not run…)
- 11 times weight training
- 17 times Yoga
- 18 Circuit training meaning different gym classes
- 81 km of cycling
So all in all a lot more variety than 2019 which is not bad. Amounts are understandably not as high as 2019 but surprisingly not as low as I thought. There are weeks during springtime when I have 0 activities. That is unusual, but it was necessary to stop. Truly looking forward to this year and grateful that I have found softer choices and learned not to demand so much of myself. Less is more they say and I think I believe that too finally!
How about my targets for 2020?
Like said earlier I fairly quickly realised I need to throw all my targets to the bin after the IT band inflammation injury. After that my target has been to survive until I can run again or do any sport for that matter. So comparing to where I started from it was pretty good year.
I did not increase any distance goals, but I did improve my average speed from 6,5 to 7,1 km/h so even though I ran less, I did it faster.
Target for 2021
Is still to survive and put more focus on full body strength and toning.
- I will keep running, but it will probably never be a thing I can do as much as I did.
- I also want to focus on trail running rather than basic running. I love nature and my legs can handle that better.
- I would very much like to get back to orienteering again this year. Need to wait for a few months for the snow to melt.
- I have also started new hobby pole dancing, It’s very good whole body strength training and perfect support for running!
So still alive and kicking just not as hard as before but definitely with more determination and mercy on myself!
