Getting Back Into Shape

Getting older is a scary venture.  Every day you wake up with a new discomfort, twinge of pain, or malady that makes you miss your twenties and thirties.  Getting older also means that you grunt at simple acts like sitting down – or standing up. Bending over is always good for a long guttural moan.  You being to wonder if these things will stay or, stay and get worse. Much to my dismay, I developed real lower back pain late this summer that would not go away, and I was afraid I had a real problem much sooner than I expected in this stage of life.

Normally I visit a chiropractor, who for a $25 co-pay will adjust me and I am good for a month or so.  I will also visit Dr. Amanda, this fireplug of energy and positivity, who is an amazing Physical Therapist who does dry needling.  She can stick me with needles for ten minutes and I walk out of her office a new man.  However, this pain was persistent and affected my daily routine.  Dr. Amanda and I narrowed down the pain to be between my L4 and L5 vertebra.  We did this by dry needling the area until I could/could not feel them. It was not the most fun way to discover your ailment except that she made the experience less sucky. I took Ibuprofen and did my stretches. I was able to run without too much discomfort.  

A trip to my doctor led to an X-ray and then an Orthopedic doctor who ordered an MRI.  By the time the MRI was done and I returned for his consult, the pain was gone. G-o-n-e. “What changed?” the doctor wanted to know. 

The only thing I really changed was that stopped wearing flat, no-support Sperry shoes and switched to my fall shoes – Merrill’s.  Just like that I felt better again.  Yes, I do have an issue with L4 and L5 and I may need to address it someday, but that day seems to be far down the road. 

Lisa on the other hand never seems to have any problems being over 50. She gets a bad cold from time to time and has aches after a good run, but for the most part she is in great shape. 

Speaking of far down the road, last weekend Lisa and I joined up with our friends on Team Zoe and completed another Tuna Run Relay race from Raleigh to Atlantic Beach. Everyone on the team ran three times over the course of the 206 miles. My portion was 19.5 miles and Lisa ran 17.5 miles.  The rain set in unexpectedly around 7:00pm on Friday and soaked us until the next morning. It especially soaked us around 1:30am when the wind shifted under our shelter and drenched Lisa’s sleeping bag.  By the time the team reached the finish line 33 hours after we started the sun was finally out.  In the end my back felt great, but my thighs were on fire!  A good eleven hours of sleep that night helped.

While I might be losing my hair and grunt when I get up from the couch, I am thankful that I am still in decent enough shape to represent the AARP generation.