I had Patellofemoral Pain, Have You?

When I started training for my very first half marathon, back in late 2010, after some time, I started having very bad pain in my knee. It was mainly my left knee, but sometimes my right would hurt too. It was no fun. When your knees are in that much pain, you can't run, you can't train. I went to my Doctor, and she gave me some ant-inflammatory meds and some exercises to do at home (or in the gym). That's when I started getting serious about my training and needed to include some x-training. it helped so much, I was able to run without my brace and enjoy running...pain free!

After reading this article from Runners World, I realized that this injury is more common for women than men, just because of how we're made (and we place more stress on the knee cap). My problem was that my quads weren't strong enough. See, the knee caps role is to provides protection to the front of the knee to any direct trauma. the cartilage beneath the knee cap has the thickest in the entire body. This cartilage doesn't have any nerve supply, it can become very vulnerable if damaged. 

I worked for months to strengthen my quads and it really paid off. I now know to keep x-training in my weekly workout schedule. I try not to go a week without it!

Snack Time

I wanted to share with you guys what my favorites snacks are, for the time being. I just bought some string cheese (colby jack). I tried to eat it like string cheese (when I was a kid) and it didn't work. So, I just took bites. It still tasted good, though.

And, I think I will always be into bananas and pb, but this time, i added a little chocolate to the mix. It was almost a banana split, minus the ice cream. I could eat this at every meal, for the rest of my life! I just have to keep telling myself that I have self control. I do, really.

These snacks really put a happy smile on my face. Especially after spending 5 hours in the gym over the last 24 hours.

This morning, I went to the gym for workout 1 of 2 today. I ran a nice and easy (and pain free) 6 miles. Once I finished, I worked on my legs. I found that if I don't cross train like a mad woman, I get injured. For the first 1/2 marathon, I had a knee injury, I corrected that with some cross training. The second 1/2, I had hip pain, once again, corrected with more cross training. And, this 1/2, I had/have heel pain, which I'm correcting with mostly stretching. All of this defiantly keeps me healthy and mostly injury-free.

What are your favorite snacks and a huge workout (beside chocolate milk)?