See Diva Run

I have now completed 4 Wii Fit workouts. It’s an awful lot of fun, but I’m not sure if it is effective exercise. I am seeing an improvement in my balance, and not just because I’m starting to understand how the controller works. I’ve managed to ski down the hill without missing any of the gates a few times now. I’ve made it through the bubble run without popping the bubble a couple of times. I’ve made a complete fool of myself in the hula hoop workout, the step workout and the boxing workout. My yoga workouts are improving. I tried a plank on the Wii Fit. They only asked me to hold it for 30 seconds, so I was able to maintain pretty good balance. The hula hoop workout has me panting after 2 or 3 minutes. I’m not sure how much longer I could keep it up. Fortunately, I have the rowing machine to get in a longer cardio workout. Tonight I put in 58 minutes of Wii time and 22 minutes of rowing. I also did 31 girlie push ups. That is my new record, and it was a struggle to get the last 2 done with good form. I think 32 might have to wait for a few days. I can feel the muscles in my back coming back to life. I feel sore after my workouts, but in the good way that makes me feel like I’m accomplishing something. It’s been a while since I had a run that felt like that. It’s nice to have enthusiasm again.

Mr Diva totally surprised me by setting up the Wii Fit yesterday. I’ve now completed 2 workouts, and I can see that it has obsession potential. The Wii Fit has 4 different kinds of work outs: Yoga, Balance, Aerobics and Strength. Before you start you create your profile and take the fitness evaluation. The fitness evaluation is where you learn to manipulate the balance board, and I was not exactly a natural at it. Before I had completed the exercises the Wii Fit had judged me as both overweight (based on my BMI, and I agree with this assessment) and unfit. It calculated my Wii Fit age as 62. Man, did that hurt.

My first attempts at the balance exercises were a bit of a disaster, but I stayed with them and started figuring some of them out. I kicked Mr Diva’s butt in the ski jump and then after a few tries I completed the tight rope, getting my first score that was more than one star. I then tried the deep breathing Yoga exercise, and was judged a Yoga Master. Go figure? In fact, the Yoga exercises complimented my posture, balance and core strength, while the balance exercises hinted that I could barely stand on 2 feet. Since I had learned a bit about manipulating the balance board, I give the fitness test another shot, and my new Wii Fit age was 34. I got 28 years younger in 28 minutes. Not bad?

I gave it another try today. This time I started with Yoga, and worked through the first 4 positions. The tree was very enlightening. This is where you stand on one foot and attempt balance. I was completely unable to balance on my left foot. I tried it twice and scored 0 both times. All this time I assumed that my right side was the weak side, and that is why I’ve had so many injuries to my right side (this is where the plantar fasciitis, hip pain and groin pull happened). Now I realize that my right side is getting injured because my left side isn’t carrying its share of the load. The happy news is that I can work on strengthening my left side without straining my right side.

I did some strength training exercises, and not surprisingly, I had some problems with the left leg extension. I rated a couch potato for that, and a couple others. The really weird thing is that I rated body builder for the others. In some cases I’m pretty sure the machine had no clue, but in others I thought it was really helpful. I repeated the balance exercises from the day before, and couldn’t beat my high score, but also didn’t set any new low scores. Finally, I tried out one of the aerobics workouts. I gave the hula hoop work out a couple of tries. It was fun and challenging, but I don’t think it will do as much for me as running or rowing.

Overall, I think Wii Fit will add some missing dimensions to my work out routine. My goal is to use it for 30 minutes each day to improve strength and balance. It should be easy to see if I’m improving. It probably wouldn’t benefit the hard core athlete, but if you are a “one dimensional” athlete like me, give it a try.

After my Wii Fit workout, I cranked out 30 girlie push ups. I think this is my new record. Now it’s time to hit the rowing machine.

Now that running is out of my life for the foreseeable future, and walking is to be kept at a minimum, I need a new obsession. I had hoped that it would be the rowing machine. I enjoy rowing, but it doesn’t seem to appeal to the obsessive part of my nature. Maybe this is because I haven’t reached the point where I see significant improvement. I’m going to increase the frequency of my rowing workouts, to help compensate for the complete lack of other activity.

Potential new obsessions:

Triathilates - I ordered the DVD shortly after it became available. When it arrives I will use it to replace some of my rowing workouts.

Wii Fit - Mr Diva surprised me with one of these last week. It is still in the box, as is the Wii we bought when they first came out Before it can be used, he will need to excavate the corner of the rec room where the television is located behind a huge pile of boxes of things he can’t live without, but doesn’t know what to do with. Since Wii Fit requires me to be on my feet, and bare foot, this may not be the best choice for now. Fortunately, it will probably take weeks, if not months for Mr Diva to clean up his mess and hook it up. It does look like a lot of fun. Maybe I can even get Mr Diva to play.

The other potential obsession is with push-ups. This probably sounds a little odd, but push-ups are a great strength building exercise that works the areas where I really need to improve. Push-ups require no equipment and can be done anywhere. Because I can only do about 25 of them at the moment, it shouldn’t be too hard to detect and measure progress. I think this one has some potential. The combination of push-ups and rowing should either build up a rock hard core, or destroy the rest of me.

A Good Push Up Work Out

Doing Push Ups to Build Muscle Mass and Boost Metabolism

How to do a perfect push up

I had my appointment with the sports medicine doctor this morning. He must be really good, because I was already feeling better when I got there. I’ve had very little pain for the last few days, but I’ve also had almost no activity. He asked me why I thought it was plantar fasciitis. I explained my symptoms, my running history and my previous diagnosis. He said it sounded like plantar fasciitis, and then told me a bunch of stuff that I’d already read on the internet. The one new thing he did contribute that was other than being extremely painful, plantar fasciitis didn’t progress into something worse. Since I’m somewhat pain tolerant, this was reassuring. If I’m willing to live with the pain, I can do whatever I want. He said that some people see improvement with a more supportive insole, so I bought a pair of Superfeet. He also said that the night splint works for a lot of people, but I couldn’t handle 5 minutes of sitting in the office with it. I’m pretty sure I’d never sleep if I had to wear that thing. I already have trouble sleeping because of my many aches and pains, so I’m holding off on that one for now. I also have the option of taking a cortisone injection, which he said was usually more effective when done earlier in the progression. The ultimate treatment is the passage of time. If that is the case, why bother with shots, etc? His suggestion was that I not run for a few months, and limit my walking for a few weeks. The Seafair Half Marathon is just a little over a month away. I’m not sure whether I can walk it if I sit on the couch until then, or if I just need to skip it. I’m not really sure about anything at this point. As I was walking out, his assistant yelled that I could call and make another appointment later. Since I didn’t get a whole lot out of the experience, I’m not sure why I would go back. I guess I’m not a very patient patient.

On a happier note, I took the rest of the day off and had an appointment with “Dr Jones” this afternoon. It was a re-visit. We had an appointment with him at 12:01 on Thursday morning, but we had so much fun, we wanted to go again. I don’t know why I love those movies, and that character so much, but it was like a reunion with an old friend. There will also be another Mummy movie coming out later this summer, so at least I’ll be entertained while I’m not running. Now, if I’m smart I’ll use this time to do some weight training, and lots of rowing. I’m not that smart, so I might just sit on the couch for the next few weeks. I know it’s bad for me, but it feels so good!

(Indiana Jones widget used with permission from IndianaJones.com)

Earlier this year I went to the podiatrist because of pain around and under my heel which I suspected was plantar fasciitis. His diagnosis was peroneal tendinitis. A friend on the lvm21 board pointed out that my symptoms are much more consistent with plantar fasciitis, so I went back to Google.

From http://www.heelpain.com.au/what_is.html

Plantar Fasciitis can progress through three (3) phases.

1. Dull pain usually in one foot ‘feels like a stone bruise’ – develops over 3-4 weeks.
With continued daily routine, activity, sport, work etc., pain intensifies. Pain first thing in the morning, immediately on weight bearing. Simple calf muscle stretching, ice, good supportive footwear and rest can often relieve Plantar Fasciitis in these early stages.

I think I was in phase one last November

After this early period the pain can continue to intensify. Patients try anti inflammatories, heel cushions, physiotherapy, acupuncture, arch supports, massage, heat, orthotics, rolling the foot over cans/bottles/golf balls etc., and cortisone. By now most patients have ceased or greatly reduced their activity.

2. Intense pain now for probably 6-12 months, mostly all day, usually consistent in one foot.
Most patients have tried a vast array of treatments including multiple cortisone injections and have stopped all exercise, sport and sometimes jobs. This has obvious physical repercussions resulting in depression and negativity. In desperation, patients will try any solution and well meaning advice. Surgery is still being suggested in some quarters as a final solution.

This pretty much describes life after the Mardi Gras Marathon in February

3. Plantar fasciitis pain develops in “good foot” due to compensated body load (limping).
Secondary pain in knees, hips and lower back due to incorrect foot alignment and posture are common. Substantial increase in weight from lack of exercise adding to the load.

Why yes, my other heel is starting to bother me, but it is still at phase 1

Pain can be acute and time frames of up to 5 years are not unusual. Pain can dissipate completely as the body adapts, but usually at great personal cost and lifestyle changes. This seems to be between 2 and 5 years. Research shows in nearly all cases it will return as the patient increases time on feet again and returns to activities. This is due to patient’s foot type and the inherent weakness. Plantar Fasciitis can potentially be a lifetime ailment.

I don’t intend to take this lying down, but for now I’m going to put my energy into walking, rowing and core strength training. I have an appointment with a sports medicine specialist on Friday.