Crissy Field and Sports Basement

Today I visited my long lost friends, Crissy Field and Sports Basement! In my running and boot camp days, I used to visit this area of the city at least twice a week. My running team met at Sports Basement every Tuesday night to run for an hour and the boot camp location rotation included a few areas of Crissy Field. I figured my first walk/run in a loooong time should be in this lovely area with a view of the Golden Gate Bridge. Here it is on this nice day, not too windy, just the right amount of sun. I walked for 1 3/4 miles and ran for a 1/4 of a mile. My running was awkward, it was like I had forgotten how to run! I'm hoping it gets better from here. : )


After my walk/run, I went to Sports Basement to look for some track pants. Track pants are loose, lightweight pants to slip over my running tights or shorts. Ahhh... I love SB. It used to be my home away from home. I wandered the sections of clothing and shoes, just browsing and seeing what's new. I found some comfy track pants and barely pulled myself away from the cute athletic tops and jackets. Don't... need... those... now... but, I'll be back!

A New Chapter

A week and half after I was told my job was going to be eliminated, I got a call. The call was from the Strategic Sourcing team at the corporate headquarters of my company. I worked with this team regularly in the past so when they heard about what happened, they thought of me.

A member of their team was going on maternity leave for about 5 months so they offered that I take her place while she is gone. I was skeptical at first. What about Print Production? The position with the Sourcing team is as an analyst. Me? An analyst? Luckily, when I met with the director of their team, he said the short-term position could be adjusted to fit my abilities. Nice. I won't go into great detail, but they went over and above and it was an offer I couldn't refuse! They understand I will be actively looking for a new print production position. Since it fills their needs and gives me some breathing room to find a new job, it's a win-win for everyone! This photo is the view from the building I'm working in now. Pretty cool, huh?

Wordless Wednesday: I Love This Card!

A Long Overdue Visit to Dr. Dye

It has been a long time since I've seen Dr. Dye, my knee doctor. I decided it's time for me to start running again, so I want to make sure I'm doing it the right way. Last time I saw Dr. Dye, he said if I could walk a mile every other day without pain, I was ready to run. Well, I've been at that level for quite some time now and realized I'm stuck in that rut... because I'm scared. I'm scared that I will experience knee pain again and am afraid all I have done over the last several years will not have helped. I have to say I'm tired of being scared. I was always afraid of losing my job and it just happened to me! I'm realizing that sometimes you have to face your fears. It was time to see Dr. Dye.

The majority of my appointment with Dr. Dye was how I expected it to go. He checked my knee, asked me questions, and told me it's OK for me to start running. "Take it slow," he said. He suggested I increase the amount of running I do at a very gradual rate, 1/4 mile at a time. The last thing I asked Dr. Dye before I left his office, was to look at my shoes. To my surprise, he told me he's not a fan of custom orthotics. He feels that the inserts that come with running shoes are plenty and the more natural the better. Really? Wow. The orthotics I've had in my shoes over the last 5 years were made after my knee started to hurt. I had it in my mind the special inserts were helping, but now, I'm not so sure. The more and more I read about running in less supportive foot gear, the more I want to give it a try. The theory is that running shoes have become too supportive, actually weakening the ankle and foot muscles. This puts more of the impact of running on knees and hips. I figure, what do I have to lose? As soon as I got home, I switched back to the inserts that came with my new cushy Nike sneaks and here I go!