Hips Don't Lie

My hips (and low back) are making me feel much older than my 30 years this week! In the past, I have had problems with my left IT band/knee. My physical therapist told me it's because my left femur does not sit in the hip socket the correct way, which leads to imbalance, overcompensation, strain, and pain. After PT and working with the foam roller, I finally got the left IT band mostly straightened out late last summer. Early in January, I strained something in my previously uninjured right hip while doing yoga. After this past week, my whole pelvic area, including my low back and upper legs, has been giving me fits. It never ends!

Let me back up. This has been a busy week for me. I spent last weekend at a resort in Northern Saskatchewan with 20 other grad students from the Tox Centre. We have done a retreat for the past couple of years where we rent cottages and hang out up north together for a few days. It was a great time, and there was enough snow and good enough weather to get out x-country skiing while we were there. E and I always have fun when we ski with just the two of us, but there was something extra special about heading out with a group of 10 other people. It could have been the fact that, for once, I was not the worst, chickeniest skier there. Anyway, I think the past couple of weeks of skiing have contributed to my tight, achy hips for sure.

Monday marked the start of E and his training partner S's Half Ironman training. I have been swimming with them regularly, and I decided to add in an early morning run with them too, since it's nice to have buddies to go to the gym with. So, we swam twice and ran once on my already sore hips this week.

While I was training for my marathon last year, I would medicate the crap out of myself with ibuprofen/acetaminophen both during and after long runs to avoid muscle and joint pain. After the marathon, I decided that was not a good strategy for dealing with aches and pains, so I have been trying to limit the number of painkillers I take. I'm sure my liver and kidneys thank me, but let me tell you, the heating pad is NO substitute for 800 mg of ibuprofen.

I'm still trying to find a balance here, and my hips are letting me know that I'm not there yet.