Fitbloggin 2012: Thursday

It's been three days since Fitbloggin ended, which has given me a good amount of time to soak in the weekend's events and write a recap (or at least attempt to).

I'm actually writing a post for each day, since there was SO MUCH going on!

Since I got hurt, I was a little less excited to go because I was afraid I would miss out on half the fun. Boy, was I wrong!

From the moment I arrived in Baltimore on Thursday afternoon, I was PUMPED!! I met up with Patty (@PattyAizaga), who was on the same train as me (total coincidence). We dropped our bags off at the hotel and spent the afternoon at the Ripley's Odditorium across the street from our hotel. That was a lot of fun, and both of us can say we went to a Ripley's!

Once we were done over there, we went back to the hotel and waited for her room to get ready so she could check in (I couldn't because my roommates weren't there yet). Once that was done, I chilled with her until my roomies came a little while later. 

The first to come in was Emily (@FitandFreeEmily), who booked the room in the first place. Once she checked us in and got the keys, it was time to unpack, settle in, and of course tweet ;-). Emily (@runningknitwit) and Vicky (@crazedmom) came in later, and I actually didn't meet them until after the "official" welcome party.

Registration and the welcome party were a few hours later. After checking in, we got our swag bags. Let me just say: HOLY COW! A full duffel bag with snacks, stickers, and even an apron! Oh, and who can forget the official FitBloggin shirt? (BTW, mine ended up being too big and I couldn't exchange it. New PJ shirt!)

After we got our swag, we went over to the Reebok table to get some more stuff: crossfit sneakers and a workout tank! My sneakers were pink, and the one thing I've been wanting for a long time was pink workout shoes! I think once I get them more broken in, I'll use them for my spin classes.

Then came the welcome party and badge decorating. I was a first time FitBloggin attendee, so I had a star on my badge. I still went crazy decorating it though. If it's one thing anyone who's worked at Panera knows, it's how to decorate a nametag. ;-)

The mixer itself was relaxed and fun. I got to meet several bloggers who I've follwed since I started my crazy journey, as well as some new ones. I didn't feel shy or nervous, like I usually do in new situations. I felt right at home, kind of like I was with family.

After the mixer, there was a presentation by Susan Ito (@foodiemcbody). Her one woman show was just amazing. It was pretty much a show about someone who went from being overweight to a triathlete. A lot of us were in tears by the end.

Since the presentation didn't end until almost 9, most of us were starving after Susan's show! A group of us went to a restaurant called The Greene Turtle, which was an experience in itself (I'll save that for a future post). Anyway, my dinner was just grilled BBQ chicken, mashed potatoes, and green beans.

I got back to the hotel around 11:00, and all of my roomies were sleeping. After a quick phone call home, and some tweeting, I was too. 

Friday recap to follow... =)

I am stronger than I think!!

It took me until Saturday at Fitbloggin to realize this (and I will have a full recap soon, I promise!), but I think this sums up the weekend as well as my journey as a whole:

I am stronger than I think!

During the convention, Reebok had a booth with all sorts of signs that you could write on, and I chose the "I love fitness because..." one. While thinking about what to write on it, I realized that everything I went through to get to this point, both mentally and physically, has made me much more stronger, more than I thought was possible.

So that's what went on the sign.

After I wrote on it, I got my picture with it:

I also made this my profile pic because I'm basically declaring that I am stronger than I ever thought was possible. 

Now that I look back on this weekend, even with my injury, I still got to try two new workouts: Zumba and trampoline camp. I thought I wouldn't be ready to do either of them physically (still sort of healing from my sprained knee), but with a little modification (and some people telling me I could), I got through both and had a blast! 

Tonight, I made my way back into the gym for the first time since I got hurt, and rocked a tough core class! Did I have to modify? Yes, since I still can't quite handle high impact. Did I let that stop me from getting a good workout? No way! 

Mental toughness and strength is as important in this journey as the physical, and these last few weeks especially, as I work to come back from injury, I proved to myself that I am stronger than I think!

Injured...and miserable as anything

Hi, everyone! Hope you all had a wonderful holiday weekend. Well, at least better than mine.

On Thursday, during my cardio dance class, I must have moved the wrong way, and twisted my left knee. I thought it was just something I could walk off, and finished the class before limping out of the gym.

Well, I was wrong. I ended up calling out of work on Friday, since my knee still didn't feel right. After a whole day of no change, I ended up going to the hospital, which made me scared as anything, since I was fearing the worst for over a day: a ligament tear.

After two hours, and a few X-rays, I was diagnosed with a sprained knee. Not as bad as I thought, but still not fun. I spent so much time crying because for the first time in, well, a long time, I was forced to stop going. No gym, no work, nothing. I spent a good chunk of the weekend in bed watching Glee, eating, and icing my knee.

Slowly, but surely, I'm on the mend. Of course, it'll be some time before I can get back to the gym 100%, and I think even then, it'll be modified more so than in the past.

Then there's the Fitbloggin trip I have coming up in two and a half weeks. I still plan on going, but modifications will be a must. I can't do any of the scheduled workouts, but they do have a gym at the hotel, so I can at least go on a treadmill or do some upper body strength moves. The 5K is looking like a no-go, so I'll probably end up doing the one mile walk instead.

Oh, the rest of my running plans for the year are shot to hell. I was orginally planning a 5K yesterday, but I never signed up for it. Kind of a good thing, actually. The Fitbloggin 5K was planned for months, but it's not happening either. I had two more races on the fence for the end of the month, but by the time I'm healed, I won't have time to properly train. So, no more racing for the rest of the year.

I plan on being back to work tomorrow, but I'll have to wear the brace on my knee, and probably be forced to be the dishwasher, but small steps at a time. Eventually, I will be physically back to where I was.

If I got anything out of this, it was that I am not invincible. Oh, and that I can't keep going non-stop anymore. I was sometimes doing two classes a day, four or five days a week. Now, it's looking like one class (two if one of them is core), and three rest days a week, at least for a little bit.

Kisses and hugs,

Tracy