pghickster, I can certainly relate to the feeling of having your body fail you after a lifetime of activity. I hope you can find your way back. I always figured the wheels would come off at some point, but I expected it would be either an injury or some respectable disease like cancer. I find it downright embarrassing to be taken out by a lousy autoimmune disease (rheumatoid arthritis).
Igy, I’m very happy to hear that your wife now truly seems to be on the mend.
BigMango, that’s awful! You’re right to get rabies shots if you can’t get your hands on the dog. I have done a lot of running in semi-rural areas and always worry about dogs, but so far in 40+ years of running outdoors I’ve been bitten exactly once, in the presence of the owner who was able to show me the dog’s rabies tag. Take care and I hope the hamstring injury isn’t serious.
I’ve also been enjoying the Trials coverage on TV. I’m not enjoying the major heat wave that hit us at the end of the week--highs of 109/107 on Friday/Saturday. Relief is supposed to come in a couple of days.
Mon: 11 mile hike over moderate terrain at 7000+ ft of elevation.
Tues: 42 min bike trainer + 10 mile hilly loop on bike, gym.
Weds: 7.3 mile walk/jog at 12:36/mile average pace.
Thurs: 31 mile bike ride, gym.
Fri: 7.3 mile walk/jog at 12:28/mile average pace, gym.
Sat: 31 mile bike ride at first light.
Sun: 33 mile bike ride at first light, will go to the gym later.
I was afraid Monday’s hike on mountain trails with lots of big step-ups and step-downs would beat up my hips, but they felt surprisingly better the next day. I was able to resume doing small amounts of jogging on Weds and Fri, trying to focus on form while jogging only about 100 m at a time. However, one of my knees started to hurt and I shut down 2 miles before the end on Friday, and stuck to the bike over the weekend as a precaution. I hope to try walk/jogging again tomorrow.