Asthma and The Root Cause

This isn’t a post on “running” per se, but it’s still important to update my health status. Tomorrow, I was supposed to run the Brentwood 5k, but I am going to pull out. I will run my next 5k in Salt Lake City in June…yes that’s right, I’m coming home!

Here’s what happened:

Over the past couple of days, I’ve been coughing up a lung. It’s been non-stop particularly at night, so last night I went to the Kaiser Hospital (again) and got myself checked out.

First, I spent about 30 minutes on a nebulizer to help open up my airways a bit. I felt much better after this. Then, after an examination and x-rays, the docs determined that my asthma is caused by “chronic allergic rhinitis”, which I’m told is a fancy term for hayfever. Allergies. That’s what all this asthmatic nonsense has come to.

Last night, I had internet access, so I did a bit of research. I found out that about 80% of asthma cases are related to allergies. 80%! I don’t know how accurate this report it, but it sounded somewhat official.

In any case, I’m now undergoing a treatment of Prednisone (steroid), Flonase (steroid), Sudafed PE (otc), and Sinus Rinse (otc). Please check out Sinus Rinse. This is a really cool product and ANYONE can use it, regardless of your sinus issues. It’s a great way to clear out your sinuses.

I should be done coughing in no time, and back on my feet. Until then, I need to find something that can occupy my sick time. Any suggestions?

Asthma, Short Runs and Such…

Apologies for not blogging in a while. Last weekend, I had a brief stay in the hospital due to an asthma attack. After ten minutes on the nebulizer I was fine. The doctors were eager to hospitalize me so they could run some precautionary tests. I felt fine during most of the stay and I couldn’t wait to go home.

A couple days later, I decided to test myself. I went over to Burrough’s High School to go run on the track. Nothing spectacular, just an average 400m dirt track. I did a short one mile run in 13:07:05. Not a very good time. I was winded through much of it and just various pains from the “sprint”. I’m thinking it was the dirt track.

I’d like to try and beat that time tonight. I’m going to run at LA Valley Community College’s Monarch Stadium. They have a brand new “mondo” rubber track. I’m hoping this will be much more forgiving on my legs.

I’ll post my results after the run.

Also, I should probably mention that I am looking forward to my next 5k. Not sure when this will actually take place, but I’d like to get one in soon. Any suggestions? Anyone want to join in?

A Shift in Focus

It’s been about a month since I last made a post. The disappointment of not crossing the finish line was very tough. Words could not describe how down I felt about this. I worked very hard, built my body for endurance and I took all the right steps. I promise that my blogging will be more frequent…there is still plenty to discuss.

I was able to identify my actual injury: strained hip flexor. A couple of my doctors have recommended that I take some time off from long distance running. I will not run the LA Marathon this year. In fact, I will not start training for a marathon until later this fall.

Having said that, this is a great opportunity for me to become a gym rat. I’d like to drop about 20-25 lbs by the summer. It’s February, so there is enough time.  And for the record, just because I’m not training for a marathon, doesn’t mean that I will stop running and blogging about it. When I start training for my next marathon, I will be in great shape…at least that’s what I’m shooting for.

This year, I will take part in several 5k’s and maybe a half-marathon or two. When I go to the gym, I will build strength in addition to a strong cardio workout. This is my year. I know it.

Being Injured Sucks…

Yeah, being injured sucks. But…it’s pictures like this that make me smile. I found this picture about a week ago, buried in a folder on my desktop. This was taken at about mile 10 when I ran the 2007 LA Marathon. Isn’t my shirt cool?

My friends and family have always had my back during my various, random adventures. This picture is just one example of that…Behind me in this picture is one of my very best friends Tom, and my Dad.

Minor Surgery…I’m on the DL…

My right big toe nail was giving me some trouble (ingrown) for most of last week and on Friday night, I thought I could take care of it by myself by cutting it. Unfortunately on Saturday, during the 17 mile run, the problem got much worse.

I stopped at eight miles because I knew that something was wrong. Luckily, I listened to my body and didn’t risk serious injury by “over doing it”. I spent a good part of the day relaxing and icing various parts of my body for maintenance. Later on, I went to Kaiser Permanente’s Surgical Walk-In clinic in Panorama City last night.

After getting checked in, the nurse gave me a tub of Benadine/water solution to soak my foot. This helped ease the infection a bit, and also prepared me for the surgery. The doctor then injected my foot with two shots of Lidocaine to numb the foot.

On a side note, I’ve been afraid of needles my whole life. Each time I get a shot, I realize that “It wasn’t so bad.” Well, last night, it was! The pain was unbearable!

In any case, once numb, the doctor proceeded to take out the ingrown nail. After dressing the foot to stop the bleeding, I went home and took some pain killers.

This surgery will put me out of running for 7-10 days. I may not be able to run in next week’s eight mile recovery run. This sucks really bad! Every day, and every season, any given baseball player can get hit with the injury bug and get placed on the DL (disabled list). It happens. But then, the goal of every injured player, is to get better, and come back with a vengeance. I intend on doing that.

Make no mistake…this little injury may be painful, and the recovery may put me out a week or two, but I am going to rock the marathon HARD CORE in January and March.

It’s now time to rest and mentally prepare.

Next week…I will be back.