Workout Wednesday: Stupid ankles

It was another hot one today in Portland, edging upwards towards 100 again. But my plan was successful! To hit the trails at Forest Park (the city park in Portland, which is seriously amazing) by 8 and to feel good!

I headed towards the Wildwood Trail, which has the potential to run the entirety of the park but I've only hiked the figure-8 formation that can lead up to Pittock Mansion. It's a nice 1+ mile loop amidst ferns, moss, and tall, shade-providing trees. I set out tired and sore, but quickly warmed up and realized I felt really good! It's got some regular up-and-down to it, which is my preference for trail running (as opposed to a giant uphill and then steep downhill). The trail is also reasonably wide and smooth, which enables me to find a nice pace that I can't on some other trails that are rocky and rooty.

After my pose-of-the-day yoga pictures, I was set to just enjoy the rest of my run. I was excited to see how far I could get since I was feeling good and didn't have anywhere to be for 3 hours! And then… I rolled my ankle. The same ankle I rolled pretty badly ten days ago at Crater Lake. I immediately had to stop, hobble around since I couldn't put weight on it, and ended up sitting on the side of the trail. Of course I was at the furthest point of the loop away from my car. After a few moments (which, on a positive note, gave me a few moments to Instagram some pictures), the throbbing subsided and I was able to fully put weight on it. I was going to walk to my car, but ended up feeling surprisingly good. So I set out at a light run again.

Fast forward to the end of the first loop. I was feeling good still, and decided to go for a second lap. My ankle rolled on a rock shortly into the second loop. Pause, elevate, Instagram. Off again. Roll again. Pause, elevate, Instagram. Luckily after the third or fourth time, it didn't happen again. My run stopped being about time or pace, and it became about mindfulness. It was about keeping my ankle in line, of planting my foot squarely on flat group, of avoiding hazardous parts of the trail.

I did end up running over 4 miles, including the cut off up to Pittock Mansion to get a gorgeous albeit hazy overlook of the city. Yay. But the kicker is that my body and my breath felt great! I wanted to keep going! But I was pretty nervous at this point of rolling my ankle again, even as careful as I was being. The last two times I went running I had a time constraint and then my body didn't feel very good. I had both of those things in my favor today to make for a great run, but my ankle wasn't having it.

Don't worry. I'm at home with it elevated. I even got a little foot rub today! I'm trying to remember it's not about what I want to do, or should do, or what someone else tells me to do sometimes. Sometimes it about what I need to do, and sometimes it's about what I can (or cannot) do. You can be careful and mindful, but sometimes you just need to stop. Take care of yourself for the long haul!

Pura vida!
@lizwilsonyoga