Standing Straight (or not so much...)

Well, the results are in! I went for my follow up appointment with the chiropractor on Monday. Evidently, the reason that I have the left hip (and possibly even the left foot) pain is because of the way my spine is shaped, and therefore gravity is pushing down on the nerves.

We all have curvature of our spines normally. This curvature helps our bodies with shock absorption when walking, exercising, and even standing (gravity). My neck curve is not great. In fact, it's past STRAIGHT (which would be bad enough) and it's curved the opposite way. So all the nerve roots that come out of my cervical vertebrae (the ones closest to my head) aren't able to function at 100%. I also have the beginning of arthritis of the spine, which, according to Dr. Jeff, can be helped and isn't the end of the world-- we just really don't want it to get any worse! When I looked at the X-ray of my spine from the front views, that's when I really saw how I can have pain because my spine is misaligned. It's slightly s-shaped instead of being straight up and down-- not as severe as scoliosis, obviously. So gravity pulls from my right shoulder across the body to my left hip, instead of an even distribution. The reason I had pain in my foot after 8 miles is because my body couldn't take the constant pounding on that side. And when I got to 13 miles, the hip couldn't cushion the blows either.

I asked Dr. Jeff how much of this has to do with my weight. He said some, but not as much as you might think. This has to do with the spinal structures. So yes, extra body weight means extra pull. But if I weighed 99 pounds and had the same X-rays, it's likely I would have the same problems. Also, the inserts that the podiatrist gave me are really only adding a little extra arch support, which I can do with a different pair of sneakers, so they aren't really helping with much. So far, the new shoes that I have for walking have been fine, so we'll see. I have learned my lesson, and will be going back to my friends at the Running Place to re-evaluate everything in another few months, once we start log in some serious miles.

I have had 2 adjustments already. The first one was strange. It didn't hurt at all! First he had me lay on my right side and he tried to adjust my lower back. There was no crack or pop or anything, and I didn't feel all that different. Then he did my upper neck-- that was LOUD! Afterwards I felt a little lightheaded, which Dr. Jeff said was normal. I guess when you release the pressure on nerves that have been compressed, and they are finally able to send more signals to your brain--- well, it's like fireworks with all your synapses firing. I went again for a second adjustment, and this time, I was lying on my stomach and he did something to my lower back. That time, I felt a small pop and it felt like something had released the tension there. He also did an adjustment of my back (shoulder blades) area that had another dramatic snapping noise, and again, it felt like some of the overall pressure was released.

Dr. Jeff was also able to help my feet. I sprained my right ankle about 3 years ago, and it just hasn't been the same since. He said that some of the bones and ligaments were out of alignment, so he readjusted that. He also adjusted the bones in my left foot, especially where my bunion is. The bunion felt better instantly, and it hasn't hurt all day!

Dan and I have our first recruitment meeting for TNT tonight. We'll join Robyn and Jerry at the Running Place to share our experiences with prospective teammates. I can't wait to show off my medal and my race shirt again! Kick off is coming up in the beginning of August, and then we start our training on August 11th. I have been taking it easy with training. I am hoping next week to start a little more regularly. It was funny to look at the training schedule, and see 1 to 2 mile for the first couple of practices. I never thought I would get to the point when I felt like that wasn't alot!

Thanks for checking in here at our blog. We'll begin our fundraising for the Winter Marathon soon. Dan is going to help me tweak the website, so you may see some changes over the next few weeks. GO TEAM!

~Sara