Tried running

At my post-op appointment yesterday, the doc was wishy-washy on the running thing.  I asked several times before the operation and he said 6 weeks.  Consistently.  Then, during my appointment on Thursday, Ken asked about running and the doc said 4 weeks (which was this week).

So I decided to be wishy-washy myself.  I alternated walking and running a 5K which I did in 39:16.  It was nearly dark and then completely dark, so I couldn't count on glancing at my watch to know when to switch, so I just switched every time a song changed on my mp3 player.  So that's (very roughly) 3 minutes walking, followed by 3 minutes running.  My miles were 14:08, 11:53, and 12:03.  My pace varied widely, which is not at all how I usually run.  I'm usually pretty consistent.  Today my running pace ranged from 8:11 (downhill at the end of a mile) to 11:57 (uphill and nearing the end of a song).

The more important news though is how the running impacted my chest and lymphedema.  Neither is great news. 

Even though I had finger sleeves on two fingers, my left index finger swelled a little more with this walk/run.  I can't tell whether my middle finger or the back of my hand swelled too.  Maybe a little. I have a finger sleeve on the problem finger and a compression glove on right now.  I hope it helps.

As for my chest . . . when I started the process walking, that was fine.  However, very quickly after I started running I realized I had the wrong bra on.  In my haste to beat the darkness, I didn't change out of the cotton sports bra I had on during Val's softball game.  So after mile 1, I stopped at my house and ran in to change bras.  I put the most compressing running bra I have on and then went back out.  The new bra helped a lot, but I was still surprised by the bounce. 

I know it's been 7 months since I had real breasts, and having those huge unmovable bricks for 6 months is burned in my memory, but I'm pretty sure I did not bounce as much in November as I did today.  Granted, my larger chested friends would slap me up-side the head if they heard me talking like this, because I'm describing a very slight shift as a bounce.  I doubt anyone but me would notice it.  However, it's strange because I honestly think the implants are softer and bouncier than my real ones.  It defies reason.  They are smaller, made of of gel, but somehow bouncier. 

When getting into the shower after the run, I also noticed that the scars were not happy about the run either.  They were bright red (especially the right one) and not amused at the beating they just took for nearly 40 minutes.  Now I'm wearing my post-op zip-in-the-front compression bra.  I'll wear it to bed tonight to make amends.

Given how the running went tonight, I think I'll give it a rest for awhile and try again after my countdown is done on July 6.

Day 28 of South Beach Diet
Breakfast: I had breakfast at Eggfast by my office.  It was really, really good. I had Migas (Tex-Mex scrambled eggs) with chorizo (seasoned pork) and chipotle sauce.  It was spicy and wonderful.  I had them hold the chips and tortillas.
Lunch: chicken lunch meat
Snack: string cheese, piece of colby, and half an avocado
Dinner: 5.5oz V8 and soy nuts at Val's baseball game
I didn't mean to eat so little today, I just ate on-the-go all day and only got a sit-down meal at breakfast.