Alternative therapy

After Heartland and my crippling bout with plantar fasciitis, I tried acupuncture for the first time back in October. It eliminated the swelling in my feet and legs overnight, so I decided to give it another try now that I'm in my heaviest training period before NOLA. Even if it doesn't help with recovery time like I hope, I do find it incredibly relaxing. Leave it to the girl with tattoos to find being stuck repeatedly with pins relaxing.

While John doesn't really believe in alternative therapy like acupuncture, I have to say I'm kind of a believer. Even John couldn't argue with how much it helped the swelling in my legs. It probably goes along with the idea that I'd rather run barefoot and rehab my foot than wear orthotics. I don't take NSAIDs or cold medicine unless absolutely needed to function. I like the whole-body approach to training and healing and think generally speaking that Mother Nature knows best. Yoga, acupuncture, and my inversion chair are much more appealing options to me than popping pills, wearing custom shoes, or relying other gadgets to feel and train my best.

So for the next 5-6 weeks, I'm going to keep training as usual and I'm going to voluntarily let some guy stick needles in my legs, arms, and head every other week. I'm making special appointments the week of my 1/2 marathon and the week of NOLA. If nothing else, I'll at least be relaxed.