Grrrrreat Day!!

So training has been humming along. My injuries are all improving. I was officially released from physical therapy this morning for my foot. Finally! And apparently getting new running shoes every once in a while helps too. Thanks to New Balance Knoxville I have a few awesome pairs of shoes to rotate through. Since they hooked me up with shoes my foot and shins have significantly improved. I can't thank them enough!

We have made a few adjustments in my training, mainly getting my sprints off the track and onto the turf. So far it's definitely paying off. I had possibly my best jump day EVER today. My legs were feeling good, I could actually jump off the ground for a change. Today I made some significant strides in my actual technique in my jumps. I was able to get my grip on the pole up to 11'7 from only 3 lefts, or 6 steps. As a reference, last year from 3 lefts the highest I could hold was 10'. Over a foot and a half higher.... It's going to be a good year!! :)

I also cleared 11'1 today from 3 lefts EASILY. I was over it by at least 6", and on that jump I was only gripping 11'5. On my last jump of the day I came sooooo close to clearing the bungee at 11'7, gripping 11'6. As Roman said, the bar would have stayed... That's a 9" push!

For those of you that need all of those numbers translated, the box that the pole is planted in is actually 8" below track level. So if I am holding 11' on the pole, my actual grip is 11' minus 8", or 10'4. So to clear a bar that was exactly my hand grip, it would have to be at 10'4. Hopefully that makes a little more sense.... I know that a 9" doesn't really sound that impressive. But I am only running from 6 steps. The farther back you run from, the more energy you'll be able to put into the pole. And the more energy put into the system, the more energy you will get back out of it. So if I can push 8" or 9" from 6 steps, imagine what I can do from 16 steps..................... Holy crap I'm so excited!!!

Of course we don't have any footage of my best jumps today, but here is one of the vaults from this session. Enjoy!

It's Been a While

I know. But I have a hard time finding something to write when I'm not feeling positive. And the last 3 weeks have been a struggle. Things are thankfully looking up now.

So after my last post, I had a week of post-engagement happy times with Geoff before coming back to Knoxville to get ready for fall training. I was feeling great and I was very positive because my foot was feeling much much better. But things took a turn for the worst when the physical therapist examined my foot and said that in the 6 weeks I'd been resting, my foot showed minimal healing. The tear must have been worse than he thought and that this could in fact be a career ending injury since it's in my jump foot. More than anything, I was shocked. It was definitely not what I was expecting to hear. I shed more than a few tears and had about 15 minutes before I got to work to properly freak out. Then with some much needed discussions with the parental units and coach, we decided to hold off on the drastic life changing decisions before I saw another orthopedist and actually got an MRI.

It took a little over a week to see the orthopedist, get the MRI, and get the results. The doctor was amazing! Spent at least 30 min with me each time answering the millions of questions I had. He's definitely on speed dial next time I have any issues. (Dr. Brantley Burns at TN Orthopedic Clinic if anyone is in need. They are GREAT!).

So the verdict: No torn ligaments. Never had any torn ligaments. Just an acute case of plantar fasciitis. Whew!! That was quite the scare. As anyone who has had plantar fasciitis knows, it's painful and annoying and there isn't an easy fix. It goes away when it wants to. After discussing the options, I decided to get a cortisone shot. It's given some people I know a lot of relief in the past so I thought it was worth a try. It has been 9 days since the shot and it is already less tender. Definitely not back to 100%, but getting there. The physical therapists are much more aggressive now that we know there is no tear. Sometimes it seems like they're doing their best to MAKE a tear, I was crying on the table yesterday. Really. And it takes A LOT of pain to make me cry. But I trust that they are helping. It really is feeling better.

So now it's back to fall training. I haven't been given the go-ahead to run on the track or try jumping yet, but I am running on the alter-G treadmill at work. It's crazy! It takes some of your body weight off so that I can do all the running workouts pain free and not get too far behind. Check it out:

And of course I can do all the gymnastics that I want. :) I will post more as it comes. Hopefully I'll be putting up videos of my short run jumps very very soon.

WE'RE ENGAGED!!!

Alright. For those of you that want to know the juicy details here it is!

Ever since my parents have announced their upcoming move to New Zealand, Geoff and I have been having some serious talks. To be totally honest, we both knew REALLY early on that this day would come. So it was really just a matter of time. We knew we had to make it through next year with as little major distractions as possible, both because of the importance of the competitive seasons and because of Geoff is just starting grad school. Plus, family means a lot to me. I didn't want to reach any major milestones in our relationship while my parents were out of the country. We had basically decided that we would get married in the fall of 2013. So our two options we were left with were wait to get engaged after my parents returned from NZ and have a super short engagement, or get engaged now and have a really long engagement. I get stressed enough with everyday life, so the longer we have to plan the wedding the happier I'll be. :)

So I knew things were coming, I just had no idea it would be this soon! I knew Geoff was going to have an important talk with my Dad last weekend. He didn't tell me, but it was the only time we were guaranteed to see my parents before they left the country. It didn't take much guessing. Once both my parents knew, we started celebrating and it kind of felt like we were already engaged. But Geoff needed to talk to his family too before we made things official. It worked out that he had to leave Pinehurst before me to make it to some meetings at ETSU. So my mom brought me back on Thursday and we met Geoff in Banner Elk. There is a gorgeous river just outside of downtown that is a special place for the two of us. We had one of our first dates there, and it is a place where we both had the first inkling of how great things would be. :) We parked by Geoff's car and his only instructions were for me to come find him. My mom waited in the car, and I set off down the trail. Once I spotted him in the middle of the river, it seemed like it took FOREVER for me to make my way out there to him over all the rocks. He was waiting with a blanket, two champagne glasses, and the Bruno Mars song 'Marry Me' playing on his iPod. He filled the champagne glasses with apple cider he had kept chilled in the river and asked me right out there on the rock. So perfect!!

But the best part was THE RING! We are designing our own ring using diamonds from my both of my grandmothers' rings, plus some from my mother. I'm so excited that my ring with have true sentimental value. I definitely wish my grandparents could have met Geoff, but this way I think that they will always be with us. Unfortunately we can't afford the setting that we want just yet. So in the few days while I was in Pinehurst and he was back in TN he was working hard, unbeknownst to me. This is what he proposed with:

I LOVE it!! Absolutely!! It is so perfect! We have also decided that I will wear one of my grandmothers rings in the meantime to make it seem officially official. (In case there were any doubters... :) ) And he also made me a small ring out of hemp that I can wear to practice in. So I am never at a loss for rings to wear! :)

As we said, the wedding will be a long time coming. Fall of 2013, in Pinehurst at my parents house on the lake. So start planning time off now! We probably won't set a date for a little while. We will have to schedule the wedding around our competition seasons... Of course. Haha. Those of you that have already been through the wedding planning process- any and all advice is welcome!! I took one look at the wedding books at Barnes and Noble and was instantly overwhelmed... Good thing we have plenty of time. We'll find out how good we are at procrastinating....

Injury Update

So. I have gotten a few different opinions on my foot. The week we decided to end the season I started seeing a physical therapist in town to figure out what is going on and to start treatment. I also went to see an orthopedist during some down time at home with my parents. Both of them came back with the same diagnosis: I have partially torn 3 ligaments in my foot. For the anatomically inclined, it's the Abductor Hallucis, Flexor Digitorum Brevis, and the Plantar Fascia tendon. (Don't explain my injury and leave me alone with Netter's... I get curious).

The only thing I really need is rest. Both gave me a timeline of about 4 weeks out, which is perfect. I have already been resting for 2 weeks, and I have another 2 weeks before fall training is scheduled to start. So overall, I'm optimistic. And I really do think it's a one time injury that I can overcome and move past. But I will say that it will be nice to put on a real pair of shoes again and toss this boot aside. With some care and attention it doesn't need to be a nagging injury that hangs with me until the end of 2012. In the meantime I will be enjoying my time off, trying to relax and get refocused for the year to come!

Sad Day.

It's been a rough few weeks for me here. I have made some progress on the runway. Definitely turned some heads at my last couple of meets. It feels good to finally feel comfortable with my run and plant. The unfortunate consequence is that I have ended up blowing through poles so the improvements haven't resulted in any spectacular meet results. But progress is progress and I can't be disappointed with it.

Unfortunately I feel like I have been fighting off injuries the last few weeks. Our schedule had me competing in 2 more meets. Both of them are here at home, the last 2 installments of Friday Night Heights. With the way training has been going, I had no doubts that I would end the season with a big result. But my body has other plans. Since our last meet over a week ago, I have been trying to manage an issue with my heel. I was able to practice last Monday, but since then I have pretty much been limping around. It always is excruciating in the morning, then it starts feeling better by practice time in the evening so I can do at least a light workout.

But after a week of pretending it's not a big deal, tonight's practice was a slap in the face. It was actually feeling a lot better during the day, and I did some short run warm up vaults. But when I tried to sprint for a full run I could feel it escalating. And I just knew if I jumped on my heel at full speed it was going to hurt. A lot. My coach took a look at it after I decided to pack it in for the day. Just the little bit of poking he did sent the pain through the roof. I was almost in tears and couldn't put any weight on it. We both came to the decision that I should just end the season a few weeks early, and schedule a doctors appointment ASAP.

I have 4 weeks exactly until we are supposed to start our fall training. I am optimistic that we can get this issue sorted out quickly. And the rest of my body will be welcoming the break. I even have a few weeks off from work, so I can really do some relaxing. I think I will get to spend the entire time with Geoff, which I'm sure will be just what the doctor orders. :) And even though it is a premature end to the season, I made it much longer into the summer than I ever have before. Now I am confident I can jump well all the way through August. I know I have made significant and permanent changes to my vault since my move. And I'm looking forward to putting in some hard work this fall. Next year... it's going to be BIG!

Weeeeellll.....

So. That wasn't what I was hoping for. My first NH in a while. I was really excited during warm ups at the meet today, because for the first time in 2 weeks my legs felt awesome! New shoes made all of the difference. My run and plant felt spectacular!! They are really coming together. And everyone noticed too, which did make the NH a little less painful.

The bungee was at 13'6 during warm ups and I had 2 great attempts at it with a decent amount of height over the bar. Given how everything felt I was certain that I was going to get a PR. But as it turned out, the top end of my vault hasn't progressed as much as my run and plant. I had just enough hesitation before I started pulling that I was just running into the bar every time. It was very frustrating, and I was pretty upset. But I know things are moving in the right direction. I haven't really practiced at all the last 2 weeks because of how rough my legs felt. So I need a lot more work on the runway in practice. It will come. I have no doubts. :)

Keep Moving Forward

So... It's been a crazy few weeks!! Vaulting is definitely progressing. My last competition was 2 weeks ago. Though I didn't have a new PR, I jumped on my 13'7 poles for the first time (which, if you know me at all you know that's a big deal!). And the following Monday I had possibly my best practice ever. For the first time I was conceptually able to move my focus past the plant onto the second half of the vault. It felt amazing! Since then I have been dealing with some really bad shin splints so we have taken practices pretty easy. The good news is that I think the only problem was that my shoes were really worn out. And I just bought them 2 months ago! I guess that's a sign of how much we've been running...

The best news of the last 2 weeks is that I have a job (finally)!! And I couldn't be more excited. I am working for Eddie at the Health Shoppe in West Knoxville. I'm doing my best to catch on quickly, but there are literally thousands of awesome products for sale in there. So I am trying to study up when I'm not in there so that I can actually help people that come in rather than just manning the register. But everyone that I work with is awesome. I'm really excited to be there. If you're in the area you should stop by and say hi.

I have three more meets left in the 2011 season. My goal is ultimately to get a new PR. I have been making drastic improvements on so many different aspects of my vault that I'm starting to get a little impatient to see some results on the runway. I know it's coming. I have also started to work with a great sport psychologist in town. I have a new mental strategy for approaching my vaulting. Today will be my first day trying to put it into action. I am super excited about it. Maybe later on I'll let you know what it is, but for now it's my secret. :)

We are competing again at the Friday Night Heights series on the UT track tonight. Hopefully the weather will hold off... It's sunny now, but the meet starts at 6pm and according to the weather channel there is a 100% chance of thunderstorms at 6.... Wish me luck!!