snowbath

[ilanarama]

Distance running makes the muscles in your legs heat and swell, and it's often recommended to soak them in an ice bath (which reduces swelling) after a long run or long, hard race. In the summer, I either stop at the Animas River (a little less than half a mile from my house) and soak my legs, or dump a bunch of ice into the bathtub and do it at home after any run 18 miles or longer. I've soaked in the San Miguel River after the Imogene Pass Run, and in the La Plata River after the Kennebec Pass Challenge. I think it helps, although it's not necessarily comfortable.

Of course, at the moment we've got a whole lot of snow on the ground (even though none has fallen in more than a week), so after a 19-miler on a cold but sunny Saturday, I made myself a cup of hot chocolate, put on a fleece jacket and a hat, grabbed a book, and asked Britt to shovel some snow onto my legs: "Just pretend we're at the beach and playing in the sand," I said. (He snorted, but obliged.)



It...actually felt pretty good! Not as bone-chilling as ice water, although I only lasted about 15 minutes despite being in the sun. 25° F, by the way, and propped up against the south-facing wall of my house. I'm wearing thin tights and a pair of nylon shorts in a (vain) attempt to keep my butt dry.

Comments

[libitina]

That's pretty hilarious. :)

[sara]

Is that a Diana Gabaldon novel you have there?

[halfpastmorrow]

Oh, hee. The very thought of that sends shivers down my spine.

[blnchflr]

Aurgh, I would ignorantly have thought that'd make the muscles worse!

[luzula]

Hee, that looks kind of fun. Although I would sit on something more than thin nylon if I didn't want a...what do you call it? The kind of infection where it hurts when you pee.

*squints and tries to see what you're reading*

[mtl]

Awesome pic, though rather uncomfortable looking. :)

[(Anonymous)]

Been a long time since you posted this one... what have you been up to since becoming a partial snow-woman?

Eric W.