My run, and an old lady with a stop sign.
During my run today, a sweet old lady crossing guard noticed that I was rubbing my upper leg muscles right above the knee because I started to cramp up.
I was cramping up because I had just finished a big Back and Chest workout, so apparently my blood was needed elsewhere. Plus, in the morning I had done my 12 minute HIIT that includes 2 sets of squat jumps and 2 sets of high jumps. That was at 7 a.m. around 15 minutes after waking up.
The night before, I had finished my leg workout around 9 p.m. which included 4 sets of squats and 2 sets of Lunge/Step ups. So, you see? My quads had plenty of reasons to cramp up!
Anyway, when I first passed her, I had thanked her with a smile and a one-hand-up salute in a high-five style but not actually asking for a slapping of the palms. She seemed to appreciate my appreciation.
On the way back, as I was crossing the street I jokingly exclaimed, “I’m done!” That’s when I was rubbing my legs and apparently making a face that said the opposite of, “I fucking love how I feel!”
My appearance must have prompted her to lean toward me and say in a compassionate tone, “I was a toe dancer. I know how you feel.”
I smiled and stopped right there. Right in the middle of the street since I felt the safety and security of my white-haired, florescent-vest-wearing guardian holding a stop sign above her head.
She went on to ask, “Do you have anything to put on it?”
“There’s a foam roller at the gym,” I assured.
Squinting as if trying to figure out the exact type of idiot I was, she stared at me for three seconds before clarifying, “No, I mean something you can rub on, like Ben Gay.”
“Oh!” I said through a grin, “Yeah, I have something at home,” and I started to walk away slowly as she kept talking about her toe dancing days when she was a total hottie I presume since I couldn’t clearly hear her anymore. I smiled, waved, and she waved back, still holding that stop sign above her head alerting drivers not to fucking kill me.
After some more rubbing and a bit of kneeding, I continued my 3.1 mile run back to the gym. I did not use any Ben Gay, thank you very much.
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