PT visit #2..domo arigato

Today was my 2nd visit to PT....another whirlwind of learning. 


The experience is best described like this:


You are a machine...and are broken. You don't really know why or how, but you know something isn't right. You have adjusted yourself to function, and function you have! ...but it isn't factory stock anymore...oh no.


For your entire existence the other robots have sometimes asked you why you are limping when you are just moving the way you always have. You reply it's how I was built. Sometimes they forget the answer and ask again a few months later 8/


The PT does a lot of subtle things you don't understand fully and shows you in a way you can finally perceive some of the broken-ness for the first time...what is not working right.


Then she does some less subtle things that are very odd....moving your parts to angles and combinations that you didn't think were really part of the user's manual...it does't hurt.... just very awkward and a little difficult to do. 


Again, we are shown the broken-ness...but...it's less now.  Hmm...there's more to do..


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Essentially, it appears that I run without using my core at all... My legs and arms are bolted onto a big cylinder that doesn't move...it's all locked up.  I use my legs and hip flexors and that's about it...they have to work much harder as a result. She says this is not atypical at all..too much sitting it chairs,  but that doesn't make me feel too much better.


She drew upon Usain Bolt as the perfect example of core-based stride and suggested I look at a video of him in slow motion. Sigh. Maybe a good example, but a very high bar for the average Joe!


Then she really surprised me: she told me that when you get it right, and you running from your core, you'll feel very different as....she said it's described like floating feeling.  WTF? When did I not get this memo? I want to float too!


I googled for this:


running core pace +floating -point feeling


Here are some of the quotes I found on various blogs (the -point is to get rid of hits on floating point arithmetic polluting the search results):


"Finished sub 6:30 pace and it felt like I was floating"


“..and after that it just feels like floating. "




"..when I felt that “floating” feeling for the very first time during our run"




"..know I'll get that floating feeling that is harder to achieve running"




I can't say I've ever experienced this..sure I've had runs where I felt strong..but never "floating".


Have you ever experienced this?


Anyway, floating aside, my efficiency is probably very  poor..the good news (I guess) is that there's more speed to harvest in addition to preventing injury 8)


This PT stuff is by far the most unusual semi-medical experience I've ever had. I wish I had video to replay and absorb the farrago of information conveyed in the all-to-brief 45 minutes.


She gave me more homework...one of which was to try to be more aware of my pelvis and core during the day and when running. 


As I walked later I could feel that I was much less imbalanced than ever before...that little rolling limp was not nearly as pronounced. Still quite messed up mind you but less so. Without warning, a wave of emotion passed over me. I though to myself...I...I .. really can change this?!


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I asked her about upping my mileage and she said the usual cautions apply ..e.g. listen to aches and pains, don't over-do, but otherwise go for it...no problemo.


Super! Hear that Jill?