Soccer is OVER.

Ummm, yeah. 

Thank the good Lord that soccer is over for the season.  The pulled quad from 5 weeks ago still isn't healed, although it has improved with the use of electric stim and heat.  Our last game of the season was on Sunday.  We played the same team that we crushed the week before, but we were missing our main center midfielders which did us in.  The final score was 4-3.  And as luck would have it I strained my right quad this time.  I'm pretty sure it was because I was trying to baby the left one and had no choice but to attempt to sprint in our last game.  I also think that sprinting hills could be part of the culprit.  I didn't do many flat surface sprints which would have allowed me to extend my legs a little more rather than lifting them upwards.  We'll see what happens once I'm healed and try out flat sprints.  

I can't wait to be fully healed; between my wrist and my legs I'm a walking disaster.  I still need PT twice a week for my wrist and think that I may have to stop lifting all together for several more weeks.  Fun times.  

Lovely wrapped quad

On a positive note, I did do a nice 3.5 mile run this morning which didn't aggravate the quad.  It really only hurts when I stretch it or sprint.  I plan on focusing on running until the good old Turkey Trot in a few weeks!

  

Almost...

... this girl almost scored two goals!  One hit the crossbar and the other was barely stopped by the keeper.  I'm determined to get one in the back of the net.  

I hit up the soccer field this Sunday after taking a week off for my quad to recover.  Recover, it did not. I wrapped my quad, but it hurt during the first sprint and continued the rest of the game.  I iced it and took some advil afterwards....guess it is just going to take a little longer.  

The team we played against was NOT nice.  They were rough and rowdy and I hit the ground hard several times.  That'll happen when you are running into 200lb men!   My poor tootsie got stomped on which resulted in cleat bruises and a lot of swelling.  Bruises I can deal with! 

I have to take this weekend off since I'm having wrist surgery tomorrow.  I'm hoping to be back on the field next weekend!

I'll leave you with my fugly foot. :)

Pulled Quad

Yep, 60 seconds into my soccer game on Sunday I was out with a pulled quad.  I'll take this opportunity to blame everyone else in the household for making me late to the game which then created a less than ideal warm up period, eventually leading to one sprint with cold muscles and a pulled quad. ;) Fantastic.  I left the field, got ice and Advil and then sat out until late in the 2nd half.  I felt bad for the other three women on the field who now had no sub, so I went in for 20 minutes or so but I had no ability to sprint or move my feet quickly.  I made a couple of decent passes, but other than that I was just a warm body that couldn't stop their offense.  Should I have gone back in the game? Definitely not, but like every other athlete I am stubborn.

After researching the injury it sounds like a 2nd degree strain, which means no running/lifting for me.  I'm taking 72 hours off completely and then hopefully doing a slow jog on Thursday, but that all depends on how I feel.  There is a 4 inch by 2 inch section of tight, swollen, and knotted muscle that needs to heal.  It's painful to the touch as well, so I've been icing it each night and keeping the Advil going.  My hope is that I can wrap it and play on Sunday, but we shall see.

And, no this is not an "I'm getting old" injury....it's a dumb one that could have been prevented.

Prognosis

Muscle pulls have varying degrees of damage and time necessary for recovery. The most serious quad strain results from a complete tear in the muscle and may require surgery and a recovery period of three months. A moderate level muscle strain involves partial muscle tearing and takes one to two months for recovery. The least severe muscle strain stretches muscle cells, causing microtears, but requires a shorter recovery period of 10 to 21 days.

Soccer Sunday

It's true, I hadn't put my dirty stinking cleats and shin guards on for five years until this morning.  I didn't even try them on last night to attempt to kick a ball around.  I figured it would be too little too late so why bother! 

One of my co-workers, Leslie, asked if I could join her co-rec team since they needed another woman.  In this league you have to have at least three women on the field at all times.  I was hesitant at first, but I do remember trying to look for a league on my side of the mountain during the Olympics so it would be hypocritical not to at least give it a shot. 

And, boy am I glad that I did.  The players on both teams were very fair and respectful, but we all played hard.  We ended up winning 5-1....would have been 6-1 on a goal that I knocked in, but I was offsides.  Damn it.  My legs were already beat down from the 10k the day before, but I played most of the game and ran my ass off.  Left midfield is not the easiest position for me to play, I prefer the center, but I learned to like it today.  I'm sure I'll play better next week now that I have a better idea of how the others play.  CAN NOT WAIT for next Sunday:)

One thing that I don't miss are stinky shin guards and soaking wet feet from the wet grass.  I am already getting tight from my ribcage down, so tomorrow morning should be tons of fun as I roll out of bed and hit the gym;)

Let's Talk Soccer

It's no secret that I LOVE the Olympics.  I'm so thankful that I have had time off during the day to watch as many events as possible.  It should come as no surprise that I absolutely love watching the women's soccer team.  This group is just as inspirational, if not more so, than the good old days with Brandy Chastain and crew. I watched every single US game and they did not disappoint, well all but one of them.  Hope Solo lost tons of points in my book after she criticized Brandy Chastain's commentary on the game.  I couldn't believe the words that I was reading off of her Facebook posts, disrespectful and disappointing.

Pure joy after beating Canada

On the other hand, I can't imagine being able to be on the same field as Abby Wambach.  She is a class act and is the most motivating player I've ever seen on the soccer field.  Her leadership skills and determination are bar none.  I think I shall start a new campaign, "Abby Wambach for President!"

All of the ladies on this team are no doubt exceptional, but I loved watching Alex Morgan make plays happen out of nothing, Megan Rapinoe's endless energy and drive (oh yeah, and she's my number, 15), and last but not least Amy Lepeilbet's amazing defense.  She is a player that I hadn't paid much attention to in the past, but good lord the girl has skills.  She reminds me of what I always wanted to do on the field; shut down every single one-on-one play and turn the game around.  She's a beast, I tell ya!

Lepeilbet 

Congrats to the US for bringing home the gold, for inspiring our children, and for redeeming themselves against Japan! And did I mention how impressed I was with their game against Canada?  By far the best game I've watched EVER.  Tears were flowing, seriously.

Hmmm, maybe there is an adult league on this side of the mountain? ;)