Often times on rest weeks they try to send us away.  Home, to see family… its a lot easier for others to go.  Home is closer for some.  Cheaper for others.  But a 24 hour car drive and hundreds of dollars I don’t have lie between me and Hayward…and so instead I stayed put in Lake Placid.

Now for the question of the hour…what does one do with all that time?  Its a little overwhelming sometimes when you go from training all day every day to well…close to nothing.  Its as if time just stops.

Lucky for me I was tired.  and so I slept.  I slept alot.  I’m a morning person.  Sleeping in past 7am is a struggle…but my body needed it.  So, I slept until I woke up.  Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday I got 10 hours of sleep a night.   And ever so slowly I could feel the life creeping back into me.  Wednesday morning came and I was excited at the idea of training again.  Running felt welcoming and good.  Slowly. Ever so slowly the life is coming back into me as I walk that line.

Now mind you, although I was sleeping 10 hours a night and taking naps during the day I did manage to get other things done!

As you might know.  I really enjoy cooking and baking.  Especially baking!  …needless to say I took full advantage of my waking hours.  I virtually became a hermit and lived in the little kitchen across the hall from my room.  Getting pleasure from filling the hallway with the smells of tasty things warm and ready to share and eat!  More apple sauce, more apple crisp, more apple pie.  There were loaves of banana bread given out and consumed rapidly.  Eggs with good orange yolks.  Kale…and thick strips of bacon.  I don’t eat a lot when I’m not training, but what I do eat I like to taste good.

What else did I do you might ask?  Home work.  Lots and lots of homework.  I cranked out essays with dietary recommendations any nutritionist would be proud of.  I can now raddle off a disgusting lists of vitamins, nutrients, and supplements to ease your aches and pains.  More than anything it felt good to fill my mind with something that wasn’t about shooting, or skiing, something entirely different but equally satisfying.

Finally I spent the rest of my free time between doctors, sports med, and at last… the long awaited trip to get an MRI of my shoulder!  Ready for some good news?  I won’t need surgery!  All the bits and pieces of my shoulder and its tendons and muscles are intact.  The scan showed lots of inflammation and fluid around the head of my bicep tendon and in and around my rotator cuff.  So although I won’t be 100% for a while I’m incredibly happy to have some answers.

As my team mates head home I can’t help but miss mine…