1.02.2011

The Green Girl's New Year's Resolution

The Green Girl's New Year's Resolution is stay injury-free.

After struggling with posterior tibial tendonitis for almost two years now, I am determined to run pain free.

At this point, I am not focused on mileage or speed - the most important thing is for me to be healthy.

To symbolize my commitment to this, I am coloring in one of my daruma eyes.

The Daruma concept is based on an ancient Buddhist monk who, after nine years sitting meditating in a cave, lost the use of his arms and legs.

A symbol of good luck and protection in Japan, a Daruma is a type of traditional Japanese okiagari-kobōshi papier-mâché doll. Okiagari-kobōshi dolls have a weighted bottom that enables the doll to recover to an upright position after being tipped over. This represents persistence of spirit and recovery from misfortune.

Daruma dolls are traditionally given to someone starting a new venture, celebrating a birthday, or at the beginning of a New Year.

At the start of an endeavor, one eye is painted and a wish is made for good luck. The other eye is painted when the goal is reached.

19 comments:

  1. Good luck on your resolution- it is a great one! My mother gave me a daruma long ago and I just love the symbolism.

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  2. I hope this year is a year of pain-free running!

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  3. Have a wonderful and injury free year.

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  4. Great Resolution, and a great concept to follow it! I wish you luck, and have total faith in you :)

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  5. Oooo, I NEED one of those darumas!!! Oh how I need it!

    I think 2011 is going to be a great success for you, Greenie! You are smart, and know when to lay low when pain starts to flair up and that's what helps stay injury-free. Most of the time :).

    Hope hope hope our paths cross again in 2011....maybe even at SF, if my heel lets me do it. LOVED that race!

    HUGS!

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  6. I just found your blog and will be following! Congrats on your H2) bottle win! :)

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  7. Great resolution! I love how you explained it.

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  8. Here, here on the pain free! That is a great resolution. Wishing the best for you.

    Happy New Year!

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  9. Happy New Year! That is a great resolution! Forget about speed and just relax, enjoy and run = injury free!

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  10. Very cool daruma!! I am with you on staying injury free!! Happy 2011!! :)

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  11. Great resolution - can't wait for the other eye to be painted!

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  12. I'll be here when you paint the other eye! Happy New Year Mary!

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  13. Very cool - a little history lesson on a running Blog. I wish you a happy and healthy 2011 Green Girl.

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  14. Best of luck with staying healthy in 2011! Love the daruma eye!

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  15. Thank you for the fun tidbit of knowledge that always comes with your blog! I'm looking forward to seeing that other eye painted in. Happy New Year, Green Girl!!

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  16. Happy New Year Greenie, great start to it, hope you continue running happily and injury-free!

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  17. I cannot wait until we see both eyes colored in. Very interesting tradition--thanks for sharing!

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  18. How's the PT tendon these days? Although it wasn't a resolution to start the year, one thing I did start doing this year and what seems to be working is giving my foot/PT tendon an ice bath each night. I've noticed that in the morning I don't wake up with as much discomfort and the tendon hasn't caused me to miss any of my marathon training sessions yet. I don't want to jinx it, but hopefully this helps all the way to my marathon. Have you tried nightly ice baths for your foot?

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  19. Like you, I'm hesitant to 'say' anything but I seem to be mostly healed.

    For me, I believe it was a combination of the prescription orthotics, motion control shoes, and sports taping the arch.

    Since I was training for a marathon last year, I wasn't able to rest as much as I probably should have.

    I've gotten to the point where I don't have to tape my arch for short runs but I tape religiously for long runs.

    I also occasionally wear my 'more minimal' high stability shoes for runs less than an hour but since the motion controls have served me well, I don't plan on moving away from them anytime soon.

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