Can an exercise ball hurt your knees?

I know earlier this week I mentioned that my knees are a bit achy sometimes. At work I've been sitting on an exercise ball and I use my legs a lot to keep my position constant. I wonder if this has anything to do with the achy-ness. (It couldn't have too much to do with it really because I was off work for four days when I wrote that last post.)

I'm also mildly in Ragnar Relay training mode meaning I'm trying to do more than one workout within 24 hours right now. Wednesday night I went to the gym and made friends with the stair master. (In honor of my knees I'm not running down Montreal Ave this week.) This morning I got up and had a great run around my happy place. (I'll remember that at mile 13 when I'm crossing that bridge in the sunshine.) After my run Paula Radcliffe told me I set a new personal best for the mile. (You'd think I would've done that running down Montreal Ave but cool nonetheless.)

I got to reminiscing this week and started looking back and when I learned to run but reading my old blog posts. Through a freak accident I found that other blog that we kept to detail getting ready for our first 5K. Here's some of my favorite posts:

• The first run: So cute. I remember running around like a four block path in my neighborhood when I was learning. It could possibly have covered a mile but not much more.


• At some point I got to where I could run far enough that the little path in my neighborhood was inadequate and I went to Lake Nokomis. And so began the a beautiful friendship.


• I remember how bad my arches used to hurt too. I don't know what happened, they just stopped hurting once I'd been running for a while. More on the arches here and you can follow the link for instructions on taping your arches as well.


• Amanda is always right. Too bad she doesn't run with me anymore. I still remember that lady saying, "gosh, I have to go three miles just to not feel like I'm going to die" which is how I felt about running for a long time; the beginning was always the hardest. (Actually I still do feel that way sometimes.)


• This must have been the first time I ran over a mile without stopping. Good for me.


• Waking up early: Sucked, even back then. It was good to read this post because (it's hilarious) in my mind I always imagine that I had an easy time getting up to run 'last year' or 'when I first started' and that it's gotten harder. The truth is I just have more excuses now. When I was in grad school if I didn't get myself up to run at the crack of dawn it meant no running for the day because I was so busy. Now sometimes I'll think, 'oh, I'll just go to the gym after work...' Right. Like that happens. This morning I woke up to my cell phone playing I am Superman which did ultimately help me get up and moving.

That was great summer, learning how to run again and then doing the Milk Run with Amanda and Amy. There had been a couple of other times in my life when I did run. Before I did semester at sea (I was 20) I ran every day and was probably the skinniest I've ever been. (I still remember walking into Abercrombie and buying the same size pants I wore in eighth grade!) After Semester at Sea I was so busy with school and graduating I didn't exercise a whole lot. When I lived with Andrea the first time (I was 22) I remember getting really good at running and even developing my winter running skills. I also remember loving Andrea's little Gazelle exercise machine. Although once I left for Africa and came back I never re-started the habit. Really, after Africa it was two years before I started running again, thanks to Amanda's bright idea to use the Couch Potato Running Plan to get ready for the Milk Run.

• After my first 5k I was preparing for an ambitious (at the time it was) five mile race and took quite a spill. I didn't stop running that day but ultimately becuase of the injury I stopped for at least a month. I could barely walk or get up at one point.
  


• Happily, despite the fall and injury the habit stuck and I kept it up. (I remember when my living room was that color and when that painting was there... How strange.) And now here I am training for my second marathon.

This concluded the trip down memory lane.