First Runs Post-Vasectomy

I had a vasectomy 2.5 weeks ago. It was quite a story, so check that link if you missed it.

I was SUCH A GOOD BOY at following the doctor's "returning to normal activities" rules. I haven't posted about this yet, but my family just got back from a few days in the Faroe Islands (between the UK and Iceland) and I wanted to make sure I was properly healed for that trip. As I noted in my vasectomy post, I didn't do ANYTHING physical for a week after the procedure - just some walking and stretching. My steps were 1/2 of the normal amount for that week, and my "intensity minutes" were abysmal.

Last week Monday (1 week post-vasectomy), I got up and went on an easy run. Normally Mondays are my long run with some harder miles in the middle, but this was only a week after the TC 10 Mile so even withOUT the vasectomy, I'd still be taking it a BIT easy to make sure I didn't injury myself after the stress of a hard race. I wore my compression tights (which I haven't worn in YEARS) just to help "hold things in place" and not put too much stress on my still stitched up testes. I stopped about a mile in to pull up them EXTRA TIGHT to my crotch to really make them do their duty. (They were the tights I wore for the 2009 Monster Dash 10 Mile.)

The run was just over 5 miles: that's the normal length for my "easy river loop," but it wasn't a river loop. It looked like an "injured run" where I'm looping around close to home in case something flares up and I have to stop and walk home:

But things were fine! No issues!

It ended the longest stretch in recent history with NO WORKOUTS WHAT-SO-EVER, and I really felt that. My legs were HEAVY!! Normally, I might have 1 or 2 half-splits that are over 4:00 (that's 8:00+ per mile pace) during a warm-up or a cooldown of a harder run, but ALLLLLLL of these splits were over 4 minutes! I couldn't get them any faster, as I had done NOTHING for the previous week: no running, but also no biking, swimming, lifting, or core work. I felt that week of inactivity. My heartrate never climbed above 110 for that week:

Find the week of nothingness in the middle.

I did a normal "easy river loop" on Wednesday (1 week ago, and 9 days post-vasectomy) and that was totally fine. It was close to 6 miles and I felt OK.

Monday and Tuesday of last week were also ALMOST normal with regards to my strength work: I did some leg exercises on Monday along with a little core, and I did a shorter version of a "normal" upper body workout on Tuesday. And all was well.

The bruising that I so poetically wrote about last week was disappearing nicely. It was gone by last weekend (about 12-14 days post-vasectomy). The "dissolvable stitch" was still around, and I wasn't going to take that out too early based on the trip (that was scheduled from Wed-Sun last week), so the plan was to take that out earlier this week. We were delayed in getting home because of some weather issues, so we didn't get in until Monday evening. I got out a tiny sharp scissors, but as I was pulling the stitch to one side to expose part of it that I could cut, I ended up pulling it right out. Easy peasy.

Now my testes have a little dimple right were that single stitch was put in. I look a little like John Travolta down there:

Me, below the belt. Ready to boogie. With less hair than Travolta.