Massage & Running

Two of my favorite things!! What should you know if you're a runner and want to improve your life? Well, here are my favorite FAQ's!

Q. How often should I get a massage?
A. At least once a month if you're only moderately active. But if you're training for something, at least twice a month.

Q. Who should I call for a massage?
A. Look for 2 things.  The first thing is price. You definitely want to set up appointments that are affordable to maintain. A massage once a year that's $150 is nice, but chances are, you can't afford $150 twice a month. The second thing is the experience of the therapist with the issues you are having.

Q. Great- so how do I find a good therapist?
A. ASK the person who answers the phone a few questions. How long has the therapist been working there? What type of client do they normally see? You don't want a massage therapist who sees 90% geriatric clients for your sports massage. Also, how much experience does the therapist have with your specific sport. I, obviously, know a lot about the ups and downs and cycles of training for a race because I'm a runner.

Q. Since I'm a runner, I want work on my glutes and hips. Is this awkward to ask for?
A. No!! If your therapist is professional they will have experience with those areas and will know how to tuck in the sheet to make you very comfortable.

Q. What if I don't like what the therapist is doing?
A. TELL THEM. Our feelings don't get hurt. Say things like, "Hey, could you go a little higher on my leg?" or "That area is a little sensitive, can you use less pressure?" or "I'm a little cold, can you turn the heat up?"

Q. When should I get a massage?
A. On your off day, OR AFTER your long run. If your long run is Sunday morning then get the massage either Sunday night or some time on Monday. You don't want to get a massage the day before a hard workout. You need to schedule the massage so your body can rest and heal for about 24 hours afterward.


Any more questions?

FAQ: How do we get a hold of you?

Well, there are a few ways! You can always email us, though Stephan is notoriously bad at responding to electric mail. You can write us a letter to the PO Box, which is listed at the bottom of the page, or you can call us. Now, the deal with the phones is this- when we got to Baker we realized that we get no service here- not one single bar. So we hopped over to Laurie at Mid Rivers and got new cell phones, and new cell phone numbers. Unfortunately, we can't find our old phone chargers, so our phone books are sitting helplessly inside our dead-battery phones.

I know there are many people Stephan would love to talk to, but he's lost the phone numbers, and until we can dig out the chargers from our packed stuff, we don't know how to call you! If you'd like our phone numbers, please email me and I will be happy to send out the number, but for privacy reasons (and piracy reasons) I'm not posting them on the website. I'm sure you understand.


We have plenty of updates for you- The Director of the Montana Nurses' Association personally called me to tell me Stephan's new MT license number. Hurray!!! And now all we have to do is put together the scholarship application! Thanks again to everyone who was sending prayers and good thoughts. I think they really helped soften the hearts of those working at the Illinois State offices.

We moved a lot of our stuff over into the Plevna garage today, with the help of Matt and Kayle's truck. Woo hoo.

The garage we were keeping our stuff in flooded when everything thawed, so Stephan's brag book and all my Healing Touch documentation are sitting out to dry. We'll see later what is salvageable. I have photos, but my camera is being bad right now.

I applied for a business license in the State of Montana today to start my very own LLC here! The name I applied with is Anjali. It is the name of the gesture that often is associated with the Sanskrit greeting, Namaste. The prayerful nature of the name, and my logo, should help me maintain a respectful attitude toward all my patients and clients.

Stephan works Wednesday, Thursday and Friday this week- from 6am-6pm. Long days, but rewarding. Hopefully after this weekend we'll be moved into the house! If anyone sees a cute "The Korubas" sign, please forward it to me, we'd like something other than the Bears Flag to stake our claim in Montana.

I almost forgot! Trivia: How did George Armstrong Custer rank in his class when he graduated from West Point? (I made this one easy, there are PRIZES people!)

FAQ: Does Stephan have a sense of humor about being a male nurse?

Answer: no. He asked me to take down the Male Nurse photo. I figured I could leave it up if I made it more fair.

He got home this morning (Tuesday) at about 7:45 and went straight to bed. He slept until 3pm, when he ate, made a few phone calls about his student loans, and left for work. I stopped by just now to bring him 'lunch' and he asked if he could come home with me. He has about 6 hours left, but he said they haven't gotten a chance to sit down yet! It's a busy night. They had one ER patient when I was there, and with the snow coming down in blankets, they may have a few more before the night is over.

He was upbeat about it, though. I could see he was tired, but I also know that the excitement keeps him going. I would feel more sympathy if things were boring and he wanted to leave. Last night we talked a bit about a patient he has who may die soon. That will be something new for him. He seemed a little cautious about spending time with her, but it's his favorite part of the job. I know he sits with patients, talks to them whenever he can, and really takes time to make sure all their needs are being met. Beyond just temperature and physical comfort- he holds their hands. Kayle says he has a way with the older women. I don't doubt that. I think he has a way with everyone he meets.

Even though I miss him tonight, I know he's with people who need him. As important as he is to folks, I don't mind sharing at all.

Trivia: What is the ratio of cows to humans (or humans to cows) in the state of Montana?

FAQ: How do I comment on your site?

So look at the bottom of this post, you should see that first set of information: Click where it tells you how many comments have been made to this post. That should show you all the comments, and look like the second picture up there. Type some stuff that's funny or nice, and select "Other" (I'm figuring that if you have to ask this question, you don't already have a BLOG identity, and I HATE anonymous comments, so just click "Other"). Hit, "Publish your comments" and it should pause for a moment, then tell you that you've commented!

Practice this now, I'll delete this post later so no one can see what sillyness we've all been up to.

Go ahead, post. I won't tell anyone.