Disaster
Posted: June 4th, 2008 | Author: Mark | Filed under: Running, Training | Tags: injury, the-pain-oh-dear-lord-the-pain | 9 Comments »Despite what I’d promised yesterday, I forgo my run this morning with the idea to skip Taekwon-Do training tonight and do my run then instead. And so I headed down to Tooting Bec Common, a brisk 5 minute walk to warm myself up. I crossed the road into the park, making way for my fellow runners (for I understand the etiquette of the track), set my stop watch going, and proceeded to jog.
My plan was to run 1 minute, walk 1 minute. Within a few strides, I was running like an old man. Within 40 seconds, my calves were seizing up and I was waiting for the first minute to end. Finally it did, and it took another three minutes walking until I felt brave enough to try running again. This time, that lasted about 10 seconds, and I had to hobble the rest of the way home. My 0.8mile course I was planning on doing a couple laps of ended up taking me 15 minutes to complete. I then had a 0.4 mile walk home from the common. I hobbled indoors, told my wife I’d injured myself, and collapsed on the floor, pleading for her to rub my poor, disabled legs with deep heat.
What’s going on? I know I gave myself a serious beating last week when I did my 10k without any training or conditioning, could it be I am still in recovery from that? Could it be I am wearing the wrong shoes? Poor form? Combination of the above? What’s the answer, boffins?
Wifey wants me to go to the doctor; I’d rather sit it out for another week and see if things sort themselves out. I want to get back into running, so I hope this all passes soon.
One good thing: I saw my first creepy park guy. Yay!
what shoes are you wearing? Post a pic if possible
Do you know ANYTHING about stretching & flexibility ? Now would be a good time to learn…
Doctor will just say – stop running till it stops hurting – so waste of time there…
I don’t know how big you are but it may be worth having a quick MOT vis-a-vi the heart & lungs dept so the Doc may well be worth a visit
Hi Jonathan,
Thanks for your comment – really appreciate it.
I wear a pair of Asics Gel Blackhawks:
I know a bit about stretching; I do martial arts, so we do a fair bit, but that’s mainly hip and hamstring stretching. My boss, a keen long distance runner, has given me some pointers on stretching my calves, but that wasn’t until this morning – I saw another runner yesterday doing some stretches (standing on edge of footpath and lowering heel to the road), but by that point it was no help to me.
I’m a big lad (over 19 stone) but my heart and lungs are OK, based on health check done at the gym. My MA has kept me relatively fit(ish).
Hi Mark,
Firstly well done on getting into this!
I’d recommend getting some professional advice via a shop that offers a gait analysis to establish if the issue is with your shoes or not. They’ll either suggest new shoes or orthotic inserts. Secondly, try not to do too much too soon with your weight as is. You can run, but perhaps should consider adding some complimentary activities such as cycling, cross-training and swimming. I know TKD is a good all round sport, I used to do Tang Soo Do, but running is a far higher impact sport on those feet so good shoes are essential as is more relevant conditioning.
Don’t lose heart, you will nail it with time, effort, perseverance and self belief!!
D.
Hey Darrell — thanks for that, some very welcome advice I must say.
Yeah, I know the shoes may not be that great for me; despite advice from my boss (a runner), I just bought some nice-looking cheapish ones from a department store because I could get 25% off :) However, I have some money coming in soon so will look at getting the correct pair for me.
My legs haven’t improved since Wednesday, so will need to get to the gym I think for some cycling just to get some excercise.
Hey Mark,
In my experience you don’t have to spend a lot on shoes, just get some personal advice rather than buying a generic pair as they vary so much. Better to get a shoe that suits your current running style than what tend to be more fashion lead high street retailer shoes.
You can spend a lot but generally with the right advice you’ll spend anything from £50 to £80.
You mustn’t compromise on shoes but you can on clothing. Wear some cycling shorts and a dri-fit or equivalent top to avoid chafing, etc too.
Keep it up big man!
D.
What Darrel said – the best improvements are those that come slowly because they are solid not built on sand.
Swimming would be good because the worst you are, the more out of breath you get…
Try to find lane swimming, adults only or a masters club.
That way you won’t have kids bombing in on top of you all the time.
And keep on blogging your efforts; it motivates you and we’ll continue to coach and encourage as much as we can.
Consider the swimming and cycling and walking as the foundations for becoming a proficient runner!!
Thanks again, both of you.
While my gym has a pool, I think I’ll forgo it for now simply because I don’t feel like baring the belly just yet :) I swam competively when I were a lad, so do enjoy it, but not just yet…
My legs are still twitchy, but getting better. I think this weekend I’ll test them with a long walk and see how things go, with a view to begin run/walking again next week. Meanwhile I’ll be hitting the gym for a cycle and weights.
ummm test them with a short walk… :-)