Running program

K!LL!@N

Thanks!

You're right, it has been a complete lifestyle change.
In the past when I've tried to lose weight or get fitter, I'd only ever concentrated on one element.
I remember when I used to go to the gym 4-6 times a week and work my ass off but I never changed what I was eating or my approach to eating.
Any changes I was making weren't really sustainable ones.
I could do it for a while but in the end I'd lapse back to my old ways.

Now I feel like I'm doing things that I can do forever.
I'm enjoying getting out for a cycle and enjoying the feeling of satisfaction I'm getting from the jogging.
I'm not seeing the exercise as a chore, I guess.
I'm doing it because I want to not because I feel I need to.

Killian

K!LL!@N

After the high of last weekend I've be brought back down again.
Monday night I was at bowling and midway through the evening I felt a tweak in my right foot.
I don't remember exactly what I did but it I definitely felt something.
It wasn't too bad though and I just carried on.

Then the other afternoon I went down to use the treadmill, after 10 minutes it flared up and I had to stop.
I had a look online to see if I could find out any info on the injury.
Didn't really find anything plantar fasciitis strain was the closest thing but it's not really my heel.
It's kind of parallel to the arch but more to the outside of the foot.
I've been icing it and having it massaged a bit.

It's frustrating as I was starting to feel like I was making real progress with the program and now I'm going to have to stop again until it's pain free again.

Killian

quozl

Sorry to hear that Killian. You're right, you're much better off taking the time to let it heal properly.

If it doesn't stop you cycling then don't worry about it as a set-back. If you can cross-train then it'll make feck all difference really. Even if you can't then you can take 5 days off with no drop in fitness according to Daniels. Plus even if it's longer then the drop off is very small for a couple of weeks. Worst thing to do is to try and rush back too soon and end up off for longer.

Even if it's not at the heel it could be plantar fasciitis. I had it all over my feet after the dublin marathon, including exactly where you mentioned it, and nearer the heel was less sore than most parts. If it really is plantar fasciitis you can work it out (gently) with a golf-ball. Soak your foot in warm water to relax the muscles then while sitting down roll a golfball under your foot to work out the area. Do that for a few days and it should help.

If you're worried then seeing a physio is never any harm, except for the cost ) Good luck.

K!LL!@N

It seems to be getting better.
I'm tempted to get out on the bike but I think I'll wait another day before trying.
I'd hate to have cycled off a few miles and then have it flare up and have to limp home.

I might give the golf ball a try sounds like it could work.

Cheers,

Killian

BossArky

Maybe steer clear of the running for a week until the foot really recovers. How about throwing in some rowing instead of the running for the time being? Try an easy setting such as 3 of 10 on a Concept 2 rower for about 10 minutes. This should cause you to break a sweat by the end, but you won't be tired. (I find this a great warm up for running too).

K!LL!@N

It's feeling much better today.
I did some walking around and it felt fine.
I do intend to stay away from the running though til later in the week.

I'd love to do some rowing, it used to be part of my routine a few years ago but unfortunately I don't have access to a rowing machine.
I'm not a member of a gym at the moment, there's just a small residents gym in the apartment complex that I use.
It's not extensively equipped.

Killian

K!LL!@N

After a full two weeks off and feeling pain free, I headed down to use the treadmill yesterday.
Did my warm up and eased into the running.
Alternated running and walking for about 15 minutes.
Everything was feeling fine, so good that I ran my first non-stop mile!

But, towards the end of the mile I'd say within the last 0.1 mile, I started to feel something in the foot again.
It started to flare up again as I did my cooldown.

To say I'm frustrated, would be an understatement.

Killian

hunnymonster

how does it feel now? Hopefully it was just a temporary flare-up.

K!LL!@N

It's a little tender still, today.

Killian

K!LL!@N

The foot started to feel better last night and it's feeling pretty good today.

Can anyone shed a bit of light of this kind of injury?
Is it down to bad technique, footwear or just bad luck?

Killian

BossArky

This may not be the answer but are you wearing proper running shoes? If no get some, if yes make sure you are wearing thick socks (i.e. football ones) or at least 2 pairs of normal fluffy ones.

When I was a mere running virgin I used to go running in the type of flat sole runners you see in seconds 2 and 3 (the tapping foot) of the person in the crowd in Nirvana's Teen Spirit video. The pain quickly educated me :mad:

quozl

If it is plantar fascitis then I found it wouldn't go away with time off but needed to be worked out with a golfball. It could be footwear, you may over-pronate and your shoe may not correct that. It may just have been too much, too soon.

Tight calves are also a common cause if I remember right (google would tell you better). So make sure you're doing stretches for both calf muscles (ie both the leg bent and leg straight stretches).

I'd suggest making running pain-free your goal for a couple of weeks. So no pushing yourself or upping the distance. And stop before you feel pain. It'll be annoying but I'd guess worth it. I'm **** at that sort of thing myself, so I understand your frustration.

If in doubt, go see a physio, but holding things steady for a few weeks, massaging the foot regularly with a golf-ball and regular stretching should hopefully fix things.

Best of luck Killian.

K!LL!@N

BossArky wrote:

This may not be the answer but are you wearing proper running shoes? If no get some, if yes make sure you are wearing thick socks (i.e. football ones) or at least 2 pairs of normal fluffy ones.

When I was a mere running virgin I used to go running in the type of flat sole runners you see in seconds 2 and 3 (the tapping foot) of the person in the crowd in Nirvana's Teen Spirit video. The pain quickly educated me :mad:

Yeah, I'm wearing proper running shoes and decent socks.
No Chuck Taylor specials.

Killian

K!LL!@N

quozl wrote:

If it is plantar fascitis then I found it wouldn't go away with time off but needed to be worked out with a golfball. It could be footwear, you may over-pronate and your shoe may not correct that. It may just have been too much, too soon.

Tight calves are also a common cause if I remember right (google would tell you better). So make sure you're doing stretches for both calf muscles (ie both the leg bent and leg straight stretches).

I'd suggest making running pain-free your goal for a couple of weeks. So no pushing yourself or upping the distance. And stop before you feel pain. It'll be annoying but I'd guess worth it. I'm **** at that sort of thing myself, so I understand your frustration.

If in doubt, go see a physio, but holding things steady for a few weeks, massaging the foot regularly with a golf-ball and regular stretching should hopefully fix things.

Best of luck Killian.

I try and stretch my calves out before and after as I did have tightness in them before but they haven't been feeling tight of late.

I had a look on google and it seems I'm a under-pronator, my shoes wear down more on the outside with very little wear on the inside.
I guess that would make sense as the pain is on the outside of my foot.

I had a look on the Asics website and they seem to have a range of shoes specifically for under-pronators.
It might be worth my while trying a pair.
Maybe find a good shop locally where I can get some advice.

Cheers!

Killian

quozl

Good man on the stretching.

K!LL!@N wrote:

I had a look on google and it seems I'm a under-pronator, my shoes wear down more on the outside with very little wear on the inside.
I guess that would make sense as the pain is on the outside of my foot.

Mine also wear down on the outside and not on the inside. I also thought I was an under-pronator but apparently that's perfectly normal wear for an over-pronator. Only about 5% of people under-pronate so it's not very common. I also have a high/normal arch but still am a mild over-pronator. Those shoes wear/wet foot tests really are a bit of a black art.

Don't suppose you have a store you could visit that does video analysis? Pity you're not in Dublin anymore, we finally got one last year

On the plus side, you can run a mile and cycle 30. Even if the progress with running seems slow, it's definitely there.

K!LL!@N

So I may still be over-pronating?
It's all very confusing.

I think I've found a good store not too far away from me.
It seems to have a good rep, don't know about the video analysis though.
I might try and get there this weekend to check them out.

You're right about the progress.
There definitely has been a lot.
I was struggling with running for a minute or two when I started.
So I'm definitely pleased.
I'll just have to be patient.

Killian

K!LL!@N

Hurray!

Just finished a nice, pain free session.
I alternated running and walking throughout.

The only problem was that I'd eaten a bit too soon before heading down.
A small complaint really.

I'm surprised how quickly the foot recovered.
I was heading to catch the light rail yesterday and was in a bit of a hurry so naturally I started running to make sure I got there in time.
Only when I was sitting on the light rail did I realise that I'd run pain free.

I'll try and build things up slowly again.

Killian

K!LL!@N

It's been a while since I've posted but I have some news.

I just finished my first 5k race!!
My wife roped me into doing a charity race here in Sacramento, Race for the Cure, in aid of breast cancer.

I'd never been in a race before, I hadn't even run 5k.
There were thousands of people so it was pretty crowded at the starting line.
It had started to spread out after half a mile or so.

I thought I was seeing things when we got to the first mile marker.
It seemed pretty effortless, I felt great the whole way around.
My wife hasn't been running for a while so she was struggling a little.
When we could see the 3 mile marker ahead she said I could go on ahead if I wanted.
So I took it up a notch or two and headed toward the finish line.

Overall time was 38 minutes.
With the slow start off the line and the fact there were so many people, I'm really happy with it.
Had I been running by myself I could have gone a little faster but I'm just delighted to have run the whole thing.

I was pain free the entire time and I could actually hold a conversation all through the race. I wasn't even out of breath at the finish.

I'm definitely going to do some more, I think I've been bitten by the bug completely now.

Killian

ali.c

Congratulations!

K!LL!@N

ali.c wrote:

Congratulations!

Thanks!

I've been suffering a little since the race.
The outside of my thighs have been a stiff and sore, although they're feeling much better today and should be fine tomorrow.

I'm actually itching to get back out and do some more.

Killian

K!LL!@N

I rested up for a few days, basically until I wasn't feeling any soreness in my thighs.

Have since been out for a 2.5 mile run on Friday evening, really enjoyed that as it was nice and cool.

Yesterday went out and did 2 miles and another 1-1.5 miles of walking.

No times for either, just wanted do some distance.

No ill effects from either of the runs, which was great.

Killian

quozl

Heya Killian,

congratulations on the race Suprising how much easier running is during a race, isn't it?

Glad to hear you're pain-free again.

Greg