Run Vegan?

The run:

25 minutes (that's the time limit for all of the cardio equipment) on the treadmill, and then I headed upstairs to the track for another 10 minutes of running (that's all the time I had for running).

The mantra:

"If I don't have the time to stretch, I don't have the time to run."


Achilles update:

A little achy Achilles for the first 5 minutes on the treadmill, but then it faded. It was tired by the end of the day (after 4 hours at Wildlife Rescue tending to at least half of the 92 ducklings we now have there).


Physio update:

I went to physio for the last time, and she emphasized again that I cannot run any hills for a while. She did a little massage, ultrasound, and concluded with 10 mins of the muscle stim machine.


How to avoid the boredom of a treadmill? (Remember when I loved the treadmill before I started running outside?)

With this type of running, I will definitely need my ipod shuffle to keep me going. I've started listening to CBC's Ideas podcasts when I run. It's almost an hour long, and it gives me a chance to listen to something a little more interesting. It doesn't always have to be music to keep me going.

My running season:

It's on hold. There's so much I want to run (Scotiabank end of June, Portland in October, Rubber Ducky 1/2 marathon, also in October), but I have to wait and see how my Achilles responds to the treatment. I'm sticking to my marathon training schedule though, with some modifications.

Treatment: 

• Ice, ice, baby (as my physio always says).
• Perhaps a massage in a couple of weeks to really give those calves something to cry about.
• Calf raises with a goal of 20 per calf (It burns at 15!). 
• No hill running (i.e. treadmill, track, flat Poco trail only). Maybe I'll explore some of the various tracks around my neighbourhood and rate them.
• Easy hikes only. No long hilly hikes. Those seem to really aggravate it.

Sorry db, I guess that means that we won't be foraging for morels in Pemberton this weekend. :-(

Vegan can't run

I ran again last Thursday for the first time in a month. My Achilles hurt the day after. This sucks. If I do any amount of walking outside of my regular route to and from work/bus stops, I have some Achilles pain. I'm starting to wonder if maybe I should have gone for the Traumeel injections.

I went to 3 sessions of physio, and I'm going for a 4th tomorrow, although my physiotherapist said it wasn't necessary. She gave me the go ahead to start running, but no hills (ha!). I made an appointment with the intention of cancelling it, but after my run last week, and after doing some yard work yesterday, I need to go for another session.

The calf raises should help. The ice should help. On my way home tonight, I'm going to pick up some topical Traumeel. What else can I do?

When I go back to the gym it's going to be more treadmill and bike sessions. The biking is great, and I am enjoying that, but I miss my running.

The last time I was off this long, I still managed to run a half marathon in August so there's hope yet.

***
In more positive running news, a friend of my mom's (bf) will be running the Western States Endurance Run at the end of June. It's an ultra trail event that is 100 miles. This woman is amazing. She's continues to inspire me, and I am in awe of her abilities both physically and mentally to complete such events. This is a big one, and I can't wait to hear how she does.

I would love to do more trail running, but it's not something I want to do alone. I'm looking for a trail partner, but haven't found one yet. I'll look more once I'm doing a regular running schedule again. 

Achilles Update

I know you are all desperately waiting to find out what my decision is (lots of sarcasm).

I decided to see my physiotherapist, get some treatment, and ask her what she knows about the injection option. db also suggested that I ask her if she would suggest a specialist. She's an excellent physiotherapist who is an ultra trail runner (meaning she runs ridiculously long distances on trails. Ultra usually refers to 50k and up-- yes, there are further distances that people willingly run), so I feel well cared for and know that she understands how frustrating it is when you can't run.

This morning I got up much earlier than usual, and went to the gym (I've got to get the most out of my month's pass) to put in some bike mileage. It took me exactly 12 minutes to know that I'd had enough of the bike, and was itching to try the treadmill. I hopped off the bike and took my chances on the treadmill. While I ran, I looked out at the inlet's trail that I often run. It was an absolutely glorious morning. The sky was solid blue, and the temperature was warm enough to run in shorts. Oh well. Inside on the treadmill, I ran for 18 minutes at an easy pace. I stopped when I started to feel a little pain.

That was it. That was the extent of my workout. I would have spent more time there, but I had to get home to get ready for work. I didn't even have time to do a proper stretch, which is how I probably got this injury to begin with! Not wise. Anywho...at least I could run a little bit without too much pain.

I see my physiotherapist on Tuesday!

here we go again

After a short run this morning, I decided that I do need to go back to the physiotherapist, but I really don't want to. Not only am I having problems with the knot again in my right calf, but I am also worried about a tender Achilles tendon on my left heel. Needless to say but I'll say it anyway, this is very frustrating.

I've been pacing myself quite slowly to build up to a training program that starts in May (just around the corner) with hopes of running a marathon in the fall, but even "the best laid plans of mice and men..." or however that goes. The point is my season has barely started and I'm already faltering.

The calf has been getting worse. Last week I ran 45 minutes before it started to ache; today, it was 15 minutes when the ache set in. My Achilles only seems to be bothered when I run uphill. Ha! Okay, so I can stop running up hills. Haha! There's no such thing as flat terrain around here. 

I'm not so eager to go see my physiotherapist who will quickly realize that I have done little to improve the strength in my calves. Lesson learned? Not really. However, after my morning run, I did do some strengthening exercises and my static stretches. I also rolled a tennis ball under my calf hitting that knot to try and work it out a little. Am I grasping at straws?

Sunday is the long run day. Let's see how it goes. I was hoping to bump up the distance, but that may not be possible.

I ran down the hill to get to my physio appointment. I am notoriously late for just about everything and the only way I thought I'd get to my physio appointment on time was if I ran to the bus stop. I know it takes me 10 minutes to run to the cross streets where the physiotherapists' offices are located inside the aquatic center, but I wasn't dressed for running that far, nor did I want to run that far. Running down the hill did not seem like a good idea with a stressed out calf, but I felt fine. I've been feeling fine for a couple of days now since I've stopped running. At the bottom of the hill a bus showed up almost immediately. It doesn't always work out that way. I got lucky this time.

The appointment went well. The physiotherapist, hm, is a runner as well. She's a trail runner which is something I greatly admire. She described my calf as a ball of rubber bands that needs to be undone. I don't have the more technical breakdown for those of you who would understand such things. So sorry. So she applied heat, massaged, put the electrical stimulation pad on me and then iced. She showed me how to use the fitball (in my case it will be a tennis ball) to do pressure point release. Her advice: try not to run on concrete and pavement so much. When I do run stop as soon as I feel pain. She thinks I have a high pain threshold and probably have been running with this problem much longer than I should have (I think I knew this already, but I thought I could just stretch it out). So I go back next week for another session. She said to try and get some massage done as well if I can afford to do so (I can't).

Now I just have to find out when the cut off is for switching to the half marathon. I'm going to try running on Sunday and see how it goes.

Right now my calf is very achey. I spent a good chunk of my day off walking around picking up groceries and getting some other chores done. I probably walked more than I should have, but the weather is so so beautiful I wanted to be out in this late summer weather we're having. It's absolutely glorious. It will be just what our tomatoes need. Hopefully, we'll get some more ripening soon.