Sabaray, that sounds painful. Ouch. Here’s some food for thought: if your knot keeps reappearing, maybe it needs more rest to heal than you are giving it, as this article suggests.
http://www.runnersworld.com/injury-treatment/calf-heart-attacks
Hope it goes away soon.
Thinking of you @sabaray !
Thanks for all the thoughts/posts on stretching. Galloway is all about staying injury-free not so much on speed or performance, so that is why I’m interested in his philosophies. Having gotten injured once already in my first few months, I figure I just want to be able to keep doing it! I’d like to gradually increase distance, but I’m not really interested in speed. so it basically sounds like dynamic stretching (I interpret that as moving body parts around to get them warmed up, but not stretched out) is the way to go. I am going to stop doing some of the lower body yoga poses as well - such as pigeon - that really strain my hip/groin area.
The Big10K yesterday was a lot of fun. It was really hot and humid but I had a PR with 49:38. I haven’t run that many 10Ks so it’s not hard for me to PR at this point! We met up with our niece and her boyfriend who were running for University of Illinois.
I leave tomorrow morning for a 2 week business trip to China. I’m really hoping to be able to stick to my marathon training plan while I’m gone.
sabaray, sorry to hear about the frustrating calf injury. Give yourself permission to cut back, avoid activities that aggravate it and take the time to heal. You’re in it for a lifetime, not just a single event!
6 miles today.
C3Baker, that’s a great time for your race!
^^^Good advice MK!!!
Have a safe China trip C3!
I’m honestly not sure where the calf issue came from. I ran injury free in Asics and then post Richmond, decided to try Mizuno. As blankmind has suggested, I think those shoes triggered a host of problems. I’ve been fitted twice at independent stores and both have recommended the Asics 2000 (marathon shoe) and now the Kayano, so I suspect those will end up being my go to shoes. I haven’t been running any more than usual, my other activities have remained the same - it’s just been a bad year. This too shall pass!
C3Baker, wow, nice race. Have a great time in China! I will be facing a similar problem soon - running in Sweden. Maybe I can convince my friend who runs the Stockholm marathon annually to join me for a run or two.
Does anyone have some experience with dull hip pain? Bone scan shows degenerative changes (more on right side, but left hip is where the pain is). Not 24/7 but a dull ache, not any better or worse with activity. Bone scan was done because if I had a cancer recurrence they expect in my bones (I had two bouts of the flu in the fall, and low back and left hip pain started; low back pain went away once I was able to feel well enough to return to swimming). Lying on my left side doesn’t help left hip or left shoulder, but I resolve a little better the left shoulder with stretching and exercise. I believe because I almost always lay on my right side that for some reason that has kept my right side from feeling these effects (like my left side was not as ‘built up’). I am hoping it will eventually go away.
SOS- I’ve had pain but it was always related to some sort of hip or other injury. I hope yours resolves. Do you get relief from anti-inflammatory meds?
SOS, what you feel as hip pain may be related to spinal issues, like a compressed nerve or degeneration in discs. Have you discussed it with your doctors? I had injured my tailbone 15 or so years ago and had similar problems in the past when I sat for really long periods of time… Does your hip pain go away with walking? If it does and if your X-ray does show enough intervertebral spacing, PT may provide some relief. I highly recommend seeing a doctor specializing in spinal and hip issues.
I find that exercises designed to strengthen hip flexors, hip extenders and abductors can be helpful. Quadraped extensions with resistance bands, squats, lunges, lateral stepping against resistance bands, oblique single leg abductor raises against resistance using ankle weights or resistance bands and with the heel of the leg being raised pressed against a wall. Once you get the basics down, I also find that adding a stability challenge is particularly helpful. One legged stances and heel touches on a step bench then progressing to a Bosu really force you to engage and strengthen all of the muscles involved in hip stability and mobility. Also hip stretches like kneeling forward pelvic/hip stretches from a lunge position, supinated bent leg stretches with one leg at a 45/45 angle and the stretching leg bent to rest the ankle on the the other leg as you push the knee away with your hand.
I’ve been following along with all posts and glean so much important information here, so thank you. My running goals have plateaued, but I’m ok with that. I’m finding that for my purposes, a walk 5 minutes run 10 plan is working for increasing my stamina and learning to pace myself. I do this for an hour and try to average a 15min/mile pace. However, in the last 24 hours I’ve developed a burning sensation in my left thigh running from the hip around to the front side. It doesn’t hurt more or less to run or walk, but it literally feels like I’ve been burned - at first I though it was because my phone was running hot and I had it in my pocket. This seems to be the injury week around here and I’m sad to be adding to the chorus. However, I think I will head out this morning and see how it feels. If it’s not worse, I will continue.
Runnersmom, what you are doing sounds great. What is important is that you are raising your heart rate.
I have done something to my back. Pinched nerve, I have no idea how this happened but it’s painful. Ugh! Icing, ibuprofen, and muscle relaxer at night.
Today I am going to try to lightly walk, which I could do when this happened a couple of years ago. Not going to run or play golf for a while and hope this heals in a hurry.
runnersmom, it would be a mistake to ignore the signals your body is sending you. There are many reasons you could be experiencing the pain you describe. I would urge you to get to a good physical therapist who can evaluate why you are experiencing this pain and prescribe remedial exercises and other therapies. Movement based pain left unattended usually results in dysfunctional compensations and more injuries. Nip it in the bud.
Sending healing thoughts to ALL!!!
Wow, so many injuries. I’ll second abasket and send out healing thoughts.
As we age, there seems to always be something that aches. I’ve tried explaining that to younger trainers and physical therapists, and they look askance at me. I think, just wait until you turn 50, and you’ll get it. The tough part is figuring out when to workout through the pain, and when to take a break. If I stopped doing things every time I felt an ache, I’d be sitting on my butt watching TV and browsing the web 24/7.
I can’t diagnose any of your injuries, but hope they either resolve or you find the right treatment from the right professional.
@Sabaray: Sorry to hear about your calf issue. My D, who just started yoga teacher training (to supplement her acting income), swears by myofascial release therapy for knots in muscles–there are massage therapists who can do this. D also likes cranio-sacral (sp?) therapy. (Sounds like witch doctor stuff, doesn’t it?) Maybe a regular sports massage might be what you need. Good luck!
Congrats to your D, MOWC. Great accomplishment for her.
@Interesteddad: Have you had a chance to look at the FDA warnings about NSAIDs and heart attack/stroke risks? My H has arthritis in his knees; he talked to his doc who said H should continue his Aleve tablet once a day (Doc thought the study on which the FDA warnings are based was not conclusive). H is fairly low risk for a heart attack although heart issues plague his family.
Seconding myofasical release therapy. Foam rollers work wonders to break up scar tissue and increase blood flow to injured areas. Whenever I have any lower back or ankle pain I love to just roll for 10 minutes or so.
MNK, to get to a PT, I need to see an MD first. Do you think my oath doc is the right first step? He did my knee surgery, but hot sure whether hips/back etc. are his bailiwick.