this is davina – don’t swear

2k Too Far – Quicker Sorer or Slower Colder – Portugeasy Does It

I didn’t want this entry to be an expletive riddled rant that would shock Gordon-f***ing-Ramsay so waited a few days before typing to see if the situation had improved. And it has. A bit.

Saturday’s 12km run was a cold and uncomfortable affair after the dusting of snow that fell Friday night and then froze solid Saturday morning. I’d set off along the canal towpath thinking that it would be more sheltered only to discover that it wasn’t anymore sheltered and was probably a little more treacherous than the paths and roads that I could have chosen for my route.

The first 7kms seemed quite easy despite having to watch my footing and keep a look out for icy patches but something wasn’t right. I had been feeling confident after my 10kms a few days prior but had still strapped up the knee, taken some pre-emptive Ibuprofen and smothered my left leg in freeze gel. Despite all this, by 8kms, my left leg was sore. Very sore. I had a dilemma as I was 4kms from home and it was freezing. Running was barely keeping me warm so stopping to walk would have meant that I got very cold very quickly and it would have been a long, slow, bitterly cold walk home. The alternative was to keep running, stay warmer, get home quicker but with a left leg that seemed to be getting more painful by the minute. I chose the latter and spent the next 4kms doing a strange grimacey running limp back home.

Once back home, the leg hurt like hell and I spent much of that evening hobbling around and cursing. It feels a lot like the Illiotibial Band again but coupled with a strange, hamstring type ache at the back of the left knee. And the kneecap itself feels quite tender.

The last few days has seen an improvement but there are definitely still twinges around the knee and the back of the calf when faced with stairs and walking after a period of sitting. All of which is really annoying. After last weeks 10km, I was positive I could slowly build up my distance. Now it looks like I will have to stop completely for a while, try and stretch and ice etc. and then start again from a much reduced distance. It is very frustrating as I hate it when my body stops working properly and reminds me that it’s not actually indestructible. It is doubly frustrating as I think I may now have to duck out of the Wokingham Half and concentrate on getting fit for Lisbon.

Soundtrack to this post: Can – Vitamin C

pre-emptive action

£40 To Go Nowhere – Little By Little – Further Then Faster

After my last post, I really had to find a creative way of getting back into a training regime that wasn’t going to completely ruin me and force me to miss the Lisbon Half. A visit to the local Leisure Centre proved fruitless – Although there are posters all over town advertising a “join for a pound” offer, it transpires that you can only join for a pound if you sign up to then pay £40 a month. Treadmills are dull, and I doubt paying £40 a month for the privelege of running on one is going to make it any more exciting. So I needed another plan.

After many goes on my Foam Roller, stretching and massaging my sore leg, I decided on a course of action that involved much rolling, taking Ibuprofen before a run and slowly increasing the distances I run. Sunday mornings run of 5km felt OK – a little discomfort in the left leg but nothing like the “muscle-popping-back-and-forth” sensation that I had previously. And most importantly, I could still climb and descend stairs afterwards.
This morning, I pushed it further by running 10.6km and once again, there was some discomfort in my left leg. It wasn’t fast but I can (so far) still do stairs so am taking that as a good sign. So my plan is for 12km on Saturday, 15km the weekend after, 18km the following weekend and then the Wokingham Half Marathon on 21st. At this point, finishing the Half Marathon injury free is my goal. Once that is done, I can concentrate on speeding up in time for the Lisbon Half.

Soundrack to this post: Bauhaus – In The Flat Field

decisions

Is Not Running The New Running? – Can’t Do This, Can’t Do That – But I’ve Hardly Muddied My New Trainers

Here’s an interesting concept… a running blog with a post that is specifically about not running. Or more precisely, my current inability to run.
Since Sunday’s pathetic attempt at 13kms and the ensuing recurrence of (suspected) Iliotibial Band problems, I have not run. Instead, I have spent a lot of time thinking how I can begin training again. Whether I leave it for a while and risk being completely unprepared for the Wokingham Half Marathon at the tail end of Feb. Or do I call off Wokingham and concentrate on Lisbon giving me 9 weeks to get sorted. Or do I attempt a much shorter run over the coming weekend (Hauling My Carcass suggested a 1 mile loop close to home so I can run the loop multiple times if feeling chipper or skulk home with my tail between my legs if feeling useless), or do I drag my sorry self down to the local leisure centre and try out on the low-impact and not very exciting running machines, or do I continue with Ibuprofen and the Foam Roller and hope that it gets better? All of the above are possible options but the thought of trying to run and making it worse is annoying me. But so is the thought of not running and being poorly prepared for Wokingham and Lisbon (oh please let me be fit for Lisbon, please, pretty please with cherries on top…). So there has been no running this week but I have tried to walk where possible as that seems to help and also not cause me any pain. Oh, and I am no longer doing that half limp / hop thing when trying to descend stairs.

Also, I’ve had my new front brake for my beautiful home made fixed gear bike delivered but haven’t got round to fitting it yet because I won’t be able to try it out because apparently cycling aggravates the Iliotibial Band too!!! Grrrr…

So if any of you have any ideas about my not running not cycling dilemma, answers on a postcard please…

Soundtrack to this post: Alpha & Omega – Pure And Clean

stairs aren’t much fun

Weekends And Bleakdays – A Night Out – Knees Are Stupid

…And neither is driving, but we’re getting ahead of ourselves here so let’s go back a bit.

What promised to be a good weekend was given a boost on Friday morning by getting stuck on the M1 whilst a cleanup operation took place on the motorway, making me so late for a meeting that I was supposed to attend that I was left with no choice but to turn round, return home and spend the rest of the day working remotely. Which was a bit of a result as I had tickets to go and see the magnificent Henry Rollins that evening and the thought of having to attend the meeting in Birmingham and then race back to London in time for the performance was daunting. So, having no interruptions at home, I got far more work done than if I had gone to the office AND I was sure I’d get to the South Bank in time for the evenings entertainment. Mr Rollins was on fine form, as always and Saturday was spent doing all the bits and pieces that I needed to catch up on.

Leaving Sunday free for my “long” run.

Work is settling down but the absence of daylight by the time I get home means that my long runs are best reserved for Sundays when I can run the bridleways and towpaths that do not have street lamps. Because of the snow, I haven’t run these routes for a while so was looking forward to a pleasant 13km run. I started out well and was enjoying the sunshine and being able to wear shorts without suffering frostbite but despite having my knee support, I noticed that things were not as they should be after about 4kms. It was a suspiciously familiar feeling around the outside of my left knee, like something was popping back and forth at the side of my knee as I took each stride. I stopped for a stretch and continued on but by 8kms it was fairly sore so had to change tactics. I would run/walk the remaining 5kms back home so the rest of the run became a long interval session that switched between regular run, walk and sprint sessions. This seemed to give the knee some respite but it was the regular run that caused the most pain. Maybe I’ll just have to resign myself to walking or sprinting everywhere!
What is most frustrating is that the last time I had this problem, I was training for (and very much looking forward to) the Prague Half Marathon. This time, I have begun training (and very much looking forward to) the Lisbon Half Marathon. I had hoped for a pb in Lisbon as it is supposed to be a very fast course. What is bothering me now is that a pb looks unlikely and unless I can sort this problem out double quick, I may end up run/walking the race which is not ideal!

The rest of Sunday saw me hobbling around and complaining like an old man each time I was faced with a set of stairs or having to use the clutch on the car.

Looks like I shall be on a steady diet of Ibuprofen and the foam roller for the next few weeks.

Arse!!

Soundtrack to this post: Augustus Pablo – King Tubby Meets Rockers Uptown

knee supports and new shoes

Early Start – Would You Mind Getting Out Of The Car Please Sir – Exterminate

In the last 10 days, I have had the unusual opportunity to skate. Twice. Once on ice and once on roller skates. Now, it is unusual if I skate once a year, let alone twice in less than 2 weeks which might be why my left knee region is sore and it hurts when I walk up and down stairs. Which is bad news as it feels very similar to the Iliotibial Band problem I have had in the past, so for now, I’m back to wearing a knee support whilst running and hitting the foam roller twice a day.
Fortunately, my lovely new running shoes have arrived. The Saucony ProGrid Guide 2… an updated version of the ProGrid Guide that have served me so well. First impressions are that they are lovely and supportive and cushioned although that may be down to the shocking disrepair I let my last pair get into. I know that when I ran in them yesterday, there was none of the soreness in my calves and the balls of my feet so it looks like they are doing the trick.
Yesterdays run was a welcome antidote to the days events. Nothing makes me feel so sluggish as getting up early in the morning or having to spend prolonged periods of time in the car. So waking at 5.30 am and being on the road by 6.30 am for a 300ish mile round trip to the Midlands left me feeling weary and jaded. Fortunately, a run usually invigorates me and wakes me up so as soon as I arrived home, I threw on the tights, many layers, my lovely comfortable, supportive new running shoes, a fluorescent jacket and (a new addition to my winter running attire) a head torch. The pavements were still largely untouched by salt and looked pretty treacherous so I opted to run on the road again. 11.3kms covered and only 1 uptight car driver as opposed to about ten times as many the last time I attempted to run on the road because of the snow. And I have a theory that it was the head-torch that made all the difference. After all, who would argue with what appears to be a 5′9″ day glo Dalek running towards them.

Soundtrack to this post: Florence And The Machine – Drumming Song