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Tag: Muscle Injury

Perpetual Over-Use Injuries

Perpetual Over-Use Injuries

My running “career,” now about 2-3 years old, has been a long series of overuse injuries. I feel strong, get excited, and run more miles that my body can handle. IT Band issues, stress fractures or tendonitis in my ankles, overly strained feet, the list goes on.

Now, it is my back. I have had back issues for 20 years or so, the most painful of which is when I get myofacial trigger points and muscle spasms. These happen a couple times a year and usually clear up within a week or so. Back in 2008-09 I had a particularly bad episode while on a research trip to D.C. I could barely walk and it severely dampened my sight-seeing when the archives were closed.

Running the Alta-Brighton loop about a year ago, I had another severe episode that was, to date, probably the worst ever. Strained back muscles – apparently not conditioned for the miles I was trying to put in – fatigued to the point that they contracted, formed trigger points, and spasmed horribly. I couldn’t move. It was bad.

A couple days after my 20 miler on 17 July, it happened again. This time worse than ever before. The spasms lasted about a week, but some severe pain which left me unable to sit lasted for another 2 weeks. During week 4, the spasms returned. Thankfully, muscle relaxants loosened the muscles, and the pain was gone with in a few hours of my first dose.

 

So once again I have been taught the painful lesson that I need to exercise (strengthen my core muscles especially) in order to go out and exercise more (on the trails). It kind of irks me. I thought the trail running WAS my exercise? No. For the distances I want to be able to do, I need to start viewing trail running as my hobby. And, in order to pursue it, I need to exercise and strengthen so my body can do it. Sigh. Currently the campus pool is closed, but when it opens I’m going to start hitting it for laps.

Assessing the Damage from Running Ragnar

Assessing the Damage from Running Ragnar

I am now about a week removed from Ragnar and am starting to assess how the race affected my injury-plagued lower-half.  In short, some prior injuries seem fine, some seem bad.

  • IT Bands: Miraculously they didn’t hurt during the race so I am optimistic that all of my daily work on the foam roller is doing the trick.  Fingers crossed.
  • Stress Fracture on left Fibula: This didn’t hurt during the race or the day after. But, in the following week it has started to throb.  Whereas the pain had completely dissipated before – even when pressing on injured part of the bone – it is now back as a constant throb. If I press on it, I can definitely feel it. So, I think that got reinjured a bit. I was fairly certain this would happen. I bet it would have been much worse had I worn my normal street shoes. I think the max-cushioning on my Altra Olympus trial shoes saved me even worse trouble.
  • New injuries:
    • Stress fracture on my right fibula?  Maybe.  There is new pain there that is persistent and feels a lot like my left.
    • Knees. There is some occasional knee pain in places other than my IT band spots.
    • Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS). Oh yes – like I haven’t had in a LONG time. I haven’t been this sore for this long in well over a year.

 

The plan moving forward?  No running for another week maybe. Perhaps I’ll focus on some light conditioning and strength training and stretching around the house.

Protein for Recovery

Protein for Recovery

So, I was wondering how I could reduce my DOMS – Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness.  You know, how on the 2nd day after a big workout or run you are crippled with stiff sore muscles.  Well, if I wasn’t such an idiot, or had just done a little reading, I would have learned that you should ingest certain things to RECOVER from strenuous activity.  Namely, protein. So, right after the morning run two days ago I chugged a protein shake.  And guess what, I wasn’t sore yesterday and am not very sore today at all.  Hooray!  I wish someone would have told me about this sooner.  It would have seriously helped some rough sore periods a few months ago.

Doubting this Running Thing

Doubting this Running Thing

I was seriously beat up and sore after Baer Canyon.  Extreme DOMS – delayed onset muscle soreness.  So much in fact that I I didn’t run again for 2 weeks.  And, after that, I only did bike rides for the next 3 weeks, here, here, and here.

I think part of the problem was that I was using OLD trail shoes from years before.  In any case – I did see some pretty sites out in the Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area.

12 August 2013 Farmington Bay

3 minutes later I was engulfed in clouds of bugs – seriously couldn’t breath.  I had to just put my head down and ride blind.  That worked well until I glanced up to see that I was about to run into a deer.

12 August 2013 Farmington Bay2

July 2012. It Begins, then stops.

July 2012. It Begins, then stops.

Sometime in July 2012, my wife and I decided to run a Breast Cancer benefit 5k to be held in September.  This meant we needed to figure out how to run.

I put in a few 3 mile runs over the course of a couple weeks, pace at 9:18 min/mile, 9:38 min/mile, 9:56 min/mile, and 9:43 min/mile.  I was pleased as punch.

These runs were a mix of running/walking.  I was lucky to go a straight mile w/ no breaks.

Unfortunately, I also incurred the first of many stupid injuries.  I was running pavement wearing old, worn-out Nike Alvord trail shoes I had used for hiking previously.  They were the only athletic shoes I owned, and while technically trail “running” shoes, they didn’t work well on pavement.  And, after 4 runs, I got a bad case of shin splints.  Ouch.  Couldn’t walk for a few days and had to switch to riding my bike for a bit.

Something had clicked though.  I was kind of enjoying it – even though I hated myself mid-run as I panted and gasped for air.  The July heat probably wasn’t helping.