Good morning lovely fellow runners. What a beautiful day it is here in East Anglia, I hope it is where you are too!!
This morning I had a bit of a painful ouchy run and I staggered home at the end of my 3.5k. I’ve only been running for just under 6 months and completed the C25k in March so I am still very much a novice.
I’ve noticed that my left calf/outer ankle feels a bit stiff between runs recently but it’s the first time it’s really actually bothered me on a run today - ouch!!! So I need to take action!
My question is, do you think it’s my running shoes? I bought relatively cheap ones when I started running (I didn’t know if I would stick to it) but I think I’m a big over pronator so should I get a proper analysis done?
And/or would strapping help? I have no idea how that works!
I confess I am a bit slack at the after run stretches and sometimes get distracted when I get home (‘ooh here’s my cat’…..’ooh coffee time’……..’quick I must have a wee’) and then I forget or rush them 😖
Thanks in advance for any advice gratefully received 👍🏼
Written by
Determined55
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Stretch stretch stretch- don’t be distracted. Do go to a running shop and get a good pair of shoes, 1/2 or full size larger than normal shoes but it does sound like stretching may be your 1st solution . I’ll edit post with a link in a moment. Happy running 🤗
Thank you - yes I do believe my laziness at stretching doesn’t help 😏 I’ve been doing these nhs advised stretches but am so bored with them I think that’s part of the problem! I wonder if there are any other especially good ones for the calves?
Stand on the edge of a step with heal over the drop ie you facing the up and let heal drop down until you feel the stretch. Invest in a roller but beware it will hurt. You can pick them up for a few pounds
Rollers are good but be careful with the type that looks like a rolling pin that you don’t overdo it. Too much pressure and you can do damage. My other half has both a foam roller and the rolling pin type. Found the foam roller was the best and the calf pain was definitely helped by this.
Exactly what Grannyhugs says! If you have a tennis ball or similar then that’s really useful too for rolling under your calves… while you’re waiting for your foam roller 🙂
My physio has me drawing the letters of the alphabet in the air with my feet (one foot at a time) whenever I sit down. It seems to be helping my ankle flexibility. That is an add on to all of the stretches…..
You should try it standing up. It strengthens the standing ankle and also there is evidence to suggest it improves brain function and thus decreases risk of early dementia. 🙂
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