Want to run. Frustrated. Notes from the Injury Couch.

[nowster]

OK, I accept this is mostly my own fault.

I pulled something on my graduation run just over a week ago.

Everything was going very well until about 30 seconds before the end. Something didn't feel right, but I kept going. It didn't feel like much at the time.

I then walked for another half an hour on this injury rather than phone someone to pick me up.

I thought I was over it and I tried running on Monday (which actually went very well) but then I paid for it later.

I did some gardening yesterday: lawn mowing and cutting down an overgrown bush. That was fine. And then I walked to the chip shop in the evening. Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!

I enjoy running. I want to run. I can't at the moment. It's most frustrating.

I'm not looking for sympathy.

I'm writing this as a cautionary tale to everyone who thinks they can push that little bit further to hit a particular number or who ignores something because they're close to reaching a goal.

Don't. Just don't. It isn't worth it.

[chunkypie Graduate]

I know the feeling, its unbelievably frustrating and very hard to listen to your brain when you feel like that

[IannodaTruffe Mentor]

Many of us have been there and while it is frustrating, in most cases it is a temporary blip in our running careers.

Follow the PRICE principles and take it easy.

You will be back.

[nowster Graduate in reply to IannodaTruffe]

I know I'll be back.

Foot up when possible. Compression when practical. Rest it but don't be inactive. Keep moving it gently.

[Jools2020 Graduate]

You have my sympathy of course! So easily done in the moment. So incredibly frustrating when you want to get out there and run!

So now stay on that injury couch and do what you have to do. It’s just a temporary setback. You’ll be back! 👍

[Sara_Wales Graduate]

Sorry to hear that.... rest up, and heal soon x

[Instructor57 Graduate]

Oh no, so sorry to hear this !

Trust me, I know what it's like after my week 8 injury , for me it was just a moment of madness sprinting the last 30 seconds and I paid dearly with 16 days on the injury couch , two osteopath appointment and then found my saviour a physio who is an extreme marathon runner !

Do, do you know what the problem is ?

Or had any professional advice ?

Finding a good physio is a worth while excercise !

Hope you are up and running soon ,

Best wishes , Ian

[nowster Graduate in reply to Instructor57]

I don't know what it is. It doesn't feel like the description of shin splints. There's no obvious swelling. It appears to be just above the ankle joint, but can be felt in various other places up the lower leg.

If it continues into next week, I'll be looking into contacting the local physios.

[Tasha99 Graduate]

Oh hope you’re ok. I’m sure it’ll be fine soon though. I don’t think I’d cope well with life if I couldn’t run 🤣🤞🏽

[girlsjustwannarun Graduate]

Oh no!! Hope it heals up quickly - the injury couch doesn’t sound like a lot of fun! 😢

[nowster Graduate in reply to girlsjustwannarun]

I've had the leg up for much of the afternoon and taken a single ibuprofen. It's feeling a bit better. It's now mostly a feeling of tightness just above the ankle.

But I'm now not planning on running on it until I've had a couple of days without any twinges and I've been able to walk on it for at least a mile or so without feeling anything nasty. If that means another week of resting it, so be it.

The maddening thing is I'm so careful about my gait, trying to land correctly, etc. One little thing and it all goes out the window.

What it does prove is that although one might have built up the strength to run for half an hour over 9 or so weeks, one might not yet have built up enough to avoid getting hurt.

Normal service will be resumed as soon as possible. 😉

[SueAppleRun Graduate]

You are quite right, it’s not worth pushing through an injury

I ran 6k on boxing day my longest up to then, near the end i crossed the road and leapt up the kerb onto grass and thought ouch, carried on and the next few drums were short and painful

[BexJogs Graduate]

Sorry to hear this! Hope you’re back out there soon!

[030961 Graduate]

Oh no Nowster, hang in there. Were the chips nice?

[nowster Graduate in reply to 030961]

They're always good from that place. I'm blessed with a selection of chip shops locally, but the best one is about a brisk 5 minute walk away. They closed from April to June, then reopened with the facility to pre-order and pay online for pick up at a nominated time, to reduce contact.

For fish, like beer in pubs, it's recommended to have the type that they're selling most of, because it's likely to be fresher.

(If you're in a pub on the south coast of Ireland and everyone else is drinking Murphy's instead of Guinness, follow the crowd. The Guinness there will be stale.)

-×-×-×-

Back to the ankle joint... it's now less painful but the range of movement has reduced. It feels stiff now. I'm going to do some gentle exercises on it to stop it from seizing up.

It looks, from reading descriptions online, like I may have had a mild "high ankle sprain", probably caused by me making a sudden change of direction (eg. puddle avoidance) during the run.

[John_W Graduate]

It's so easy to do when you're feeling good.

Been there and have a decent selection of t-shirts.

Take it easy and when you restart, do it slowly. No harm in following a C25K-like protocol.

[nowster Graduate in reply to John_W]

I plan to do something similar to Monday when I resume.

Gentle, mostly downward, inclines and super slow (slower than 8min/km).

If I follow the same route as Monday, it gives me opportunities to abort at about the 10 minutes and 15-20 minute points, or continue to about 25 minutes.

My criteria for resuming are: no pain or discomfort for two consecutive days and then the ability to walk for at least a mile without discomfort.

[John_W Graduate in reply to nowster]

That's well though-out criteria and - many of us, including me, would do well to follow them.

[JetsNanna Graduate]

So sorry to hear that your running regime has been temporarily interrupted. You sound so passionate about getting back to it. Thanks for sharing your situation - I think that it will help a lot of us recent graduates to be careful and I am wholeheartedly including myself in that.

Let us know when you’re ‘back in the saddle’ so to speak and take is easy 😊

[nowster Graduate in reply to JetsNanna]

When I'm back in the running shoes I'll be posting consolidation run reports again. I like unravelling a run into a forum post.

[JetsNanna Graduate in reply to nowster]

And we like reading them 😉

[acountrycabbage Graduate]

So sorry to read this nowster, I’d be frustrated too, and that’s putting it mildly.

I appreciate you sharing your tale. I think my run was a bit too carefree today and I’m paying for it.

Sending get better soonest vibes ✨

[nowster Graduate in reply to acountrycabbage]

Thanks!

[nowster Graduate]

Update:

It's not healing anywhere nearly as fast as I'd hoped.

I was stiff when walking round the supermarket yesterday evening.

I've booked a physio appointment for Friday morning.