Glad to be out running

After 10 days without running I got back out running today.

Not quite headline grabbing news and ten days is hardly an age but for me it has felt like weeks of not months.

After the Hackney Half Marathon I knew I needed some rest and recovery time for my calves as I have had problems with them all year and they were just so tight and painful.

So I took a week off running, applied ice at least once a day and after a few days started some gentle rolling. 

Then on Monday after I had already given my calves a week to rest I had a sports massage which was great for loosening up not only my calves but my hamstrings as well.

Then today I headed out on a lovely warm sunny afternoon for a gentle 30 minute run, no time, no pace and no real set route. And it was glorious! It was great to run after a long lay off, great not to have pain in my calves and great to just get out and run without worrying about training for an up coming race.

I will now go for a longer run at the weekend and fingers crossed I hope I will be back to full running fitness!

My weekly training update

This time last week I had just completed the Hackney Half Marathon and after some rest and recovery and some post race eating it was time to look forward with my training plans. 

Rather than looking ahead to my next event this time my focus has been on rest and recovery. 

Since the start of the year I have struggled with my calves, tightness and pain often when walking and especially when running. My calves have always been my week spot ever since I started running many years ago. A few years back I went for a sports massage as part of treatment for what I thought was shin splints only to be advised that my problems were more likely to be a result of compartment syndrome in my calf muscles. After some treatment and rest I was back up and running but I have always paid close attention to any discomfort in my calves and given them special attention in terms of extra strectching and foam rolling. 

But now the problem has returned and I know I will need a period of rest before I am ready to resume with my running. 

So this week instead of enjoying the light and warm spring evenings out running I have instead been indoors on the sofa looking a bit like this:

I have a sports massage booked for tomorrow so I know that will help and I will see what I am advised in terms of when I should get back to running. 

Away from training the other notable news from me is that I have now set up a Facebook page for my blog, if you would like to follow me on Facebook here's a link to my page, thanks! 

Nutrition wise I have been more relaxed in my diet and have enjoyed a few homemade pizzas this week. Comprising of a whole grain wrap as a base, whatever veggies and bits in the fridge I have for toppings topped off with cheese they are a really tasty snack and a slightly healthier option to a takeaway or frozen pizza. 

I am also in the midst of a food addiction at the moment, it's not the unhealthiest of food addictions so I have not fought to curb my addiction. It is however starting to dominate my fridge: 

My addiction is yogurt! I just can't stop eating it! Whether it's a few spoonfuls as a snack, as part of a smoothie or with yogurt I am loving it! Especially Yeo Valley Vanilla and Blueberry flavours and Icelandic Skyr yogurt not only because it reminds me of my recent trip to Iceland but because it's so high in protein and so low in fat! I would definitely recommend trying it out! 

Thanks for reading and I hope everyone is out enjoying the early summer sunshine. 

Getting on with 2015

Now that the Christmas break is over, the New Year festivities long passed and hopefully the Christmas chocolates all eaten it's time to crack on with 2015!

One of my last posts about running in 2014 mentioned that I feared I would be 'limping' into 2015 as I had been struggling with my calves (lower legs not cattle) and that has unfortunately been the case. My last proper run was an 8K run on 30th December, I attempted another run on the 1st January but had to abort after 1.25K as I was struggling with a bad back and my calves. 

The problem with my calves is compartment syndrome which was diagnosed by a sports therapist a few years back when I though I had shin splints. 

From what I understand it's basically lactic acid and waste products not exiting muscle tissue because of poor blood flow which then cause cramp like pain when the muscle is used for exercise. 

From what I have read it can often come on after a period of intensive training followed by a period of low or no exercise. Athletes can suffer with it in the off season when their training stops after intense periods of competition. That has certainly been the situation with me as I completed my 30 day run streak before doing next to no training and very little walking around while away over Christmas.

So the last week I haven't done any running or any impact training that have affect my calves, really scaled back my walking and just tried to rest my legs as much as possible. I have stretched my calves everyday and used the foam roller as well as icing my calves as much as I could. 

I still did plenty of training during the week, sessions on my stationary bike at home along with plenty or circuit work including upper body and core stability exercises. 

One of my regular circuits to do at home is squats, pressups, crunches and dips, my normal circuit is 25 squats, 25 pressups, 15 crunches, 15 dips x 3or4. 

I have also been working on core strengths through mountain climbers and other plank exercises. Through in some leg strengthening exercises and it has been a busy training week! 

Today was time to get back out and run, and I was so thankful to be able to get out and run successfully. I covered a very leisurely gentle 4.5km where I just tried to enjoy running again and focused on my technique. 

So after feeling no ill effects I am ready to crack on with my 2015 running aims, first up on the agenda the Hampton Court half marathon definitely booked for March and the Tunbridge Wells half marathon pencilled in for the end of February. 

Watch out 2015 here I come!

A bad last long run

Yesterday was 2 weeks to the Nottingham Marathon and as such my last long run before the event.

I had penciled in somewhere between 25-30km and I wanted to employ my race strategy of trying to run the first 15 to 20 km at around 5min/km pace which I think will give me the platform to finish strong and go under the 4 hour mark.

Sunday morning I got up at 4.15am to get some carbs in me before getting up for real at 6.00am for my real breakfast and to be ready to head out for a run at 8.00am.

Breakfast done I was just chilling for a bit before I started my pre run preparation and warm ups.

But I felt so tired!!!

Really tired!!!

So tired I had to stop myself falling asleep, its not due to getting up early or not sleeping well it was just the kind of tired you get when your just not feeling right.

I thought I would liven up when I started warming up or after an energy drink and coffee but I didn't.

Heading out to run I still felt jaded, to make things worse my calves were awful!

My blog hasn't featured much if anything about my calf problems as for the last 18 months to 2 year they have been fine. Prior to that though they were my main running injury problem and I was diagnosed with compartment syndrome in the front my calf muscles. Painful business and very difficult to train a lot with or run long distances. 

So the run was a struggle and turned into a real mind battle where my mind had to fight my body to hang in there.

I covered 19.5km which under the circumstances I was happy with.

Post run I was OK I had a cold bath, stretched and later on paid special attention to my calves when foam rolling.

Come the evening though my list of concerns were mounting up, dodgy calves, a sore right big toe, a sore right foot and a right knee that feels inflamed. 

By today even after a light gym session, some recovery work, stretching and rolling I am still a bag of aches and pains with my lower back, weary quads and sore hips adding to the mix.

I know it is just a case of hitting a training wall where my body has endured enough and is starting to get pretty fed up with this marathon training lark!

My focus is now all about self preservation, recovery and being as match fit ready and able for the Nottingham Marathon on the 28th September!