Kirk (my husband) spent the day today sitting on the couch. Not because he's lazy (sometimes he is) but because his Achilles tendon was bothering him yesterday and in the past a sore Achilles has escalated into tendinitis that kept him off the trails for weeks.
Even if you do everything right during the training program, you might find yourself having the following thought..."The coaches say I should be running the miles listed on the calendar, but today my (insert painful body part here) hurts. Should I run or should I not run?"
You're the only one who can decide how much you hurt or how serious it feels so you really need to make up your mind for yourself. However, in my experiences, there are a few things to consider to help you decide if you should run or not.
While training for a marathon you will experience some pain and/or soreness. Sore quads, sore calves, even sore glutes are pretty common. Getting out for a run with sore muscles will sometimes help loosen tight muscles and will send more blood to slightly damaged muscles to help healing. If you're feeling some muscle soreness, it's a good idea to get out for an easy run or at the very least a nice long walk.
On the other hand there are some body parts that will benefit from a day off. If your knees, ankles, or hips are giving you pain, find a way to cross train (the elliptical at the gym, bike from home, whatever you can do to reduce impact on your joints) or take the day off completely.
If you're still undecided, get out the door for a mile...if you still hurt, turn around and go home. If the pain was caused by a sore muscle you should have loosened up within the first mile. If you still hurt after a mile or two you might have something more serious going on.
Between Debbie, Chris and I we've had a number of common running injuries. Let one of us know what ails you...we might be able to provide some good advice.
3 comments:
Question about tendinitis: when icing, how often should you swap out the frozen veggies?
Shoot...I never know if someone is serious via e-mail/blog comments.
If you were serious: You should ice for 20 minutes, then remove the ice for at least 20 minutes, then ice again. Between icing periods you can put the veggies/ice pack back in the freezer. I suppose if your frozen peas are dripping on the carpet it's time for a new bag.
If this was intended as a joke: Ha ha...glad you got the humor of the Green Giant corn in the photo. I would normally use one of those 3M frozen gel packs, but thought the corn was funnier.
I used to think that steak had some sort of miracle curing power based on he fact that Hollywood always put a steak on the eye of the guy who go punched. Little did I know, a steak is just a much cooler prop than a blue frozen gel pack. That was before the days of $15/lb steaks!
Frozen-vegetable icing techniques will vary, but generally speaking, one should first fill a pot with water and heat. Ice your sore body-part until the water comes to a rolling boil, and then add vegetables. Serve as a side-dish and garnish with Funyuns or Gumi-Bears, and a seasonal vino.
Don't be afraid to mix it up a little. You only live once. If peas aren't your style, try corn. Vegetable medley has been done to death but is still a crowd favorite. Alternatively, try icing with traditionally non-frozen side dishes such as marshmallows or dog food.
Go ahead and experiment in order to find what works best for you.
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