Ouchie Ouchie!

28th May 2012

"If you run, you are a runner. It doesn't matter how fast or how far. It doesn't matter if today is your first day or if you've been running for twenty years. There is no test to pass, no licence to earn, no membership card to get. You just run". - John Bingham

I skipped my run on Friday as late Thursday afternoon, I got a tattoo of my Lewey (who I have spoken about in previous posts). It was tender as anything and as I had to drive for an hour and a half to get there, then sit for two hours and then drive back, to say that I was shattered the next morning, would be an understatement. I also was aware that when running, my arm would be rubbing against the inside of my sleeve and so I took the day off.

So I went for a run today and out of all of my runs, this was the most painful.

I decided to get up at 5:30am so that I could get out before it was really hot (it was 13C at 6am) and I could beat the pedestrians and the kamikaze cyclists, who seem to want to take everyone out with them.

I have been anxious for some time that I am not going to be able to run 5km even with the programme that I have been doing. This is because the programme is nonspecific in saying that it will get me running for 5km or for half-an-hour. Well, I want to actually be able to run the whole distance and so my sister recommended that I change my training plan. She suggested that I do what she did and run 1 minute, walk 1 minute repeatedly for the distance of 10km. I can then build it up to 2:2, 3:3, 4:4 etc. Apparently this is what improved her stamina and the first time that she tried to run 5k, she managed around 3k and then built from there. She ran the Race for Life in 34 minutes, so I think that this is a good way to go.

So anyway, I started today with good intentions. I did feel a bit sick this morning but thought that I would feel better once I began running. The nausea did go away but then my legs started hurting. They have been feeling a bit tight for the past few days, which I put down to the usual muscle strain due to me changing my stride. To begin with, I couldn't even finish the first minute and as my TOM is due shortly, I put it down to just being a bit out of sorts and that once I had warmed up, everything would loosen up and I'd be fine. The second run didn't go any better and I had to stop after 15 seconds into the third as my legs were really hurting me. I have read several times, that if your legs are really hurting as you are running, that you have caused yourself an injury and should stop. So I turned around and hobbled back to the car which took 25 minutes! My legs really were agony. I have since ascertained that instead of Tibial Stress Fractures (which I previously thought that I had and would have put me out of action for 8-weeks), I actually have Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome aka Shin Splints. So now I have to ice my legs for 20-minutes every 2 hours, take Ibuprofen, minimise or stop running and check my gait. I have decided that due to the pain that I was experiencing that I will stop all running until Friday, when I will do a test run around the garden and access my recovery.

As 'Race for Life' is in July, I don't really have much time to be injured but it's happened and I can't change it. If I try to run before my legs have healed, I'll just do myself greater damage. There is no point in stressing over the things that I cannot change.

There is also a trail race in the Forest of Dean every year in May. I think that I shall make that my next goal and then I have the rest of the year to train for it. That way, if I get injured, it won't eat into my schedule too much.

You may also have read my previous post in which I had a bit of a mini freakout. I am actually feeling better about it today and was back to flicking through the magazines and thinking, "This time next year, I will actually be able to wear this stuff". I have always said that to myself but never believed it. Now I do. I have also been keeping a little scrapbook with pictures of clothes that I have cut out of mags; there is a hell of a lot of Alexander McQueen in there (which is hardly surprising, as the man was a genius). How I will be able to afford it I have no idea but a girl needs to be able to dream. I have often found it disheartening that fat people cannot seem to buy decent clothing. It's all shapeless and flouncy and I have never been able to develop a style. Looking through the scrapbook has illustrated that I actually do have a style and it is dark, structured, tailored and has a statement. I cannot wait until I can fit into those clothes!