GrooveTime!group - CLOSED!!! (Page 8)

Edited by midlifeinsanity 2010-02-06 9:44 AM

SHAUN -

I hope you didn't take me ceriously about the ventilator! That was just me being silly, in reference to pecking away here on those two longish posts to Anne. That was the biggest endurance "event" I've attempted in about three weeks!

Anyhow, i will be to you tomorrow morning --- which is really this morning, I guess. Yikes! Time for bed!

STEVE B

Glad to hear you were just joking.   I was beginning to think you were serious.  

THANK YOU so much for that indepth analysis.   I have a lot to digest now and will have some questions as a result, but will leave it for a couple of days so that you can give the same 'loving' attention to everyone. 

Once again, I cannot emphasize ENOUGH how lucky we are to have you as our mentor.   You are so bang on in your comments on my traits, tendencies and personality, it's like you've known me for years!  

You'll be happy to know that after not cycling the past month, I got on the bike yesterday and didn't go nuts.   It was hard though. 

Anne

Belated congrats to you Lisa!

Tracey

Congrats Lisa! I've known a few people going through the preparation for the bar and then the never ending waiting.

Steve, good to know you truly weren't on a ventilator!!

DIane-

The bike I have will be too tall.

Sorry 

LISA A -

Last thoughts on wheels and Ryan:
(1) Si,mple is the thing for me, but Ryan is much more confident and clever* about machine stuff than I am, so he could probebly make even tank treads work to is advantage.
(2) At my size 700 was essential. For Ryan, though, of intermediate height, he could probably fit either a 650 or a 700. the it comes down to how he feels about rolling resistance diffs in the two sizes of wheel, and on which frame he is most comfortable.


* Do I correctly remember a story from last spring in which he fixed your aerobars -- which subsequently fell off? Was the "fix" pre=Columbia, and the falling-ff during the race itself?

GANG!

I tossed out a random joking comment to Shaun yesterday, that I was hooked up to my ventilator after my posts to Anne, and wouldn't get back to him until later. He took that to heart, and Anne saw it and was wondering as well, but THERE IS NO VENTILATOR! That was just me, cracking wise to the effect that I was exhausted after those two longish posts!

And to make it even stupider on my part, I really wasn't wiped out after them; I just wanted to have a bit of sport with Anne, and I guess myself. (Tediously long posts is what I do!)

So, there's nothing at all wrong with this cat's breathing. I have phemomenal lungs, and my heart beats at the rate of a lizard in hibernation (that is, very slow), so all is well in my mid-regions.

The brain, however, is becoming addled some with age, so if I promise something to you (by way of a response or suggestion) and it is not forthcoming, then PLEASE feel free to rattle my cage about it! I joked the other day about being a nag, but really and truly -- I do not mind any of you nagging me about anything at all!

DWAYNE -

That was a remarkably generous offer, and I'm sorry for Diane (searching for a steed) and you (wanting to bring to fruition the full spirit of your fine intentions) that the sizes didn't match.

Edited by midlifeinsanity 2010-05-23 7:23 PM

ANATOMY 101

Two anatomical items have come up recently, and both have to deal with terms I can never keep striaght. So, partly for your edification, and partly to help me once again try to remember these, here you have it:

Adductors -
Anne mentioned these a few days ago, saying she was still weak on them. She put down "(inside?)". and for the zillioneth time I couldn't remember, either. But she was right -- adductors are on the inside (think groin), abductors are on the outside. I've never settled on a mnemonic for this, and even trying to remember ADDuctor with INNer (vowel start, then two consoanants) doesn't stick.
ANYHOW, what I do know is that the adductors are very important for the stuff we do, especially running. They work to stabilize, flex, and rotate our hips, and also have a function or two with the knee - um, flexing it and rotating it inward?
So, when Anne equates some running injuries with relatively weak adductors, she is probably one to something!

Dorsiflexion and Plantarflexion -
I used this the other day in a post about swimming -- and for the life of me I cannot remember which I said in referring to the fact I am poor at one of them. So here it is:
dorsiflexion - the position your foot is in when you are standing erect, feet flat on the ground
plantarflexion - the position a ballerina is in when she is "en pointe"
When Darren mentioned Michale Phelps and other world-class swimmers, one thing they all have in common is the abilty to get their feet in extreme plantarflexion. Not only does this lengthen their vessel (using TI terminology), but it also dramatically reduces the drag that comes with a dorsiflexed foot AND assists in more of a "whip" action with their kick. Unfortunately for many triathletes, who of course tend to run lots, they have severely dorsiflexed feet, and that gets in the way of an effective kick.
So what I meant to say in that swimming post the other day was that I have poor plantarflexion -- meaning I will never be a world-class ballerina!!

M -

First, you have my permission to skip work this morning (and all day, if necessary) if you need the time for the cardio segment of P90X. As part of my role as a Full Service Mentor, I write absence/excuse notes when training demands require them.

Second, thank you for explaining P90X more fully to me. I have no real excuse for not having googled it several days ago, and I WILL do that soon. But I least I now have a better idea of what the system (?) can do, and it is no wonder that you are sore today -- that was a very diverse workout you were out through yesterday.

I guess as you know, ANYthing core-related is good, and short of muscle strains, pretty much the more, the better. But for a lot of people core work is not a top favorite, so if you have a system (i.e., P90X) that makes core work palatable, then that is great!

The odd thing about people not liking core work (and I am one of them) is that there are so many exercises one can do that don't require any extra equipment, or a fancy building like a gym. They should be the easiest things to do, whenever, but it doesn't turn out that way for most people.

Not long ago I read that one of the prominent kung-fu movie actors (Jackie Chan?) never attends a meeting at which he isn't constantly doing sitting crunches -- just sitting there in his chair, constantly doing motionless crunches. Sounds pretty simple, doesn't it? (So why can't I do it, too?)

ANNE -

Back to you about injuries!

going through my notes, what initailly seemed like a lot of stuff when I first read your post actually distills into a few Repeat Offenders - notably the hip, of course. But there are alos tow mentions each of ITB and S-I (sacrailiac), yet beyond that you are doing okay! Your shoulders seem solid, and the actual knee joint itself (ITB has nothing to do with the knee joint) isn't mentioned as a problem area. Below that, there is also no mention of calf issues or "shin splints", and your arches seem to be holding their own. So that's all outstanding!

As for the heel thing at Vancouver, though -- hmmmmm. Heel pain....."huge ball"...... air cast for a few weaks -- and yet no definitive diagnosis. Intriguing. If you want, send me the info at [email protected], and I'll see if any of it resonates with me. I am NOT a doctor and have no formal medical training, and all I know about sports medicine and injuries is from being around the block with them far more times than I care to think about!

Your mentions of S-I pain come from '04 and '06, so does that mean it's a thing of the past? I had it on and off in '02 and '03, I believe, and it was a real problem on the bike. It was right side only, and it would start to lock in after about 25-45 minutes. And when it was there, it made cycling really uncomfortable. I went to one highly reputable place for an in-depth (2+ hours) fitting, and while that made me sit a bit more effectively on the bike, it didn't reduce the S-I problem. A few months later I traipsed down to central Vermont to have a fitting at Fit-Werx. That one took about 4 hours, and the "cure" was miraculous -- S-I woes, gone! My fitter was Ian Buchanan, who sometimes writes the Bike Tech column in "Triathlete" magazine. Had that not been fixed, it might've been a deal-breaker for me and triathlon, or at least reduced me to minimal bike training and probaly doing raxces that required only relatively short bike legs. Anyhow, if your S-I problems return, you might benefit from a comprehensive bike fitting.

And now that Lisa A. has survived - nay, CRUSHED - her exam, I'll sic her on you about the hip. That rared its head in '06, '07, and '09.....amnd I suspect it wasn't perfect in '08, even though your don't mention it. About the only thing I can suggest to you about that is to go to a good A.R.T. practioner, as that modality (Active Release Technique) works really well on hips. And, of course, whatever you can do by way of strengthening both adductors and abductors would be good. i will look into whatever hip exercises are recommended; right now the only one I can think of that doesn't require a machine is the scissors one, lying on your side and lifting your top leg, either unweighted or with a weighted ankle pad strapped to it.

And if you want, send the details on that ankle problem!

LISA L -

You win the Small World Award for the month of December -- even as the month isn't quite over yet! That list of obscure (pardon me...) Minnesota locales that you mentioned to Denise was amazing.....but then I remember that you are a Dallas Stars fan by way of loving the Minnesota North Stars. (Minnesota Wild --- it's not quite the same, is it?)

Our son Peter is a huge Stars fan, having been born in Plano, so you're in good company!

NYC Tri fills in a heartbeat (registration for '10 was on-line for four minutes; for '09 it was something like 22 minutes), but if you veer have a chance, do it. The swim is as I described - point-to-point from about 100th down to about 72nd. If you are in the "right" wave, which is at low tide, you can get the maximum benefit of the power of the Hudson behind you. that happened to me this year, and my time for the 1500 meters was 19 minutes. Normally, I feel as if I've died and gone to heaven if I can break 30 minutes for 1500 meters! But for people in the later waves (and they are spread out over close to an hour), the tide is turning and so the beneffits of the Hudson are severley restricted.

The bike is out and back up to Yonkers on the Henry Hudson, the northside lanes of which are completely closed to traffic. That is incredibly cool....but not as cool as the run, a point-to-point that begins at T-zone in Riverside Park (around 75th) heads down a completely closed-to-traffic 72nd, and then hits Central park, going along the west side of the park to the top of it, and then down the east side to a finish not far from the Naumberg(sp?) Bandshell and Tavern on the Green. A one-of-a-kind race!!

Lex and 57th -- neat neighborhood!!

JESS,

Yep, I married myself a winner.  She does a fantastic job of looking like she's listening as I blab on about tri stuff, workouts and equipment.  I just recently got a new bike (2009 Felt B12 which I'm in love with right now), and during the process, as I kept trying to keep the price as low as possible, she kept saying, "get the one you really want - better to spend more now, then a lot more later."  She gets it.  :-)

So, I'd be happy to share some of what's going on during this initial IM journey this year.  I've been thinking about it since I did my first sprint, 5 years ago.  This past year, when I stepped up to the OLY distance, I had a little deal with myself.  If I could improve my pace in each event over the longer distance, I'd do it.  I did it and so now I'm doing it.  LOL. 

So far, the journey has been a very rocky one.  The process stared with me getting terribly sick following the OLY (respiratory infection) which I recovered from just in time to start the official training program on on 10/12.  First 3 weeks went very well.  Hitting all workouts and feeling strong.  Then I got a call from Dad - Mom was in the hospital on a respirator back in Knoxville.  She'd contracted pneumonia after a vacation, and after 50 years of smoking, they were not sure she'd ever get off the vent.  It was one of those, "you better get on the next flight" type of calls.  The next 3 weeks were spent on airplanes back and forth to Knoxville. She got off the vent, and is doing better now.  But for several weeks, I was out there for 4-5 days at a time, sleeping a few hours a day in the hospital room and taking care of her.  Needless to say, biking was right out!  I swam in the lake by the house a few times and tried to run as much as I could.  I figure I lost about 25% of my "base" training as a result of that process.  Good news is she's much better now, and back at home.  Not sure what the future holds there, but it's good to have Mom feeling better.

Since Thanksgiving, I've battled regular flu and just had a bought of stomach flu last week which has dropped my weight to about 155 or so (down from 162 the prior week).  I've tried to keep up with the workouts as much as possible - though I've had to be very strategic about my run routes to make sure I had access to Andy Gumps or other bathrooms along the way.  It's been challenging, but I am trying to keep two things in mind when training is tough:  1)  I think of Mom in the hospital - she was experiencing real pain and discomfort.  2) Come race day, I don't get to choose how I will feel, and after 30 weeks of training, I'll be damned if anything keeps me off that starting line.  So I'd better get used to dealing with discomfort during these sessions, as I may need to draw on that during the race.

Anyhoo, I'm 19 weeks out now, and taking a "no missed workouts" view from here on out.  Unless it's respiratory related and breathing would be compromised, I'll be out there. 

I have a friend in Vegas who is doing the same event.  We are taking VERY different approaches to training.  He is very concerned about his endurance base, and is doing a lot of very impressive mileage right now.  I'm actually quite envious.  I'm taking a bit of a different tact - shorter sessions (as prescribed by beIronFit's competitive program), but higher intensity sessions.  Intervals, some pickups, tempo runs and the like.  He and I are like two bickering spouses - but I respect everything he is doing. 

Anyway, after the base period (of which I fear I'm missing some), things are going to get interesting at this point.  I'm nervous/excited to see how the body begins to respond to the longer sessions, speed work, and transition workouts. 

 

STEVE A -

My parents were lifelong smokers, and it did them both in. Hopefully for your mom, it has been "caught" in time and further damage will not happen. You've been a awfully fine son, however, traveling back and forth so often from CA to TN. They did a fine job bringing you up right!

Your iron path ahs not been easy at all, and I hope that very soon you will start catching some breaks. From your "Anyhoo...." paragraph, it sounds as if you understand the cradinal rule of working out when ill -- if it's below your neck, do not exercise! Head colds can handle a workout, if you can mange them, amd sore throats can also survive - sometimes. I usually try to continue resting even with a sore throat, but for some people they do fine.

I'm not sure you've lost as much as 25% of your base.....but then again I'm not sure how big your base was. But 25% is a significant amount, so maybe it's time for a tally. So, maybe the first 7-10 days of October you were sick. Until the end of October, roughly, you did well with the BeFit program --- and then along came your mom's emergency, and you fit in workouts here and there during and around your visits with her. And then effectively brought you to the end of November, meaning that during those 8 weeks you had three solid ones, and three that had you following the program, albeit fragmented. And then for the last three weeks, you've had a couple of bouts of illness, and again, your workouts have been fragmented at best.

My guess is that you've lost 15% of your base tops, and that what you're feeling when you try to run, say, is in large part due to the weight you've lost and a general feeling of relative lethargy. Another way to say this is that if you could string together 3-4 "successful" weeks of workouts, you'd fel on top of things and lose that horrible sense that you've lost so much base.

Overall, base is tough to lose, especially if it's a pretty good one. On the other hand, day-to-day conditioning goes pretty quickly, as I experienced just today. I di my last pre-marathon long run, a 17-miler on nov. 30, and then the ITB acted up. i took about 10 days off, and ran again, about 5.5 miles in a howling gale in NC, on Dec. 9. Today was my first run since then, and boy did I feel flat! It was bitter cold and quite windy, which didn't help, but even without the cold and the wind I just would not have felt crisp. My immediate thought was something along the lines of losing base, but what I really know is that the small layoff I took resulted in a machine that is a bit rusty, is all. And I think you are feeling a lot of rust - soem of it base, but not near as much as you fear.

At this point, were I you, i would take a gamble of sorts and take another week off -- a good week of rest and recovery. You've battled a bunch of stuff, and your systems are down - you've been through an emotional wringer with your mom, and the physical issueds have taken a toll on you - just look at the weight loss! By your own account from a few days ago, you don't want to operate at such a low weight, and yet that's what you are kind of forced to do right now.

In a sense, you are injured - not your skeletal or muscular systems, but your immune system. You're on a run of illness now, starting in early October, and it's possible that if you don't get things under control now, you may have heaalth issues lingering through January and into february....and maybe into March, and ?

BUT - I fully understand your concern and the growing sense of panic that you're feeeling as you look at your program and you look at the date for St. George, and you sense that you are falling behind. Well, you might be falling behind that particular program, but as my former coach used to say, designing a program is more of an art than a science. The science of it is what is laid out rigidly in the program, but the art of it might be the flourishes and embellishments that you put on it now in ensuring that it works for you. And maybe one of those flourishes should be to back off fully for just a short while and see how your body responds.

Your weight is down and the holiday season is here -- what an awesome time to gain back that weight so it's more in line with your optimal race and training weight! Many of us here (and gazillions more worldwide) are kind of dreading the holidays and the very real spectre of putting on pounds that we do not at all need....and then there is you, having lost SEVEN pounds in the past week, and with a 10-day smorgasbord in front of you. You've drawn the long straw, baby!

I've battled enough injuries (and a few illnesses) over the years to know that doing lame "junk mile" workouts only prolongs the offending condition, and really does nothing to improve one's overall fitmness, or even get them to a stated goal. I am embarrassed at the number of times I have wasted 3, 4, 5 weeks in doing the odd half-assed run here and there, and then realizng after those weeks that what was hurting me 5 weeks ago is still there. Sure, i managed to run, say six times, but none of them were good runs - they were just junk miles.

And getting back to the science vs art aspect, what you and your LV friend are doing kind of emphasizes that. You both have the same goal race, but your approaches are so different as to suggest that you both of adding the "art" to the other's "science". that is, if he is following a "scientifically-validated" program, then your take on it is to be artistic - and up comes your approach. And for you with your "scientifically-validated" program, his approach of big miles is the way he is embellishing the very nature of your shorter-but-more-intense program.

So for now, think about tinkering with your program just a bit more by taking a deeeep breath and committing to a few more days of good rest to give your compromised body the best chance of being recovered as you continue on the iron trail. And to paraphrase my former coach once again, it's better to lose two days now than two weeks later, or to lose two weeks now instead of two months later.

Just a thought or three!

SHAUN -

As I siad to Tracey a few days ago, the best way to avoid being oxygen-deprived is to breathe as often as possible. So for me, being a right-side breather, I breathe every other stroke -- every time my right arm is pulling underwater and my left arm is in the recovery phase when it is movng from the back to the front, I'm truning to catch a breath. That is as optimal as the oxygen gets for a freestyle swimmer - with one exception that I won't mention right now. For people who breathe bilaterally, they are most commonly breathing every third stroke. And for people who breathe to only one side, some get by with breathing every fourth stroke -- although simple math tells you that that's only half of what an every-other-stroke breather gets, air-wise.

The downside to what I do is that it overemphasizes the rotation to one side, even when there is a conscious effort to employ the same amount of body roll the other way, regardless of the fact that there is not the goal of breathing on the "off" side. So, it's easy for a stroke to become somewhat unbalanced for a one-side-only breather, and then the effort has to made to try to keep the stroke balanced, regardless. That CAN be done, however, so it's not exactly a deal-breaker.

I have read frequently that many people who bilateral-breathe in training will resort to their strongest side in races; tnat is certainly the case for me. I CAN breathe to my left, but when the money is on the line, I'm going to go with maximum comfort - and maximum oxygen.

Any of the TI books or videos will help you with basic matters of balancing and doing things in a rlaxed fashion. There is also a series of videos from www.swimpower.com that are useful. Steve Tarpinian, who writes for Triathlete magazine sometimes, is the guru behind the Swim Power stuff. A third source is www.swimsmooth.com. I took a fabulous one-on-one session with Paul Newsome (the SwimSmooth guru), and his video is the best one out there. The only minor problem there might be that Paul is now back in New Zealand (or is it Australia?), so unless he has a North American distributor, it might be a bit difficult getting his stuff.

I will look into the SwimSmooth stuff for you and see what's what. I find that TI takes one only so far, and that swim Power spends a lot of time of things like Yoga and stretching and strength work; flip turns are there, too, which have never-ever helped me in an open water race. Swim Smooth covers a lot of the same basics that you find with the others, but goes much further than those ones with great advice on the fine aspects of the stroke itself, as well as the kick.

I have to leave now, but I will get back to you about the mountain bike question, and also your thoughts about hating to run -- which you're right about tnere being a fair bit of that going around!

So regarding your swim concerns and your recent dislike of running, draw strength from the fact that you are not alone. Your numbers are legion, in fact!

ROOOOOAAAARRRR!!!!!!

Steve,

What are your feelings about marathon training? I have been trying to get my millage up to 50 miles a week which is tough for a slow runner, about 9-10 hours of running. I have not been doing a lot of speed training, although in the last month I have thrown in 3 sessions, as I have been concentrating on getting my millage up going with the idea that for marathon training quantity=quality. Last week I had my highest millage and hit my long run on Saturday of 25 k and on Sunday of 15k, at a pretty good pace of 6:30 per km. My run yesterday was less than steller and I think I did the smart thing by just dropping my planned 10k to 8k, as my pace was slowing throughout. today I wanted 15k, but was not feeling it again, and my pace was falling and I thought I could finish but decided to bag it after 10k. The reason being that I don't want to wear myself out and sacrifice my long run on the weekend. Anyway, what do you think. Actually I am proud of myself for bagging the last two runs and your previous post to Steve kinda echoed this in that short term pain does not always equal long term gain and sometimes rest=gain.

Anyway, I ramble.

DARREN --

No, you didn't ramble at all. All of your thoughts were good, and I truly think that there is a lot of behind-the-scenes thinking that goes so much into this stuff that we do. So, let it all out! Give it a voice!

My feelings about marathon training have changed over the years, and even in my sort of marathon hayday, my mileage was dictated by my less-than-bionic body. I think I expressed this to you last week in saying that maybe only in my active fabntasy life dod I ever manage a 50-mile, and that if so then it was almost certainly followed by a week (or two.....) of mandatory down-time!

My own marathon history is six stand-alones (the last being Boston '04) and two subsequent ones that were the last leg of my two irons, in '04 and '05. Training for my aborted Kiawah this past fall was a real adventure, my first time hitting those advanced distances in over four years. Going quickly through my log, I think my biggest week was 42-43 miles. But that's me, and you're you, and the questions concern you, not me.

Calgary is May 30, and it's a sweet course - virtually flat for 14km, then climbing 60m over 3.5km, then being mostly flat again for 14km, and finisghing with about 10km of downhill or flat save for a wee hump with about a km to go. VERY sweet course!

I have two plans in front of me, one for 14 weeks, one for 18 weeks. The 14 week one would have you "officially" starting your training on about Feb. 21, while the 18-weeker would see you plowing forth on about Jan. 25.

So, right now you should be setting the stage for the actual training, assuming you are following some plan in the neighborhood of 14-18 weeks. (If it's a 26-weeker you're eyeing, then I guess you're about ready to start it any day now, huh??)

I mention that just because you're hitting some decent miles right now - in fact, way ahead of the first few weeks of the 14-week intermediate plan, which tops at 96kms in weeks 10 and 12. The first week of it is 50-53km, depending on whether the long run is 13 or 16km. (For the record, the entire first week, beginning on a Monday, is off-13k-5k-13k-6k-off-16or13k.) While it is maybe good what you are doing now, you just have to be careful that you don't burn-out in mid-April or so. Also, you may find that you "run out of gears", in fact, meaning that you hit those high weeks of the schedule ---- and there's nowhere to go but up yet again.

If your real goal is an ultra beyond Calgary, then your approach of hitting the bigger miles already is vaild. But if Calgary really is an "A" race for you, then diddling around now in preparation for the official start of your program is probably smart. Have you had much of an off-season yet? If not, then this is a good time for it, all as part of the prep for dedicated training beginning in January or February.

I am not a believer in over-training.....but a lot of that is my injury-prone body speaking. I know some of the advantages of, say, doing 22km as part of half-iron or half-marathon training, but I also know that for most people in good shape on a "fair" course, they can get by with 18-20km for their longest run, and count on adrenaline and their fitness taking them the remaining distance on race day.

For me, for Kiawah, my longest long runs were two 35s and one 32 - I think (I'm looking quickly now.). Because I am somewhat experienced, I was confident I knew how to manage things to account for the 7km differential come race day. But you are also somewhat experienced, and you spend enough time cranking out the big miles so that you must have a pretty good idea of what your body is capable on the long/longer/longest runs.

Your pace WAS indeed very good, at 6:30/km; congrats on that! And congrats also on backing off the runs that didn't feel right. That is really hard for me to do, but over the years I HAVE gotten better at it. (I just think "every dog has its day", and that supports my bailing.)

On this topic,, but kind of tangentially, it is almost 100% of the time a great idea to bail on a swim once your form dtarts falling apart - otherwise, bad form habits get ingrained. I am sure that some of my hard-to-diagnose bad habits were established in my earlier days, when I would put in pretty long pool sessions, complete with deteriorated form that I knew was failing. Did I think I could somehow "overcome" this? I'm not sure what I thought back then, but I was a very bad boy about it and I think it has cost me!

Did any of that help? Anywhere? (Talk about rambling, eh?!?)

Steve A -

What a crazy few months you've had. I am really glad to hear that your mom is doing better, and I hope you're able to kick the cold soon.

I don't have any iron training, and my attempt at a HIM last year fell short when I got really sick days before the race (i.e. high fever) - but I am a big follower of Steve's advice to rest when you need it and let your body dictate the plan. My marathon training this fall was probably less than optimal. I had several weeks in the mid-40s, but then several weeks that fell far short of that (due to general stress, just starting work for the first time, waiting for bar results, grandpa broke his hip, etc...) I readjusted as necessary, tried to let go of missed workouts, and was able to run a 19 minute PR. You've got a good base built up, and 5 months to get where you want to be

Thanks so much for sharing all this with us

As for me - I had a follow up appointment at the podiatrist today... I developed a nasty case of tendonitis of the extensor tendon on the top of my left foot right after CIM two weeks ago.  At first, I was convinced it was a stress fracture because of the sharp pain whenever I walked.  My foot was also really swollen.  Luckily, there was no stress fracture, and the doc recognized the tendonitis. I was told not to run for two weeks, use a hot pad, do stretches, take Aleve, etc...

I went back today for my two week checkup, and I'm clear to run! Yay! My foot has been feeling MUCH better the past few days.

I'm going to attempt my first run (probably about 3 miles) tomorrow morning before work. I'm also excited about getting back into the pool again. I forgot how much I loved swimming - Monday was really my first time swimming in months. So that's all good

Swearing in was so great. I loved showing my family the courthouse, the Judge did a great ceremony for me. We also went out for a ridiculously amazing dinner. I ate waaaay too much... I need to focus on getting the weight down again and trying to stay in control over the next two weeks

Edited by midlifeinsanity 2010-05-23 7:25 PM

JESS -

Ah! Here are the various answers!

Had I suggested tendonitis? I love it when I get these injuries correct!

I'm sure you've tendonitis elsewhere, and do you agree that it is whole other animal when it's on the top of the foot? Inusually think of it as medium-dull elsewhere, but on the foot it is much sharper. I have been fooled/terrified many toimes with foot tendonitis, fearing a stress fracture but realizing it was "only" tendonitis.

My daughter Jane emailed me today and complaained of a similar pain, and I gave her the good/bad scenario spiel. I hope she is just tendonited, too.

Was your case maybe brought on by having your shoe tied too tightly? I use speed laces for everyting - haven't tied a pair of running shoes in several years. I find that elastic laces are just that much more "giving" than are rgular laces, which can clamp down and cause inflammation. Just checking.

Have a good run, and enjoy the swim tomoorow. Glub, glub!

HI STEVE!

Not sure whether you saw my post on page 8. As I said I'm almost a complete beginner and would appreciate any suggestions at all.

Arthur

Edited by Hepeoc 2009-12-23 4:48 AM

Hi Arthur,

Not sure how much reading you have done but when I started out knowing NOTHING, I picked up several books from the library on triathlon and bought a couple on the recommendation of tri coaches.   At first it was greek to me, but I did find them helpful.  Make sure you don't just flip through the book.  Give it a good read, because a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing.   Spoken from experience.  

Anne