Almost Two Weeks Since I Broke Toe...

After the club run this morning, as I entered the diner where we all meet for breakfast, the Euro-sounding owner said to me, "Runners in the back," as he pointed to our usual large table. "How did you know I'm a runner?" I asked him. His reply: "Because you were limping."

I attempted running on Wednesday evening and this morning with the RVRR crew. Both times I began running on the D&R Towpath in shoes, and turned around after a few minutes to return to the parking lot and change into bare feet. I then completed 30 minutes on the grass at Johnson Park. There was pain in the shoes, and less pain while barefoot. I didn't run very fast - maybe 10 minutes per mile. I had more pain this morning than on Wednesday evening. It is now early afternoon, and I have little to no pain. I am thinking I can run fine right now - just thinking it. I am thinking that later in the day there is less internal swelling so there may be less pain. In the morning the fluids may have built up while sleeping. I have ridden my bike a lot - over 132 miles/5 rides last week and 80/8 rides so far this week (commuting). I don't think I am losing any cardiovascular fitness, but I am not sure that I will be able to run the USATF-NJ 5K XC championships next Sunday.

My Run Today - Five Days Since The Fall That Broke Rib #6

Yours Truly Are Stupid

Either I are stupid or chalk this one up to it being Friday The Thirteenth. Be glad I did not take the sole photos I was tempted to take, because they would have looked gruesome.

I ran barefoot today. I have not been running barefoot that much this 2008, so far. Reasons have been posted in previous posts. But, I have to admit, that pulling back on the number of miles I run barefoot - and indeed the number of miles I run in general - has fostered the healing of my heels and Achilles tendons. At the same time, I am feeling very fit, at least aerobically. The speed at which I will be able to race is still in question, however, since I totally lack anything like tempo runs or intervals.

So I are stupid because, on this hot Friday The Thirteenth, after wearing shoes all day, I came home and took them off. Then I set out for a barefoot run. Half a mile on the street to Greenbrook Park's grass. Well, after only 50 yards or so it felt like I had something embedded in the bottom of my forefoot, behind my right little toe. I noticed the pavement was hot, but it didn't seem too hot. I continued my run. The pain worsened. I looked for something in my foot, briefly, and saw nothing. I got to the park and the pain continued, even on the grass. Something must be up, I was thinking. I checked the bottom of my foot again and saw nothing of note. So I did the right thing and turned around and ran home. Arriving home, I inspected the bottom of my right foot more closely and found three blood-blisters. The most bloody was the one on my forefoot behind my little toe. The second was on my forefoot behind my big toe. The third was on my big toe itself. Then I discovered a fourth on my left forefoot. Unbelievable. I can't remember ever having blisters from a short run like this, which was about 1.5 miles.

For the rest of the evening, I was limping around, because the blisters really hurt. The three points on my left foot, for example, seem to be the major weight-bearing points when I step. I suspect that my right foot does more work when I run, because the forefoot of my right running shoes now wear out before the left. (When I ride my bike hard, I am pretty sure my right leg works harder also because I can feel the stress at my right knee. That is when I try to relax my right leg and concentrate on using my left leg more.)

The stupidity factor in getting these blisters is evident in retrospect when I failed to consider my relatively low barefoot mileage this spring, the pavement temperature, the softness of my feet after being in shoes all day, and the fact that I am running the President's Cup 5K - my first race since the NYC Marathon last November - on Monday night.

Lucky for me, I am not shooting for any kind of specific goal at President's Cup beyond finishing with a time that I can work with for planning future workouts. And there is the Sam Adams and party atmosphere that follows, of course.

Can't Freakin' Believe It

I had a rather disturbing run today: It was close to pain-free. I mean, my Achilles tendons and PF problems, which have been dogging me since mid-June, didn't bother me too much. And here is what I did differently: On a hunch, I put an old pair of OTC orthotics in an old pair of cheap KangaRoos racing shoes. This is diametrically opposed to everything I have learned running barefoot for the past three years.

The OTC orthotics pre-date my journey into running barefoot. When I wore them I was a heel striker, and I used them in expensive trainers. Today my feet correctly touched the pavement as a barefoot runner should: midfoot first, followed by non-weight-bearing heel-touch. So I am thinking maybe I can use these old aftermarket insoles as a bridge to recovery.

Another possibility is coincidence. I have been noticing that if I keep my blood level of ibuprofen up, I have less pain. I happened to have followed a consistent dosage yesterday and today. Add that to the minimal mileage I have been running, and maybe it is just time to feel the pain may be near ending.

Either way, I am really really hoping this is the home stretch for the pain, just in time for the NYC Marathon 20 days from today.

October Do or Die

OK, I essentially took the week off from running. I ran a 37-minute 5 miles on Thursday. Yesterday I tried running another five, but I cut it short. After 7 minutes I looped back, tired of my Nike Frees. I wanted to run barefoot. Why I didn't start that way, I will never figure out. For the last quarter mile I pulled them off and finished barefoot. I had a lot of pain before I removed the shoes, then less when barefoot. I am just fighting the ingrained wisdom, still, that shoes will protect my already injured heels. The truth is, they hurt them more. Flats or nothing. When will I get that through my stinkin' head.

So I have 31 days to get the training in for the NYC Marathon. Not much time. The goal is simply to go sub-4-hours.

Ran a Half-Marathon PW Yesterday!

I ran a 1:39 PW yesterday at the Newport Liberty Half-Marathon! A PB or PR is a "personal best" or "personal record". My run yesterday was a "personal worst" - I ran 1:21 last year there. It is because of these Achilles tendons and this lingering plantar fasciitis. I knew it would be slow, but it is still difficult to let all those people be in front of me, especially when I wasn't even breathing hard. When I am finished my runs lately, it feels like I was beat up for an hour. This is not good - kind of like aversive conditioning. I am wondering if I should just take an entire week off and ride my bike and swim instead of running. Would that put me any farther behind in so-called training for the NYC Marathon that is 6 weeks away?

Doing It All Amazingly Wrong

My running has been both wrong and amazing these past two weeks.

The amazing wrongness began at President's Cup on June 18th. I wrote about the damage I did to myself there. Summary: 19:15 5K barefoot. Left Achilles tendon = hurtin'. So for the rest of the week, Tuesday - Saturday I did not run. Instead I did some swimming and cycling, some icing and some rope-stretching. People at work noticed I was limping and showed concern.

I was registered for the Pine Beack 5K on Sunday June 24th. It was the USATF-NJ masters championship, so I wanted to run for the team's sake. I knew I had less pain in my Achilles when I was warmed up, but it was difficult to get to the warmed-up state by running. So I brought my bike to the event, warmed up on the bike, and ran the race wearing road race shoes. Initially I didn't have much pain during the race, but I did not want to push too hard. I ran 19:41, finishing just ahead of a member of my club who is a mother of two and still lactating.

The next day I swam again. Continuing my amazing wrong running program, I proceeded to run a cross-country 5K on Tuesday June 26th. I ran 19:53, finishing behind a 13 year old, but ahead of a bunch of 16 year-olds. Some pain there, but tolerable. So I continued last week with more alternative training Wednesday - Saturday: swimming and cycling, icing and stretching. .

Charlie emailed yesterday suggesting a long hilly trail run at Round Valley today. Of course that would be an amazingly wrong thing to do, considering my condition. But, true to form, I went and did 20 hilly rocky miles in 3:12 this morning with him and Jen. It was a beautiful run, and I am amazed I was able to do it. My Achilles did not bother me until the last few miles. I am psyched that I might even be able to run a decent Escarpment Trail on July 29th, despite this nagging Achilles pain.

So I am looking forward to another week of alternative training because I am not registered for another race until July 10th, another XC 5K. Maybe I should sign-up for a triathlon?

My Left Foot

My right foot runs so much better than my left foot. Barefoot running has taught me that. My right foot does not have any problems. My left foot gets blisters from running fast or far on pavement. My left heel has tendonitis that's a little too far back to be plantar fasciitis. The middle of my left heel often feels painful when it steps too hard on a pebble or stick, and I can trace that back to a hard landing off a ski jump in the terrain park at Belleayre. So my conclusion about the other heel pain that is a little too far back is that it is Achilles tendonitis. It is really hard to tell where the plantar fascia ends and Achilles tendon begins. I am also sure that pain is a symptom of a greater muscle chain of tightness that begins in my hamstring, continues through my calf and into that tendon. This problem bothered me to a limited extent last year, and it appeared this spring as I have been increasing mileage too fast, as is my post-ski-season habit. The pain was manageable up until Monday night, and of course in retrospect I should have been icing and stretching. For the last couple of weeks, once warmed up, I had no trouble with the tendon. And it warmed up fast, with just some 20 steps of easy running. But Monday night, running the President's Cup Night Race 5K, I really pushed it over its limit. This was the first road race I started without shoes, wearing socks with some duct tape on the bottom. I ran the race fairly hard, though I am not in the same shape I was in last year. I knew I was doing damage during the race, but I kept up the pace and sprinted the last 50 yards just to hang with Roger. I limped around after the race and through yesterday, enough for people to notice and comment. I am still limping today and have resorted to wearing cushioned training shoes with an elevated heel. It hurts when I step forward as my ankle begins to bend, and increases as my weight is transferred to that leg . If I walk on that foot exaggeratedly weighting on the outside or inside, the pain is significantly reduced. Yesterday I swam 550 yards instead of running. I will continue cross-training rehab for the rest of the week, because I have the Pine Beach 5K this Sunday.

Sleep Deprivation

It did not take much research to confirm that my "Unexplained Exhaustion" is from accumulated sleep deprivation. Of the 32 symptoms listed at Wikipedia, I have 20:

Aching muscles
ADHD-like
symptoms
Blurred vision
Clinical depression
Daytime naps
Decreased mental activity
Decreased concentration
Dizziness
Dark circles under the eyes
Headache
Impatience
Irritability
Memory lapses /
memory loss
Nausea
Pale skin tone
(looking pasty)
Slowed reaction time
Slurred speech
Weight loss / Anorexia
Weight
gain
Yawning

Luckily, I am not exhibiting the worst symptoms (yet?), which include hand tremors, fainting, decreased immune function, hallucinations and psychosis.

Unexplained Exhaustion

I cut my lawn barefoot last night, after dinner, after going to my son's track meet barefoot, after driving him to soccer practice. I did not run yesterday, barefoot or otherwise. Yet, after mowing, after picking up my son from soccer practice, I was exhausted. It was about 8:30 PM. I laid down on my bed and conked-out. I woke up about 2 AM, went to the bathroom, removed my running shorts, and slept until almost 7 AM.

I was exhausted last week too. I missed a few days of running. I took some naps. I ran almost 12 on Saturday, but in general, my running mileage has been low. I am about 40 miles behind the yearly total that I was at at this point last year. I do not know exactly what is up. All kids of scenarios are in my head, including mono, Lyme disease, anemia, clinical depression, thyroid problems and cancer. Even after that long sleep last night, I am still feeling a little draggy. My muscles feel a bit weak. I had some diarrhea yesterday. Colleagues have noticed that my mood is bit down, and that I look tired.

I want to believe that I have just been sleep-deprived for too long a period of time. It is hard for me to really come to terms with this. Perhaps sleep deprivation is the best explanation. I think I have gotten an average of about 6 hours of sleep per night for a couple of months now. I should do some research on the effects of this kind of sleep deprivation. Maybe I should go to a doctor?

More to come.

Shin-Thing Continued

Let me tell you what caused the shin-thing: wearing training shoes. And after lots of diagnosis I figured out what it is - or what it was - because it is almost over. And the reason it is almost over is I ran barefoot yesterday. And the ice probably helped too.

So it is or was a posterior compartment syndrome at the origin of my soleus and gastrocnemius muscles. This article helped me, because it explains the swelling, and it also explains the numbness I experienced in my toes during the workout on the very day that I noticed the swelling. This article really zeroed-in on the specific type of compartment syndrome. It was last Wednesday, at a club run, when I ran 8 miles fairly hard on what was so far the hottest day this year. The numbness happened on the hills during the last 2 miles. It was painfully numb, especially in the outside of my left foot. And on that day I was wearing Mizuno Precision shoes.

I took Thursday off and iced the swelling several times. The ice seemed to bring it down a little. Thinking I needed to protect my lower leg muscles and bones, I ran 4 miles on Friday and 8 miles on Saturday wearing the same shoes. On both days I felt a heaviness in my shin, as if I was carrying extra fluid around in there. I continued to ice. Then on Sunday I ran 8 miles barefoot. Barefoot, my shin felt normal the entire run, and in the evening, as I sat watching the passing of Christopher on The Sopranos and icing, I noticed the swelling was almost gone.

This incident made me remember that when I was in high school, circa 1976, I had compartment syndrome in both legs. It was so painful I was prescribed some steroid-based med and it ruined my cross-country season during my junior year.

A few other images that helped my figure this out:

(OK, the one above didn't really help me figure it out, I just liked the photo....)

A Shin-Thing Going On

I am having a shin-thing going on and was wondering how serious it might be. It has not stopped me from running. I just noticed it last Friday during a 7 mile run, where the last 5 were barefoot on grass. Left leg only, and felt like classic shin splints. Bothered me a little for 4 on Saturday barefoot on grass, 8 on Sunday shod. Took Monday almost off, running only about a mile at my son's track meet. Then it didn't bother me for 9 on Tuesday barefoot grass/pavement/track. Then 8 yesterday shod bothered me a little. Poking around with my fingers in the area I noticed swelling up against my shin bone, on the inside, high up. Feels like soft tissue swelling, so I self-massaged and iced. I am starting to get worried that it may be something more severe than shin splints. It is the swelling that has me worried. It isn't visible swelling, but I can feel it right up against the bone. Is this normal for shin splints? Some of the information I Googled mentions swelling in relation to shin splints, but also in relation with stress fractures and bone cancer. Self-diagnosis can be creepy sometimes. It has me wondering if I should go to the doctor, or just continue to ice. Guess I will have to make that decision after ricing it for a couple of days.