Whomp. Whomp. On Saturday morning, I set out for a 12 mile run. It started off fine, but at around mile 9, I felt a strain in the arch of my foot. I thought it might have just been a weird cramp, so I kept on trucking. Unfortunately, the pain in my foot worsened throughout the rest of the run to the point that I ended up hobbling home for the last mile.
Since Saturday, my foot has been really tender. I have literally been limping around the house. We tried to go for a little walk to the mail on Monday but I didn't make it very far before I turned around to go home. Thank goodness, Dan is a physiotherapist and can give me advice on what to do. I've been resting my foot (avoiding running), icing it, rolling it out and massaging it with a lacrosse ball, stretching it, etc. It is finally starting to feel better when I'm walking around, especially if I'm wearing shoes that have some support.
I think this running injury happened for two reasons: 1) I was 'overdoing it' with my running mileage (I had been running 50-60 miles per week for probably 12 weeks now), and 2) my sneakers needed to be replaced. Did you know that you're suppose to replace your sneakers after 300-500 miles? Over time, the support in sneakers wear down —this happens at different rates depending on each individual's stride while running (article here). I've definitely put on over 500 miles since I got these sneakers in January, so to avoid another injury, I bought myself a new pair (Brooks PureFlow 4). Yay for new kicks!!
Once my foot is feeling 100% better and I'm okay to run again, I'm going to be more careful with my miles. Rather than running everyday, I'm going to try to limit myself to three-four runs max per week (a couple short ones, a medium one, and a long one).
Anyways, I'm obviously kind of bummed (and kind of grumpy) that I can't run for a little while, but I know it's for the best. This injury is my body's way of telling me that I needed a break from running.
Here are a few things that are helping me get through this injury:
- Being positive. It's okay to be bummed for a while, but there's no point to stay hung up on it.
- Appreciating what I can do, rather than the one thing that I can't do. I've been going on the bike or elliptical at the gym to keep up some cardio endurance, and doing weights and lots of core work. I really don't enjoy going on cardio machines at the gym, but if I put on a good podcast, it's not so bad. Fun fact: The elliptical mimics the motion of running without the impact, so it's a good running substitute during injuries. I did a little over 9 miles on the elliptical this morning. There are a bunch of elliptical workouts online, so I just followed on of those.
- This kind of goes hand in hand with the point above: Seeking out other forms of activity. There's a fitness studio called Fundamentals in Grand Falls-Windsor, and they put on a bunch of strength and cardio-conditioning classes, so I'm going to try out one called the 'Daily Grind' tonight. Apparently, it's mostly biking with some other cardio mixed in. I'm really looking forward to it!
- Resting, stretching, foam rolling, icing (great stretches for runners)
- Eating a bit more clean, which is never a bad thing. My eating habits are pretty good, so this basically just means cutting out those nightly ice creams haha Running or not, I do not need to eat ice cream every night (as much as I love it)
- Keeping busy doing other things like preparing for the Farmer's Market this coming Saturday or playing all afternoon with Finley or spending some extra time hanging out with Dan
- Learning from my body. Next time that I feel 'off' during a run, I'll stop rather than pushing through it. Also, I'll tone down the weekly mileage.
- Seeking out advice or treatment. Rather than simply waiting for my foot to magically heal itself, I ask Dan his opinion about what I should do to help speed recovery.
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