It took me a while to think of a title for this blog - I considered "Yo-Yo" but that didn't really capture it, "Rollercoaster" sounds too dramatic and yet it has been 3 weeks of ups and downs.
Picking up from late Jan, and the first low around my training, I went back to my physiotherapist as I was having real trouble getting a rhythm in my running and constantly felt like all my leg muscles were tight from the hips down. Some effective massage, a few stretches for at home and another visit to learn how to use a hard foam roll to really help stretch reluctant muscles later and I noticed a BIG change in how I felt about running. Up we go as I start to enjoy my training and even look forward to it.
First week of Feb and Sydney is in a heat wave while Queensland is waiting for category 5 Cyclone Yasi to hit, parts of Victoria are flooding and the outskirts of Perth are on fire - crazy! Little or no sleep for a week, it is about 28C at 06:00 (37C at 00:30 one night!) and really humid but no rain and running was exhausting rather than exhilarating, down we go again. A southerly change hit on the Sunday, the whole city breathed a sigh of relief and I look forward to getting into some serious training in the week ahead.
Tuesday morning, first real run of the week and I cover just over 5km's in a warm up, 5x 5min runs (30 sec gaps) and warm down format. Felt GREAT! Looking forward to the rest of the week. Tuesday afternoon, minor cramp in my left foot that becomes more painful on Wednesday, leads to me skipping my run Thursday morning as I start to hobble and then making an appointment to see the physio again that afternoon.
Thursday afternoon Tony at ProActive Healthcare checks out my foot, helps relieve the pain and gives me treatment advice while breaking the news that it could be either a stress fracture (no thanks - never broken a bone and not keen to start with a stress fracture of my 5th metatarsal) or tendonitis. No running for a week, wear soft shoes, ice, rest etc etc. Back again this Tuesday to see how it is healing and see if it needs X-Ray or Ultrasound.
Here's to a quick and full recovery and getting back to running! In the meantime it is bike repairs so I can ride and off to the pool to keep my cardio work on track.
