Tag: IT Band

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Ironman Training Injuries

The Fab Five is a bit of a mess these days.  Possible meniscus tears, turf toes, rotator cuffs, IT Bands, allergies, planter faciitis, hernias, tendonitis . . . and the list goes on.  Thankfully mine are minor: a bump on the forehead from my Rev3 medal, and a bruised elbow from running into the door while trying to avoid two wild birds I let out of the dryer hose. 

Injuries are obviously a big part of training, and this video is a hilarious viewpoint of how absurd the will to train through pain can seem to someone who is not training for Ironman.  Warning: Explicit Language. 

I can’t prove this, but I’m willing to bet that at least half of triathlon training injuries are directly related to running.  I can honestly say that my legs (and body) feel better right now than they have in months.  Over the last 24 days I have ran exactly 5 times: A 3.5 mile run with the East Nasties, a short/easy 2 mile jog after a bike, another two mile jog when I was sick, the Country Music Half, and a 10k for the Rev3 Olympic on Sunday. 

Following the CM Half, my feet were very sore and my IT Band was on the brink of relapse.  My calf was (and still is) in a knot.  That day I ran for one hour and thirty seven minutes. 

Following Olympic Triathlon Sunday, which took over an hour longer, I felt fantastic.  Not one body part was sore (other than the calf).  I was ready to do a hard workout the next day. 

That said, there is a major catch.  The run is a huge deal in triathlons and I’m not even remotely suggesting it should be avoided.  In fact, I love the work involved in running.  I just preparation, warm up, and strength exercises should not be taken lightly.  Done right, we should all probably warm up a minimum of 15 minutes before a run and if that cuts into total run time, so be it. 

That’s another reason why I love triathlon . . . by the time you get to the run, your legs are definitely warmed up.*

* Unless you did Rev3 Knoxville this year.   

 

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Mind Over Matter

I have never had a knee problem before, but last weekend I ran in Percy Warner Park and that could have been a big mistake.  I have gotten used to running through little aches and pains, but this felt like a scurry of squirrels had found some choice meat on the side of my leg.

Since I am the KING of self diagnosis, I started wondering if it had something to do with the slope of the road.  I was running around to the left and my right leg was on a lower plane the whole way.  It wasn’t bugging me on the uphills, but coming down put me in that happy-crazy-survival-mode like the guy who convinces himself he’s having fun even though he’s lost in the dark and getting chased by wild boars.  When I got the the bottom and regained sanity I thought, damn, I hurt this knee on the downhills.  As it turns out, I was right on both accounts.

Injuries are funny.  I have probably heard 100 people mention their IT Band.  It never sunk in.

Even a friend of mine who runs Percy Warner all the time said he loves running there but it’s hard on his knees.  Why didn’t I hear these warnings?  It’s like a little kid who has to burn his hand on the stove before he believes it.

I limped around Saturday and most of Sunday before I started to believe my running career was over.  Hyper-aging to the point where I even looked in the mirror a few times and thought “I really do look like my Grandpa.”

On Sunday and Tuesday I swam 35 minutes, then ran about 4 miles with the East Nasties on Wednesday.  The knee actually didn’t feel too bad, but after the run I did walk up on two dudes locked in a very “breathy” tongue-frenzy next to my car when I went to get my wallet for pizza.

Today, I was nearly committed to my Wisconsin Badger ban, but elected to DVR the game (and spend much less time watching) while I went for a short, flat run on the Greenway.  You know, just a little jog to see how it feels.

Nine miles later I was once again cussing myself for another glorious knee throb.  It honestly wasn’t too bad until I started mowing my lawn, but let me tell you I might as well have been dragging a plow through that backyard.  I was literally almost crying and this time it wasn’t because of the mole destruction.

So . . . I bought a foam roller and have been doing that, but I think the real trick is to stay out of my running shoes for a few weeks.  There is no way I want to hit January with tender knees and ankles.  If you need me I will be in the pool or posturing like Gandhi in one of Nashville’s fine yoga studios.