So…there’s been no posts here since my “I’ve Overtrained..” one. Yup. It’s been an emotional battle since then. For several months I’ve been up at the crack of dawn, daily, running or boxing. With an apparent Achilles Tendonitis creeping up on my left leg I took to rest, that was three weeks ago. Since then I’ve tried to run twice and failed by mile 3. I’ve continued to box, although not as often as I was. I attempted swimming and was bored to death. I’ve done the icing, the roller stick, bought the pacer and HRM. And I’m scheduled to see an Orthopedic Specialist this coming Thursday. So not excited to hear what he has to say as I’m pretty sure it lies somewhere in between “rest for 6 weeks” and “rest for 8 weeks”. Womp womp.
Here’s the thing…I can’t rest. Not in that way. Assuming I’m right I foresee a return to spinning classes, I need something ass kicking and swimming doesn’t do it. I’ll stick with boxing, maybe reduce it to 2-3 times a week and avoid the movements that impact my achilles.
Regardless, I’m running that damn marathon November 18th — even if it’s the first mile I run from now till then.
Tough lesson learned this week as I attempted to get back up on the treadmill for a short run ‘post’ achilles pain. Seems it’s not all that post. It felt fine walking but on mile three of my run I had to stop and limp back to my apartment. I chatted with @GrantHillFit about it and he shared some of the most informative content around the subject via a post by Sock Doc (which you can find here). Here’s my current analysis of my own situation…
I’ve overtrained. My Dad asked me that very question last week and I shot him down. How could I be over doing it if I was following a strict marathon training plan written by a seasoned professional? Never mind the boxing and yoga, that’s not causing a pounding to my calves, we’re just looking at the running here.
Perhaps it’s not so much the distance but the speed I am pushing myself at. Sock Doc’s article taught me the difference of training in the aerobic state versus the anaerobic state. Now I have no idea what state I’m in as I’ve never actually worn a heart rate monitor. Yes, yes, it’s just been ordered along with my Nike+ GPS SportWatch so I can figure this out. But my guess is that I’m spending too much of my workout time in an anaerobic state, coupled with the fact that marathon training requires 4 weekly runs and now averages 20-25 miles per week (with 107 days to go). That’s a lot of pounding. A part of me hopes I’m wrong, I don’t want to run slower. But I do need to figure this out and get it sorted, we’re on a schedule here!
Have you ever dealt with achilles tendonitis? Is it caused by gait as someone mentioned? I hate the thought of that, rethinking how I move…
I’ve been sharing my journey to health and fitness online for 15 months now and I’ve learned a little along the way. People are funny…here’s the three types of reactions I’ve come up against:
SUPPORTERS: The best crew ever. They ‘like’ your Nike+ posts on Facebook so you get cheers along your run, they add comments of support on progress pictures, and they click on your blog posts — and even comment on there too.
SKEPTICS: They are super annoying. They either find something snarky to say online or use a back channel to express their concerns for your health. My health? Last time I checked running 20 miles a week far out-weighed the benefits of a coffee and bagel breakfast. Don’t bash it because you don’t understand it. Join me for a week and then we can chat ;)
STALKERS: These people are the most rewarding when it comes to sharing, seriously! They watch yet don’t comment. Then they walk up to you at an event, at work, or over dinner and tell you how you’ve inspired them to make life changes…how much your actions have affected them. These moments blow my mind because they remind me that it doesn’t take a like on Facebook to know you’ve made a difference, that for every negative reaction you know you’ve inspired five positive ones.
From supporters to skeptics and stalkers, every one of you has been an integral and essential part in driving me forward. I share because I am driven by YOUR SUPPORT, I am driven by your SKEPTICISM, I am driven knowing I am an INSPIRATION to the quiet ones.
Carry on, I’m listening and I appreciate every action, online and off :)
After I finished reading Born To Run I made two bold statements:
- I’m going to run a marathon this year; and
- I’m going to try my hand at vegetarianism, at least a 30-day trial.
That 30 day trial was set to start today and as of now (um, day 1) I have survived. However I don’t intend to carry on. For the past week I’ve done some research on recipes, the better foods, and how I can integrate this with Paleo. Unfortunately — if I’m to get real — the answer is I can’t. There’s a good article on No Meat Athlete covering that if you’re interested. That, and I thought really long and hard about this and the truth is…I have a life long love affair with bacon that I’m not willing to end.
However, I do intend to make some changes. The reason I considered doing this in the first place was to see how my body reacted to less animal products. But, in true Lisa form, I opted in for the extreme. In the last year I’ve already given up enough things I love - French bread, potatoes and fries, rice and pizza, hell even Splenda (thus, Diet Coke). I can’t give up bacon, that’s where I draw the line! What I will do is make a concerted effort to eat less red meat, replacing it with fish and seafood as much as possible…and perhaps not eat an entire packet of bacon in one sitting, regularly.
In related news, I did sign up for that marathon. On November 18th I’m going to talk myself through 26.2 miles in Philadelphia.
“Competing at the highest level is the greatest test of one’s character.”
