Running Man: Rehab & Recovery

As I sat back on my sunbed reading the latest Irvine Welsh novel, I glanced out to the beach and saw another toned American jogging their way by the beautiful Caribbean Sea. I didn’t feel envious anymore, just resigned to the fact that it would be another 2 weeks before I could start running again. When I booked my holiday to Mexico I had planned to be one of these beach joggers but my injury had put paid to that and had to settle for swimming and walking as a way of maintaining fitness: well, there are worse places in the world to recover from injury!
                          

                          Image: A beach jogger, something I had planned to be on holiday

Then finally after 6 weeks the day had come: the day that I would start running again. My running shoes, which had previously had pride of place under my kitchen table, had since been shut away in the shoe cupboard under the stairs. Some runners wear their running shoes for walking but I had purposely put them away when I got injured; getting them out again after 6 weeks felt like a ceremonial act. I felt good to be back in my running gear again: running shoes, running socks, running shorts, running t-shirt and a new addition of a compression support on my right thigh to protect my recently healed hamstring.

I set out tired from the previous day’s travelling home from Mexico but determined to start running again. I had thought about what sort of run I should do for my comeback and decided that the best thing to do would be to my usual 5k run so that I could test my fitness against what I could do before I got injured.  I was nervous – would my hamstring hold up? Would I be able to run a simple 5k without stopping?

I set off at a comfortable pace and soon got back into my rhythm. It was good to be running again. I was slow (29.01, 4 minutes 20 seconds slower than my previous and quickest 5k 6 weeks ago) but steady and felt good that I at least managed to get round without having to stop. The 10 minute walk back home (part of my cool down routine) was hard though: I felt dizzy and exhausted, like I was drunk. I didn’t know if it was the jet lag, the heat or the shock of running again but I didn’t feel good and staggered home.

Promisingly I felt no pain in my right hamstring the next day so decided to set out on another 5k run. I had been reading a lot about running whilst I was injured and had noted that it is better to run with the palms of your hands open rather than with your fists clenched. I was used to running with my phone in my left hand and my water bottle in my right hand so had always been clenching my hands. So I tried out my arm band phone holder for the first time, freeing up my left hand.

It was another hot day and as well as draining my energy, the glare of the sunshine meant that I couldn’t read my pace on my phone. I’m used to constantly monitoring my pace so that I can push myself or hold back, depending on what my goal is. Without being able to monitor my pace I decided to go at a comfortable pace again, unsure if I was quicker or slower than my last run. I was slower (29.53) and felt exhausted again afterwards.

The next day I really felt it in my legs – both calves were heavy and sore, my heels hurt, my right foot hurt, and most worryingly I could feel a twinge in my right hamstring. Had I overdone it? Probably. The reason for wanting to get as many miles in as possible is because I have signed up for the Ipswich Half Marathon. I have 8 weeks from my comeback run until the event and want to put in as many miles as possible. It’s a balancing act though – I need to push myself to get fit enough in time for the half marathon but also need to build up my recovery slowly.

I have looked at various half marathon training plans and even the simplest (an 8 week beginner’s training plan) demands that I run 4 times a week. This would not have been a problem 6 weeks ago but I know that I won’t be able to do it this week. One of the most important running mantras is listen to your body; I did and it told me that there was no way I should run my planned 4 miles on Tuesday. So instead I decided to do a slow 2 miles on Wednesday.

I set off at a comfortable pace again and felt good. I decided to use this run to concentrate on my technique, putting into practise everything I had read about running technique in the last few weeks. I tried to ensure I had my head held high and was looking straight ahead rather than down, that my back was straight, my arms were swinging, and that my feet were falling underneath my body rather than in front of me. I even tried a few metres of strides (high knees and quick arms).

Despite this being my slowest (average pace 9.53) and shortest run for months, I felt great afterwards, the best I had felt since I had got my 5K P.B over 6 weeks ago. I felt refreshed and energised; it was great to have that buzz back again. When I got home I did the best stretching session I’ve ever done, really working my calves and hamstrings as much as I could.

My next 2 runs were in Ipswich, which gave me the opportunity of running up hills, which are all too rare in flat West Norfolk.  I went slow again (3.31 miles at 9:55 average pace per mile and 3.78 at 10:09) but was pleased that I managed the hills OK and my hamstring held up. My fitness was slowly improving again and by Tuesday I felt the benefit when I managed my best run (4.14 miles at 9:02) since my comeback. I felt strong and the 4 miles didn’t feel like too much of a challenge – I knew I had more in me.

My right hamstring, whilst holding up to my increasing miles, was still troubling me and I could feel a constant stiffness and twinge in it that I didn’t get on my left leg. I wasn’t causing me any pain but I could notice it was there, so I decided that I should see a physio and made an appointment to see Howard from the Sports Injury Clinic in Peterborough. I thought I was going to be in there for about 15 minutes, for him to say I was OK; a waste of both of our time, but what actually happened was a very professional and thorough examination of not just my hamstring but my gait, flexibility and strength. I was impressed with Howard’s expertise and went away knowing that I was doing the right thing and that there wasn’t too much wrong with my lower body other than a weaker right hamstring. I was given some hamstring strengthening exercises that would also strengthen my core – my core strength isn’t great – and was told to come back in 2 weeks.

I followed this up with a good 5.34 miles at 9:19 on Saturday and then I knew I was ready for my next challenge – could I run a 10K again? Being able to run 10K without having to stop to walk is seen as the benchmark for anyone who is thinking of begging training for a half marathon – if I could do that then I knew I was ready, if I couldn’t then I may have to consider cancelling my entry.

Variety is the spice of life and I’m now trying to vary my running routes as much as possible rather than sticking to my familiar flat country road route. I need to get used to running up hills as part of my Ipswich Half Marathon training as the course has quite a few hills so need to move away from the flat country roads near my house. So on Sunday I got my girlfriend to drop me off at Ten Mile Bank, a couple of miles from her parent’s house and I ran the rest of the way home. Along the Ouse Valley Way I went, the river on my right, up to Denver sluice and then through Denver and Downham Market and then home – 7.09 miles in total at a steady 9:49 pace, the longest distance I had ever ran.

I had done it; despite having a hamstring injury and not being able to run for 6 weeks, in just 2 weeks I had managed to build my fitness up to the level where I could run constantly for 7 miles. I was now ready to start half marathon training!