But suddenly, without warning, or planning, it ends.
I STOP enjoying that feeling. Because instead, I start to feel, nothing. No fatigue. No soreness. Just.. nothing.
I get a little restless. I start to feel lazy and ... weak. I slowly but surely move out of the 'I have been training so hard for months I need a break' Ange to ' I think I've sat on my butt long enough I need to MOVE' Ange.
I said to Mark one day, I miss that feeling. I miss walking up the stairs and feeling my legs ache when I get to the top. I miss that whole body fatigue and eye burn because I rode my bike for 80 miles that day.
He just looked at me. He knows by now. And, thankfully, he just accepts me.
Anyway.. it's BACK! My achy feeling is back. :) With a few unwanted pains I must admit.
Training kicked off a couple weeks ago. Slowly but surely I'm making my way back to the land of the wiped out Triathlete and I love it!!! Swimming is slow and sloppy but this week, less so than last week. I had a super hard workout this morning that left me breathing heavy at the walls with my arms feeling heavy. I LOVED IT!!!! There's no better way to start the day really. I rode for 3 hours outside yesterday in very chilly Fall air but now, my quads are tired and I feel alive again!!! Ahhh... It's all part of the cycle. Work hard, rest & recovery, work hard again. Repeat. Over and over. Keep your head down and focus on the day to day details and jobs at hand and the big stuff will work it's way out when you get there. IF.. you stay focused and persistent with the details. slightly off tangent there...
That leads me to my story about my 1 achy pain that is not welcome. My calf. Details... I guess I was complacent and overlooked a few details that do matter. Hard to know for sure but.. .I do have tight calves.
And finally, it came back to bite me.
Last Wed I was out for a relaxed 60 min run. It was slow and easy. I was on the roads I always run... very hilly. But again.. that's my norm. The weather was mild.. ~60F with some pretty heavy rain by the end. No worries. I love rainy runs.
So, about 3/4 mile from home , without warning ( ok, maybe a SLIGHT twinge 2 -5 sec before) my right calf SEIZED!!!!! Oh it was bad. It was not a cramp cramp.. it was a painful baseball rock that formed in there. OUCH!! It hurt me SO so so much. There I was. Pouring rain, NOT that close to home, and on the clock to get my kids. Damndoubledamn.
I stepped out of the road and rubbed that knot as much as I could handle it. It hurt to touch. I couldn't even step on my leg. I really wasnt' sure what to do at that moment let alone what damage had just happened. Alright... long story short, I got home. It hurt and I limped but I got there. I iced and stretched and rubbed. I was secretly a bit happy my son's away soccer game was cancelled because driving 90 min right then with that leg didnt' seem so comfortable or wise. I limped around for a few days. It improved, but only a bit. And, no more running.
Until, today. Today I will try. It no longer hurts to walk or to rub or to go downstairs. I think it's safe to say I escaped something that could have been a lot worse. I guess I'll really know after I try to run today.
But... WHY??? Why did this happen?? I truly don't think I was dehydrated. I always drink a ton of water. I hadn't been completing any other long or hard workouts. (just started back... ) I am in Maine, in the Fall. It's not hot. Hmm...?? Guesses?
All I know is that my calves are notoriously tight. I will and Have started rolling and massaging Diligently EVERYSINGLEDAY now. No matter what.
And that is that!!! The feeling is back and I love it.
Now.. to get back to this feeling... the Ironman Finish line joy. That's my plan and I can't wait.
2 comments:
OK Ange THIS has been my exact issue over the last few years! It comes out of nowhere on an easy run and WTF!?! And it is disabling. So here's what I've found:
1. Get to an ART person to get the spasm to release (it felt like a rip but likely was just a spasm)
2. Roll out your calves every night for a few minutes- don't over do it but don't get complacent once they feel better either. That type of cramping can come back out of the middle of nowhere again on any random tuesday.
3. The root cause/issue is more likely in your hips or your hamstrings- or somewhere there's a muscle higher up that is not doing its job so your calves are taking over the slack, and they're happy to do that for quite some time! Then they just get pissed one day and snap! Like "I'm tired of doing this job I am not supposed to do!!" So figure out where the real issue is and do those little PT exercises you've seen all over that seem too trivial to bother with (they're not).
Claves are pesky for sure but you can keep them happy if you go out of your way to do so. Good luck!!!
Bummer about the calf. Better now than right before your A race, I suppose... As always, I love your positive outlook!!!
Post a Comment