So with just over 180 days to go my London marathon training has started the way my last London marathon ended, with an injury. In fact it was the ghost of my old and recurring Perifomis injury has once again been my undoing to the extent that I am considering the 2012 race my last attempt at the 26 mile distance.
The frustration of injury is all the more bewildering as it seems to only occur during an event. This time it was the wonderful Royal Parks Foundation Half Marathon in London. Of all the half marathons I've ran I would rate this race in the top five if only for the truly spectacular route and the Village fayre type atmosphere which is strange as the route takes you through some of the most famous land marks in the World.
During my training for this event I ran regularly, harder and faster than I planned to during the race. My plan for the RPF half was to maintain a nice steady pace, just under 9 minutes per mile and may be add some speed towards the end and get in some time around 1:50ish. Alas it wasn't to be, I started feeling that familiar tightness in my lower back as early as 7 miles. At 8 miles I decided to stretch it which seemed to work until mile ten where I met a short downhill section of the course, the impact of my heel hitting the ground finished me off with a pain so intense that I literally went blind for a second. I found that when I walked I could do so relatively painlessly so I decided to walk the remainder of the course.
I suppose, considering the injury, finishing in 2 hours 34 minutes wasn't too bad but if you watch the video footage of me crossing the finishing line you will clearly see me swearing in frustration. Why was it that I could quite happily run 10 miles in training or a very hilly 6 miles faster and harder than in a half marathon and suffer an injury so early?
The mystery of the injury should actually put me off running but I guess if I were prone to giving up I wouldn't be running marathons in the first place. The initial frustration I felt has subsided and been replaced with a desire to sort this thing out. Next week I will be heading to the sports injury clinic for a bio-mechanical gait analysis. As the injury is re-occurring I hope and wonder if the problem might be something to do with the way I run. I suspect there is an underlying cause to the injury and one I am determined to get the bottom of.
In the mean time I have been on the anti-inflammatory drugs and doing some stretching. Next week I will start some low impact exercise and core strengthening exercises. Apart from all of that the min thing I will be doing is hoping for the best.
The frustration of injury is all the more bewildering as it seems to only occur during an event. This time it was the wonderful Royal Parks Foundation Half Marathon in London. Of all the half marathons I've ran I would rate this race in the top five if only for the truly spectacular route and the Village fayre type atmosphere which is strange as the route takes you through some of the most famous land marks in the World.
During my training for this event I ran regularly, harder and faster than I planned to during the race. My plan for the RPF half was to maintain a nice steady pace, just under 9 minutes per mile and may be add some speed towards the end and get in some time around 1:50ish. Alas it wasn't to be, I started feeling that familiar tightness in my lower back as early as 7 miles. At 8 miles I decided to stretch it which seemed to work until mile ten where I met a short downhill section of the course, the impact of my heel hitting the ground finished me off with a pain so intense that I literally went blind for a second. I found that when I walked I could do so relatively painlessly so I decided to walk the remainder of the course.
I suppose, considering the injury, finishing in 2 hours 34 minutes wasn't too bad but if you watch the video footage of me crossing the finishing line you will clearly see me swearing in frustration. Why was it that I could quite happily run 10 miles in training or a very hilly 6 miles faster and harder than in a half marathon and suffer an injury so early?
The mystery of the injury should actually put me off running but I guess if I were prone to giving up I wouldn't be running marathons in the first place. The initial frustration I felt has subsided and been replaced with a desire to sort this thing out. Next week I will be heading to the sports injury clinic for a bio-mechanical gait analysis. As the injury is re-occurring I hope and wonder if the problem might be something to do with the way I run. I suspect there is an underlying cause to the injury and one I am determined to get the bottom of.
In the mean time I have been on the anti-inflammatory drugs and doing some stretching. Next week I will start some low impact exercise and core strengthening exercises. Apart from all of that the min thing I will be doing is hoping for the best.
2 comments:
Don't give up! I can understand the frustration you must feel but don't give up. You are doing the right thing by having your gait analysed. Do update us once you have been, hopefully this will shed some light on the cause of your injury.
Thank you for your kind words. I have the rather common problem of having one leg longer than the other. I am waiting for my insoles to be delivered and have ordered a new pair of shoes. Hopefully this will resolve the problem.
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