Self Diagnosis

As I stated in previous posts, I have been battling Plantar Fasciitis on my right heel. This was self diagnosed via the internet of course. Who needs a specialist when you can just "Google" your pain?

I have spent the last two months stretching my calves, rolling my foot on a golf ball and a frozen water bottle, wearing a boot type contraption to stretch my calf, and I even took a week off from running on two different occasions.

So the other day I am standing in the kitchen with my sore gimpy heel and I decide that I will massage the spot that hurts. I applied pressure around my heel and discovered that it was just one small spot on the inside/bottom part of me heal that was causing all of this pain. When I put my foot back down I put my weight on the outside of my heel and viola', the pain literally disappeared. I practiced walking around the house putting my weight towards the other side of my heel, and it worked! I tried the same method while running, it was not perfect, but it was definitely better.

In a nutshell, I have learned, as a Google Medical Non-professional, is that I over pronating on that side. WebMD has a great picture and explanation of excessive pronation here. Upon further investigation, something that I had failed to notice previously, according to Foot.com, one cause of plantar fasciitis is "over-pronation (flat feet) which results in the arch collapsing upon weight bearing."

This is a great example of over pronating.
Photo credit: Orthoticshop.com

My advice...

1. Be careful when working on your running form, small adjustments can create problems.
2. It's a good idea to self diagnose yourself on the internet before seeking professional help. It has the potential to save you a lot money, or possibly kill you if your seemingly minor problem is actually something more serious.

• Do you "Google" for answers when you are sick or injured?
• Has it fixed your issue?
• Did it make it worse?
• Did it kill you?

Inner Peace

In this crazy-fast paced multi-tasking world we live in, thank God we have running. Nothing slows the world down and brings such a calm peacefulness to the world like a run.

The Ice Age Trail Race is now less than a month away. I have been battling aches, pains, and this stupid plantar fasciitis all year. I took a good week off again to try and let my foot heal up. It felt better, but still gives me plenty of trouble.

My running goal today was to go 18 miles and not feel completely wiped out when I finished. I ran it easy and walked the hills whenever I felt it necessary and then some. I took a SaltStick Cap before I started and then one every 5 miles. At that time I also put down an Apple-Cinnamon Hammer Gel and carried 40oz of Gatorade in my Camelbak. My planned worked well, I did not worry about pace (for the most part), I concentrated on going easy, feeling good, and enjoying the entire experience.

The verdict?

Success!

Although my foot was bothering me the last few miles, I managed to finish with pretty close to a 10 minute pace and I feel good.

I sincerely hope that your Sunday run was also a great success!

In mid-August I will be cycling 100 miles to raise money for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. Please consider making a donation to this great charity!

Training Again

Recovery seems to be coming along ok right now. I still have some fairly painful plantar faciitis off and on these days. But if I stay on top of it and keep my calf stretched it minimizes things. My plan is to run no more than every other day. This should allow me to recover well and be able to build back up to some decent mileage quickly (I hope). It went well for the first week so far. I had two 5 mile runs and finished up with 14 today. I will slowly lengthen each of my runs for the next 6 weeks and then do little to no running the week of Ice Age until the actual event. I truly hope this works out. 


I have continued my strength training, it has been a lot of fun and a great challenge being able to workout with others. It is interesting being the "teacher" of this group. I feel that I have to be the strong one and push everyone to improve, but not so much that anyone gets hurt or feels like they can't do it. I try to keep them all encouraged and point out their progress. They are a tough bunch, there are 4 of us men ranging from 42 - 54 and a young lady in what I would guess is her very early 30's who is tough as nails. They are an awesome bunch to meet up with at 5:20am  - 3 days a week!


 If you spend much time in a vehicle and are interested in ultra running, check out the Talkultra podcast. It is on iTunes and they have interviewed some real ultra-legends such as, Gordy Ainsleigh, David Horton, and others. It's definitely worth checking out!


Finally, here are some pictures from today's 14 mile run. Now that spring has arrived, the trail looks much different than it did just a few short weeks ago. I had the pleasure of seeing 3 deer and 3 turkey this morning in close proximity, I love it!

One of the muddy stream crossings.

The sweet smell of spring was in the air today!

Healthy, Beautiful, Deadly?

Running is healthy and beautiful for sure.

Last week I completed a three week buildup in my training. It's been a challenging three weeks, not only to complete my workouts but to find the time to do so. In those 3 weeks I ran 131 miles and biked 137, not to mention the strength workouts. To the non-runners this probably sounds crazy, but I have goals in front of me and I enjoy my activities. Workouts may seem like a hassle before you begin them and then there are bad workouts where a run just doesn't go well and you can't wait to be done, but I ALWAYS feel better and have a great sense of accomplishment when I am done. It's like a drug. It makes you feel better, it makes you look better and it gives you more energy, how can you lose?
Working out and training is obviously not all roses and rainbows. There are time conflicts with work and family. It takes careful planning and time management to get these things done. Secondly, there are generally some aches and pains that go along with training. Sore muscles, bruises, and a variety of other minor maladies are all part of the amateur and professional athlete's life. This year I made a couple of visits to the physical therapist, mostly due to over-training and not really knowing what I was doing. Other minor injuries this year have included ...

Bloody Shin from biking

The infamous 'bloody nipples" from shirt chaffing.

Losing a toenail.

...all minor, laughable injuries. It's just a part of the journey. As athletes we can easily be our own worst enemies while training and competing. It's all about pushing yourself to the next level. Going farther, going faster and getting leaner, meaner, and stronger. But there is a line. We have to be smart about it. Do you have a plan? Do you follow it or overdo it? We must learn to listen to our bodies, knowing when it is time to push and when it is time to recover, heal, and regroup. Backing off is no easy task. Do you know when to do it? Can you do it?
My two trips to the physical therapist were due to lack of a balance in my training. I was running harder, farther, and longer than I should have been. I was not taking proper time for recovery and I was neglecting proper strength training. Again all of this resulted in minor inconveniences for me with fairly quick and easy solutions to my injuries. I was lucky.
This last weekend somebody I went to high school with wasn't so lucky. I was on the high school wrestling team for a couple of years and the coach's son was a year ahead of me. He was an all star on the team. He went on to be a very good wrestler in college, then he went back and took over for his father, coaching at the same high school from where he graduated. His name was John Chapman. His wife is the track and cross country coach at the same high school. They were running the Bix 7 together for the second year in a row. Unfortunately at about mile 6, John, 41 years young, had a heart attack and passed away. I never really knew John very well, but it sure hits close to home. I will be 41 in September, it's scary. As an athlete you don't expect these things to happen to us because we eat well and we exercise; we are healthy. You can read about John here and here. It's a terrible tragedy.
It's been a hot and humid summer. It's easy to feel a little invincible after a good hard workout. We are not invincible, in any way.
Please, listen to your body, train smart, and be careful out there.

RIP John