In Great Health but Not Perfect
WOW, weird weather or what? Do I ever love these hot days in March, temperatures above 20 degrees. Crazy…and lucky as hell! I could not have picked a better time to train for my first ironman-distance triathlon. I’m blessed by Mother Nature and grateful for it. It’s not every day you can wear shorts and go sleeveless in March on the bike.
It’s been a while since I’ve written about my training. I have been one busy girl, like any one else getting ready for such a race. Most of the time, I’m having great days and The Plan is still keeping me entertained. Hard to believe but I now am into my first week of the competitive training. Base training is all done!
I have to much to write about but will spread it out in a few blogs as it’s too much to write/read all in one. Let’s start with an update on my health, as it is a common question we Canadians ask each other.
First of all, I have a team of specialists (chiropractor, osteopath & occupational therapist with an exercise physiology background) that are looking after my body for me (all at affordable rates). I’m lucky to have this team in small Lunenburg Country, NS. My chiropractor, Dr. Laurie Flavin, has been looking after me since 2008 and is amazing. She operates out of Lunenburg. The osteopath is Breadon Girones, works out of Laurie’s office in Lunenburg, is the newest addition to my team. Jason Lomond, occupational therapist and owner of Peak Performance Therapy in Bridgewater, I have known for about two years and he’s simply incredible. He is helping me more with my training, identifying my weak areas and prescribing exercises to make me stronger, so I can prevent new injuries from happening and continue to train smart.
I hate to admit it but I have 3 issues I’m dealing with currently. The good news is they are all minor and not a result of my training, which is different. Anyway, here’s the scoop…
1) Baker’s Cyst, a build up of joint fluid that forms behind the knee. See the lump in the pic? I thought it was pretty big but apparently it is small compared to what the doctors have seen before. What is a Baker’s Cyst? Check it out. I got mine from a meniscal tear, tripped over a log while hiking on Cross Island. Apparently Dr. Mark Fletcher, Sports Medicine Specialist from Medicine in Motion, Dartmouth, NS, said it’s nothing to worry about as it causes me no pain. As I said, it’s small and they have seen ones 4x bigger. It may or may not go away on it’s own but as long as it’s not bothering me, I just leave it alone. So then I’ll leave it alone, and mention it no more.
2) I have trauma deep in my left hip that causes me hamstring and glute discomfort after long runs. The osteopath is treating me for this. The issue stems from about 15-17 years ago, not sure of the specific incident but I do remember when it started to pain me. I never had it properly treated at the time. For the past 3-4 years I have been trying to get it fixed but no treatment has been successful to-date. Now I’m trying an osteopath for the first time. We’ll see how it goes…
3) Heel fat pad contusion (http://www.sportsmd.com/Articles/id/46.aspx): this is the most bothersome of all my injuries right now. It doesn’t hurt when I run but afterwards it sure does. I had it in both heels and did the damage from either cardio kick-boxing (taught a 10 week class) or dancing in my bare feet (or a combo of both). I should have let it heal at the time it occurred…if I had been smart. I never experienced anything like this before so I didn’t know, never gave it much thought. Anyway, the right foot completely healed, even while running. The left foot is taking forever. So after much thought I decided to give up land running while I’m still 3 months away from race day until the heel is healed. I’m doing all my running in the water and extra biking. This week I’ll do interval stair climbing on real stairs (going to try it, see if it doesn’t bother the foot). So between water running, interval stair climbing and biking, I should be able to keep some of my running fitness. It’s not as good as running…as you need to run lots to get better at running, but it’s better than doing nothing.
Here is a story that was comforting to me: http://m2rev.com/articles/m2_training_concepts/water.html
And speaking of biking and water running to help with running. I did some research to see if there is transfer from bike to run, water run to run. What was interesting to find that most benefits actual transfer from running to biking instead, the reverse of what I thought. And yes, water running, if done right, is a smart thing I am doing in place of land running while recovering. I figure in another week, I’ll be back to pounding the pavement…starting with soft touches. I really need to learn how to hover over the ground, that would just solve all my problems. HA!
Here are some articles to better explain what I’m talking about for the running-biking transfer. Would love to hear your comments.
Despite the above 3 issues, I’m not upset. Neither of them are causing me any great grief, I’m popping no pain pills, losing no sleep, and although I’m not land running, I’m still training the muscles and movement as best as I can. I’m in good spirits and feeling pretty positive that my the time race day comes, I’m going to be in tip-top condition.
Now…to pull away from the computer and get out on the bike…it’s 28 degrees today…March 22. WOW!
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