The Official Thread for Runners

[Parrot Head]

So my wife got me not one but two pair if VFFs for Xmas. Both are the running-specific Bikila model. Some thoughts:

- I've only been on one run in them so far but they are great. It is going to take me a while to build up the foot/calf strength to use them frequently, but my form is so much cleaner and my joints are so much better when I use them. The light of Zola Budd is definitely stirring in my soul.

- I wore them all day yesterday on the second day of our drive home. They are super comfy. Also, I got tons of really weird looks at gas stations and restaurants. Awesome.

I am obviously running my marathon in two weeks with normal shoes. I'm unsure about after that - I'm going to gradually build up my foot strength and see what happens, but I am loving these shoes so far.

I also joined the FiveFingers club and am enjoying the change.

[bluegoose]

I am obviously running my marathon in two weeks with normal shoes. I'm unsure about after that - I'm going to gradually build up my foot strength and see what happens, but I am loving these shoes so far.

Put those things away, for goodness sake! Its too close to your marathon to be messing around with something new.

[Pheidippides]

Put those things away, for goodness sake! Its too close to your marathon to be messing around with something new.

Lol - I went for a half mile jog on Xmas and won't do another in those until after marathon recovery. I'm excited, not stupid. It's taper time, which means tried and true stuff.

[Moliere]

Tonight was the first night that I actually had to convince myself to not stop cold turkey in the middle of my run and walk home. I actually had decent splits (8:34ish) for all 3 miles but psychologically I've had some difficulty getting over my sluggish performance the last two weeks.

I was progressing well but then I totally hit a wall when I donated blood just under three weeks ago. I'm now pretty much back to where I was before but mentally I'm not there. Luckily I don't mind pushing my body through pain so I finished the run but I just want to be faster.

I am looking forward to the longer runs now. Hopefully my long run this weekend gets me back mentally as well as physically.

[Parrot Head]

Lol - I went for a half mile jog on Xmas and won't do another in those until after marathon recovery. I'm excited, not stupid. It's taper time, which means tried and true stuff.

Nik, do you have the Injinji socks as well? I've always hated toe socks because I find them quite creepy, but my wife said they came highly recommended for the VFF.

[Pheidippides]

Nik, do you have the Injinji socks as well? I've always hated toe socks because I find them quite creepy, but my wife said they came highly recommended for the VFF.

Bought a pair yesterday (the thinnest style) and am wearing them now with my VFF. They are quite comfortable but I'm not sure that I need them with these shoes. I haven't taken a run with the socks (and won't until after the marathon) - I'll report the difference when I do.

[OhioBlue]

So since the latter part of November I have run twice, while trying to recover from what I am nearly positive is a hip flexor strain. Both times I had rested a couple weeks, i ran slowly and not very far, and later in the day was limping.

I have now put in 6 solid weeks of rest, and started running again yesterday. Not sure whether I'm totally healed yet or not, which is frustrating. This has been a discouraging setback to say the least, and I guess I'm now a statistic--a novice runner who gets hurt. So be careful out there everyone, especially with your hip flexors. This thing just doesn't seem to want to heal all the way.

I have a race at the end of January, a 10k, and I'm hoping I can at least jog it and call it fun. In the meantime, today and yesterday's runs were short and easy, but (knock on wood) so far I haven't felt significant pain during or after running. Since I still have a little mildish tightness/awareness of the area today, I'm going to keep taking it easy but I am hoping I can start working more core/hip girdle strengthening into my weight training routine now that it seems to be mostly healed.

[bluegoose]

So since the latter part of November I have run twice, while trying to recover from what I am nearly positive is a hip flexor strain. Both times I had rested a couple weeks, i ran slowly and not very far, and later in the day was limping.

I have now put in 6 solid weeks of rest, and started running again yesterday. Not sure whether I'm totally healed yet or not, which is frustrating. This has been a discouraging setback to say the least, and I guess I'm now a statistic--a novice runner who gets hurt. So be careful out there everyone, especially with your hip flexors. This thing just doesn't seem to want to heal all the way.

I have a race at the end of January, a 10k, and I'm hoping I can at least jog it and call it fun. In the meantime, today and yesterday's runs were short and easy, but (knock on wood) so far I haven't felt significant pain during or after running. Since I still have a little mildish tightness/awareness of the area today, I'm going to keep taking it easy but I am hoping I can start working more core/hip girdle strengthening into my weight training routine now that it seems to be mostly healed.

That has been awhile, hasn't it.

My wife's two main running partners came down with injuries during their November marathon. One was ITB syndrome and the other was a hip flexor strain. Its been really hard on both, but they behaved themselves and are just now getting back into regular running, nearly 2 months later.

Hang in there, dude. It'll get better eventually. You are on the right track with rest and hip stabilization exercises. Just don't go too fast with adding on the mileage.

[Moliere]

So since the latter part of November I have run twice, while trying to recover from what I am nearly positive is a hip flexor strain. Both times I had rested a couple weeks, i ran slowly and not very far, and later in the day was limping.

I have now put in 6 solid weeks of rest, and started running again yesterday. Not sure whether I'm totally healed yet or not, which is frustrating. This has been a discouraging setback to say the least, and I guess I'm now a statistic--a novice runner who gets hurt. So be careful out there everyone, especially with your hip flexors. This thing just doesn't seem to want to heal all the way.

I have a race at the end of January, a 10k, and I'm hoping I can at least jog it and call it fun. In the meantime, today and yesterday's runs were short and easy, but (knock on wood) so far I haven't felt significant pain during or after running. Since I still have a little mildish tightness/awareness of the area today, I'm going to keep taking it easy but I am hoping I can start working more core/hip girdle strengthening into my weight training routine now that it seems to be mostly healed.

This is my worry, that I will get injured and will lose all the momentum I had gained. I really don't ever want to start from scratch again as I'm afraid it might cause me to go another 10 years before I run again.

I have been very deliberate in keeping myself from increasing my distances and pace. I usually only set distance goals and don't worry about pace as have really tried to just let me body tell me what pace I should being running. Only twice have I really pushed it hard on a distance over 3 miles. The funny thing is that last night I ran while being a bit sick with a cold. I felt like I slowed myself down a bit but at the end of my run I realized that I missed my 3 mile record by about 20 seconds. Slow and steady improvement.

Good luck on the recovery and the 10K.

[ERCougar]

So since the latter part of November I have run twice, while trying to recover from what I am nearly positive is a hip flexor strain. Both times I had rested a couple weeks, i ran slowly and not very far, and later in the day was limping.

I have now put in 6 solid weeks of rest, and started running again yesterday. Not sure whether I'm totally healed yet or not, which is frustrating. This has been a discouraging setback to say the least, and I guess I'm now a statistic--a novice runner who gets hurt. So be careful out there everyone, especially with your hip flexors. This thing just doesn't seem to want to heal all the way.

I have a race at the end of January, a 10k, and I'm hoping I can at least jog it and call it fun. In the meantime, today and yesterday's runs were short and easy, but (knock on wood) so far I haven't felt significant pain during or after running. Since I still have a little mildish tightness/awareness of the area today, I'm going to keep taking it easy but I am hoping I can start working more core/hip girdle strengthening into my weight training routine now that it seems to be mostly healed.

Sorry to hear that. My hip flexor on the left always bugs me a little. I've read that guys have a tendency to not rotate their hips enough with each stride, and concentrating on that seems to help a little, but it still doesn't completely go away.

Good luck.

[Solon]

Sorry to hear that. My hip flexor on the left always bugs me a little. I've read that guys have a tendency to not rotate their hips enough with each stride, and concentrating on that seems to help a little, but it still doesn't completely go away.

Good luck.

My brother and I have some kind of congenital problem in our right hips. The first time I hurt it, it took really long to heal and 3 or 4 visits to a physical therapist. Since the PT showed me how to stretch it well, I haven't had any trouble (5+years now). Don't mess around with it. To quote The Jerk, "See a doctor and get rid of it."

[LA Ute]

Hips and glutes are important.

When the Diagnosis Is ‘Dead Butt Syndrome’

Despite the joke-inducing name, it's a real condition called gluteus medius tendinosis. Anyway, it's not what people are talking about here but I thought the article was interesting.

[Eddie]

Injuries and illness suck.

I've had a cold that has kept me from running the last week and a half as I try to get over it. I probably could run, but don't want to prolong the cold.

I've got to start my training schedule in the next week or so for Ogden, and really would like to both not be sick and have a good built up base. I'm guessing I'll get one or the other, but not both.



As another testament to sticking in there - my wife went for a short run last night. For the past month she's been asking me if there would ever come a day that she wouldn't hate it and it wouldn't hurt. Last night she told me that for the first time it didn't hurt. Which caused her to not hate it. And it was the fastest she's ran this particular route. It can happen!

[OhioBlue]

That has been awhile, hasn't it.

My wife's two main running partners came down with injuries during their November marathon. One was ITB syndrome and the other was a hip flexor strain. Its been really hard on both, but they behaved themselves and are just now getting back into regular running, nearly 2 months later.

Hang in there, dude. It'll get better eventually. You are on the right track with rest and hip stabilization exercises. Just don't go too fast with adding on the mileage.

I had some patellofemoral issues early on when I started, but that was a week of rest--no problem by comparison. I think the hardest part of this one for me is that I was doing well in races, improving my speed, and grooving a training schedule that was working for me. After two months, there's just no way to jump right back in and expect the same results. I guess on the other hand having been off for this long will help me appreciate just being out there, and it certainly has taught me to pay even closer attention to what my body is telling me.

Thanks all for the well-wishes and advice.

[bluegoose]

.....and it certainly has taught me to pay even closer attention to what my body is telling me.

A couple of years ago when I had my first hint of ITB issues, I was on mile 15 of a 20 mile run when I felt a sharp pain in the back of my right upper calf. I misdiagnosed myself at the time, thinking that it was just a calf cramp. So I stopped next to a tree to stretch out my calf before taking off again.

4 or 5 miles later I realized what a huge mistake I had made, as it was now full-blown ITBS and I could barely walk, let alone run. It took over a month of daily rehab and modifying my training schedule to work through it.

I run by that same tree every week on my long weekend run and it reminds me to think about what little aches and pains I may be having so i don't do something stupid and try to run through an injury again. If I had stopped at the first hint of trouble I think my summer could have gone quite a bit better.