Ouch, sort of

I'm up to 4.5 k.

I'm down in speed - my leg hurts. Try looking up "running injury" on google and see how many hits you get. Narrowing it down to ankle, and on the inside bit, does limit it an awful lot. So it's either a tendon or a muscle, and guess what - same treatment for each. Make the muscle stronger so the tendon doesn't get strained and neither does the muscle. Kind of makes sense.

I do recognize the limitations of internet self diagnosis. I also know I tend to search out information that reinforces what I've already decided - that I don't need to see a doctor, that I can keep on running, and I don't need to spend money on shoes or inserts. So what's the point of research? Well, I found some silly exercises that might help, assuming the inflammation goes down enough that I can actually do them (they all say stop if it hurts - but if it didn't hurt, I wouldn't need them).

Tibialis posterior tendon. When it goes, so does your arch. My kids do not have my feet - I have an arch that is only slightly higher than Donald Duck's. My kids can pretty much sit flat on the floor and point their toes and touch the floor with them. I don't even look like I'm pointing my toes. Why did my idiot ballet teacher put me on point? Maybe she thought I would bend suddenly? Instead I bled my way through several pairs of shoes, then quit. The ideal foot for point work is short, wide, has high arches and is supported by strong peasant ankles. I have the strong ankles. My nickname was finger toes. My arches are hard to find (all 3 - believe it or not, a foot has 3 arches). My feet are narrow. I still remember her cries - don't break the bar! But it hurts less if I support all my weight on the bar with my arms, honest.

So the tendon is attached to a muscle that runs behind the shin bone, and if it gets really sore, your knee on the outside hurts too. If that happens, I will know 2 things.

1. My self diagnosis is right
2. My treatment plan is wrong

The third is already known - I am willing to do anything stupid if I can find even one reason to justify it.

Construction update - one house has windows and roof already. The other has the first storey up.
Garden update - lilacs in full bloom, smells amazing, crabapples almost done, tulips hanging in thanks to a cool spring, bearded iris blooming.

Feeling smug, fool that I am

I've been estimating distance by guessing how long blocks are, and counting how many I run.

I googled how can I estimate how far I've run, and mapped my route on Geocities. It turns out I am going 3.7km, not 3.3 as I'd guestimated. OK, so 400 metres does not make much difference, but now I only need to add about 6 blocks and I'll be at 5k. It's nice to be closer to your goal than you thought.

Run update: Monday's run rocked, even though Saturday's didn't. I'm at 2 out of the last 3 were great.

Construction update: The former little store now has the first floor framed. The big hole has forms up for the basement foundation.

Plant update: The magnolia's are done. But the forsythia continue blooming, maybe I should add one to my plant list.

I read that running's benefits increase pretty much linearly (is that a word?) up to 40 miles a week. I know no-one who runs that far. Apparently running helps boost HDL so your cholesterol is lower, reducing the risk of death from cardiovascular disease. And that definitely runs in my family, although admittedly it kills us when we're old. It also reduces the risk of colon cancer, which runs in my family too, and kills us occasionally when not exactly old. I'm guessing the fact I am now running will not exclude me from the dreaded scope test. I promise not to blog any details of that. Like I'd want it in some electronic format anywhere...

Amazing run

My Tuesday night run was not great - still a bit sore after my weekend warrior gardening idiocy.

Last night's run was the best yet. Farther, faster, more fun. Perfect spring weather helped; cool, no wind, sunny.

My estimated distance was about 3.3 km. Getting to 5k looks possible!

I feel good today, as usual the calves feel a bit tight but no soreness. I am a lousy stretcher, it would help if I spent, say, 2 minutes actually stretching out the muscles each day.

I rarely stretch because it's boring, and I don't bend. Imagine reaching for your toes and finding your knees. OK, it's not quite that bad, but as a teenaged bunhead even after an hour of limbering I couldn't quite touch my toes. And that was with 3x a week of disciplined stretching. Gee, wonder why I never became a ballerina? I'd be the one in the back with her leg 2" off the ground while the rest have them stuck up above their heads. Les Trocs are more flexible than I - and better on point - but I haven't found anything since ballet that keeps me fit. Let's see if running does the trick! Not that I want to get back down to my ballet weight. As noted previously, my physique is close enough to a teenage boy at 130 pounds. 100 pounds is too scary to contemplate.