Training Log Archive: iansmith

I didn't time the session, but advanced exercises based on the number of reps (typically something like 25). One minute per exercise seems reasonable. I lack the strength to proceed with good form without rest, so I usually paused for ten to fifteen seconds between exercises. Focus was on form.

2x (tuckups, kayakers, plank, oblique crunches, leg lifts, bicycles)
24 pushups

Today is a Mahler 5, II sort of day.

Event: NEOC: Big River, RI
 

Partial weight bearing.

I visited my podiatrist, Dr. Kuruvilla. He had excellent bedside manner, gave lots of examples of plantar fasciitis, and was informative, patient and relatable. He told me about his own experience with plantar fasciitis and how that resolved well.

Based on the available information, he concluded that I have torn my right plantar fascia - probably in the medial band. The X-ray reveals a very small heel spur, the cause of which is likely plantar fasciitis, and probably has emerged in the past six months. The prognosis is good based on my rate of recovery (my aura of invincibility returns), and the root cause is tight calves.

Treatment:
- Partial weight bearing (i.e. crutches) for 7-10 days after the injury
- Ice, NSAIDs
- Calf stretching once the pain subsides entirely
- Use of heel pads in my shoes to increase the angle between my foot and shin when at rest, i.e. to leave the PF looser
- No running for three weeks

I assume the last piece of advice is more of a guideline than a code; I heartily intend to run at West Point (and the days in advance of it) provided my body is amenable. What's disappointing is that the Billygoat looks impractical, though I will make the final decision on that next week. I will resume biking and swimming to try to maintain my fitness and avoid muscle atrophy in GimpyLeg. I intend to race competitively at the Western MA 5-Day.

On the plus side, I have found a Latex templates website.

C • Sooo... 9

I apparently retired my "crutches" as a shoe; too lazy to revisit them. It turns out writing this and the previous sentence is less onerous.

Cruising. I may attempt a 400m time trial on crutches once my foot is healthy enough that planting it if I fell wouldn't hurt. Also, the impromptu CSU pullup competition has left my chest muscles sore; I hadn't done a pullup in months. I hope I have it to beat Fedorov at West Point, because I think I'm CSU's best hope (excepting kadley, who is a machine).

C • Work on those pullups 24

C • Wait 2

Ran three courses; a long on a bland, contour map; a forest sprint; and a hilly long with lots of route choice. I had difficulty concentrating through the entire session, which is one of the main foci of CF training. On the more complex sprint and long maps, I did a terrible job reading ahead. It was all I could do to navigate to the next control, though taking a glance at another point on your map and returning is easier in the real world. I lost to some Canadians on the sprint, though we all messed up control 4. Today was a Rach 2, II sort of day.

2 sets of (tuckups, kayakers, plank, oblique crunches, leg lifts, bicycles).

I started the day off well with a chapter of a stats book, a core workout, cereal, yogurt, and a cup of black tea. The day is sunny and cool, and even though I can't run, I can still train in other ways. Podiatrist appointment scheduled for tomorrow morning. At T+4 days, the swelling in my right foot has noticeably diminished, though there still is a puffy area at the base of the heel. The foot doesn't hurt any more during the limited activity for which I use it. I have been planting the foot with the crutches, but not applying much weight.

Allergy season has started, and I mean to unscientifically evaluate several remedies. I'm currently using fexofenadine; once my supply runs out, I will try cetirizine per Ali's recommendation.

I do not understand the motivation for the passage of Wisconsin's SB 202, rolling back the WI Equal Pay Enforcement Act of 2009.

C • productive morning! 2

While flying home on Sunday, I witnessed a glorious sunset, and I have given some thought to how best to describe it since. A thick group of clouds formed a bank at an altitude below our plane, and a heavy dusting of some high altitude cloud - perhaps cirrus - lined the sky above us. There was a slice of sky free of cloud, and as the sun's apparent elevation descended to that slice, a brilliant azure band of light radiated indescribable splendor. The two parallel sheets of cloud erupted with cascading lines of flame and color, and the majesty and power of the vista was overwhelming.

I do not know what solace can be found in such beauty, for surely such revelation is my brain abstracting its feeble efforts to process an overwhelming torrent of information. For reasons I am unable to clearly articulate, the novelty and the uniqueness of that instant in time made me glad to be alive and look forward to all the wondrous things ahead.

One obvious question is how my injury and psychological reaction have guided sentiments like the paragraphs above. I believe my thoughts would have been similar, though I might have been less likely to post it were I healthy because my attentions would be elsewhere - training, thinking about the racing season, and so on.

On the other hand, self-pity is fruitless and not a course I will further indulge. It looks unlikely I will be able to race the Billygoat - a devastating result, because the field looks deep, Moreau is magnificent terrain, and I haven't run a Billygoat since 2009. If not this year, then next. I will not go gentle [sic] into that good night. I do not yield to fate.

C • Clearly, I was on the wrong side of the plane 1

I'm not immobilizing my right leg; I'm working out my left leg.

Because walking was painful and required modifying my gait, I brought my crutches out of storage and started using them. I have four to choose from, so I picked my two favorite. After analyzing my melancholy tale, the doctor considered two possibilities - a tear in the fascia, or a fracture in the bone spur connected to the fascia. An X-ray revealed both that I don't have a bone spur in my heel and that my heel is not fractured. He advised me to avoid applying weight to it (i.e. make friends with my crutches) and RICE it. The prognosis was that if the initial condition was plantar fasciitis, my foot my be recovered in a week. Based on the magnitude of the pain at the time of injury (it bloody hurt), I don't think my foot will be ready for the Billygoat in two weeks. I will arrange to see a specialist later in the week.

Based on my admittedly limited experience, the flowchart for treatment is quite simple. If the injury doesn't require surgery, the patient should suitably reduce the activity on the injury site, RICE, and wait. Follow up with generic and plausibly (though not definitively) beneficial physical therapy.

C • Get well fast. 9

Cruising.