Life on the sidelines
Five weeks.
That's how long it has been since I last ran. It's the longest gap between runs for me since I began running about a dozen years ago.
It isn't unusual for me to take some time off in the winter, but not like this. Then again, I've never been injured quite like this.
I have a bum toe. Hurt it five weeks ago while trying to help Big Dog down the steps. He was in a drunken state -- the result of much medication for his epilepsy and a bout of pancreatitis -- and he was very, very wobbly on his legs. As usual, he was more than ready to go outside upon waking one morning. He immediately made his way toward the door. He hit the top of the steps and staggered downward. I reacted quickly, grabbing the top of his harness to prevent him from falling down the nine steps to the foyer. His 84 pounds, not to mention the effect of gravity, pulled me with him. I jammed my right foot into the third step as I struggled to keep both of us vertical. My upper body rolled down and forward as I held him. Somehow, we both arrived upright on the landing. The only problem was my right big toe, which had remained planted in the step not only when it landed, but also after the rest of my body hurdled to the foyer.
I knew I had done some damage. It swelled immediately. I couldn't put any kind of weight on it and it was painful to put on footwear.
This lasted for the better part of the last five weeks. It was so bad that I recently broke down and went to see a specialist. I'm not much of believer in physicians -- I mean, I believe they exist, I just don't believe they ever able to tell me something I don't already know -- but I made an appointment to see a podiatrist anyway. I hadn't run in more than a month and wanted to know if I would do any additional damage to the toe joint if I did run.
Just as I figured, the podiatrist was of little help. X-rays revealed the ever-ambiguous "soft-tissue damage." Uh, yeah, so? What does that mean? Are we talking cartilage? Ligaments? No help. Furthermore, when I inquired about resuming running, I was told it depended on my pain threshold. Um, duh. Isn't that always the case?
So, given this information, I'm going to run again soon. Very soon. I'll deal with whatever pain or discomfort I encounter. I don't know what I've lost in terms of conditioning by not running -- I did hop on my trainer a couple of times for some non-weight-bearing aerobic activity -- in the past weeks and I can't afford to be sidelined much longer with training for Grandma's Marathon looming.
The break from running hasn't been completely miserable. I think I've probably gained five or so pounds -- not sure if that's just a function of not training or if it's an effect of married life -- so that's discouraging. But mentally, it has been nice to have some time off. It's just more than I needed. A couple of weeks would've been plenty.
That's how long it has been since I last ran. It's the longest gap between runs for me since I began running about a dozen years ago.
It isn't unusual for me to take some time off in the winter, but not like this. Then again, I've never been injured quite like this.
I have a bum toe. Hurt it five weeks ago while trying to help Big Dog down the steps. He was in a drunken state -- the result of much medication for his epilepsy and a bout of pancreatitis -- and he was very, very wobbly on his legs. As usual, he was more than ready to go outside upon waking one morning. He immediately made his way toward the door. He hit the top of the steps and staggered downward. I reacted quickly, grabbing the top of his harness to prevent him from falling down the nine steps to the foyer. His 84 pounds, not to mention the effect of gravity, pulled me with him. I jammed my right foot into the third step as I struggled to keep both of us vertical. My upper body rolled down and forward as I held him. Somehow, we both arrived upright on the landing. The only problem was my right big toe, which had remained planted in the step not only when it landed, but also after the rest of my body hurdled to the foyer.
I knew I had done some damage. It swelled immediately. I couldn't put any kind of weight on it and it was painful to put on footwear.
This lasted for the better part of the last five weeks. It was so bad that I recently broke down and went to see a specialist. I'm not much of believer in physicians -- I mean, I believe they exist, I just don't believe they ever able to tell me something I don't already know -- but I made an appointment to see a podiatrist anyway. I hadn't run in more than a month and wanted to know if I would do any additional damage to the toe joint if I did run.
Just as I figured, the podiatrist was of little help. X-rays revealed the ever-ambiguous "soft-tissue damage." Uh, yeah, so? What does that mean? Are we talking cartilage? Ligaments? No help. Furthermore, when I inquired about resuming running, I was told it depended on my pain threshold. Um, duh. Isn't that always the case?
So, given this information, I'm going to run again soon. Very soon. I'll deal with whatever pain or discomfort I encounter. I don't know what I've lost in terms of conditioning by not running -- I did hop on my trainer a couple of times for some non-weight-bearing aerobic activity -- in the past weeks and I can't afford to be sidelined much longer with training for Grandma's Marathon looming.
The break from running hasn't been completely miserable. I think I've probably gained five or so pounds -- not sure if that's just a function of not training or if it's an effect of married life -- so that's discouraging. But mentally, it has been nice to have some time off. It's just more than I needed. A couple of weeks would've been plenty.
posted by RTG at 12:40 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home