After getting back from California, it was time to keep running in Washington again, a good 20-30 degrees F cooler. I got back on a Monday night, worked out on Tuesday since I didn’t feel like going outside, and then ran 10 miles on Wednesday. It felt good, and I even improved my time on that particular route.
After the run, however, I was experiencing quite a bit of pain in my left foot that seemed rather reminiscent of the trouble I was experiencing with my right foot weeks ago (see previous blog post). So I iced it after my run, figuring it would be ok for another 10k today before resting tomorrow before my last distance run on Saturday. So I took off this morning, planning to be back in about an hour, but ended up WALKING a 3k loop back home. The pain was too severe; and on top of that, I still wasn’t walking properly.
My dad noticed that the arch on my left foot had collapsed and was swollen, which is what happens when the tendon connecting my heel and toes is having problems. I’m still limping around the house, and the pain definitely didn’t last this long with my right foot. I was able to stop limping that same day the pain started.
My dad has this same problem, so he knows what to do. And, a little more than a year ago, when my friends and I were all training for a half marathon, one of the guys discovered this same problem in one of his feet after a run. Getting arch supports did the trick. My running shoes have seen 300+ miles already so that and all the long-distance running on hard surfaces are probably what did me in. One of the 21 ways to make my first marathon a success (check out article here) is to “Get yourself a new pair of kicks. Good running shoes last 300-500 miles, but they lose 50% of their cushioning much sooner than that. Get some new ones and break them in during your tapering period. I ignored this in one marathon and got a nice stress fracture in my foot to remember it by.” Going shoe shopping tomorrow! I feel pretty confident plantar fasciitis will be a minimal obstacle; I start tapering next week anyway.
One more distance run of 20+ miles to go. I still remember all the numbers since I ran the half marathon distance: 13, 15, 17, 18.9, 19.9, 20. Wow. After Saturday, I start my three-week tapering period. Time really flies when you’re running. Let’s keep running!
CYCLES 