I don't want to get ahead of myself here, but after a day spent alternately icing, heating, resting, stretching, strengthening (via The Skateboarding Move), my knee feels pretty good this morning. ITBS is tricky, because the injury is an inflammation based on overuse, one must maintain the patience of Zen master Dogen when dealing with the problem. Like Buddha relating his awakening to an instrument: if you tighten the string too much, it will snap. And if you leave it too slack, it won't play. The middle path my friends.
The true test in regards to my recovery is how well I can handle the stairs down at classes. At all other times, on flat ground, I can just waddle with a stiff-leg to get around the problem of pain. But stairs are a cruel and hideous unforgiving beast when it comes to ITBS. And there's just so many of them on campus. I made it through the day OK. My healing factor is in top form; miraculous almost, in the speed of Wolverine-like recovery. I continued stretching and strengthening, as I did all day Sunday, when I came home in the afternoon, and all seemed well. If tomorrow continues down this path of progress, I'm going to shoot for a S...L...O...W... 3 mile run, which will put me back on schedule having only missed a single day of cross training so far (Mondays are rest days anyway). The outcome of this precautionary 3 miler will determine what I'll need to change about this week's training. Thankfully, good old Hal, has week 3 listed as a tapper week (maybe due to his insight on the dangers of escalation?). Which should go a long way in aiding the recovery process.
Here are a few handy sites that helped me walk through the problem:
I maintained a routine of icing my knee for 20 minutes, heating it for 20 minutes, and then carrying out these stretches. Only to ice and elevate the knee again once I was done. I repeated this several times throughout the day. It helped.
When I was reading the text on a different website, without a photo on how to do this maneuver, I couldn't really wrap my head around the motion, but after seeing the photo demonstration I immediately placed this functionality akin to Skateboarding. Picturing Tony Hawk shredding a street course was certainly a good visual aide to keep in mind while practicing this strengthening exercise.
Know what it is, so you can try to avoid it. Failing that, so you can try to fix it.
Along with adding this stretch & strengthening routine into the mix, I'm considering purchasing a new pair of shoes. I know there's a debate happening right now between the benefits of barefoot running versus running shoes, but while staring down the business end of a double barrel shotgun of long distance training, I'm currently favoring the side that provides more cushioning between me and the hard ground. I'm opting to spend a little extra cash for the higher end model, because there's still a long way between here and Tokyo, and if I want to get there in one piece, I think it's best to invest in protection for my most precious running gear: my feet and legs.
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