Sunday 10th -Saturday 16th February

Training Report:

Having finally got over my man flu, I was ready to hit the training with a vengeance. Nearly two weeks of relative inactivity had really got my juices flowing for some good quality training sessions. I decided to consider the two weeks off as a good rest period. My legs were refreshed and ready to tackle the final and most important phase of the cross country season. But - and we knew there was going to be a but! - things didn't go to plan.

After my long Sunday run I felt quite good. The hour and three quarters had flown by, and having not done a long run for a while due to the illness I was pleased with my speed throughout the run. However once I'd had my shower my foot began to ache a lot. It became quite painful along the top of the foot. The pain eased when I didn't put any weight on it, however walking was a bit uncomfortable which didn't bode well for running on it. I rested for the rest of the day and hoped that by Monday morning everything would have mended it's self.

I managed both my runs Monday, but the pain worsened after each one. I was icing it and manipulating it, rubbing in potions and lotions, which eased the pain whilst I wasn't running, which is fine if you're not a runner, but I am! And as soon as I took to the streets in my trainers the pain was back. Again I took to my bed Monday night hoping to wake Tuesday to a miracle cure. Sadly miracles seemed in short supply and Tuesdays easy twenty minute morning run was not a lot of fun. The whole way only one thing was on my mind, the pain in my bloody foot!

Tuesday night I gamely turned up at the track ready to do my session of 6 x 1 mile. But I didn't even get as far as the first rep. During my warm up strides, the additional pressure created by moving faster and pushing off the foot harder made my decision to call a holt to my session easy. I went home and again iced and rubbed it, I'm unsure weather it was doing much but it made me feel better, it made me feel as if I was doing something useful.

On Wednesday I had an appointment with my masseur, and looked to him for a diagnosis and treatment advice. He felt around my foot, I'd washed it twice for him!! and he said the pain was coming from the tendon that goes down the front of the foot at a point where it comes close to the surface as it passes over a bone in the foot. He felt I must have tweaked or bruised the tendon at some point. I lay there as he sorted out my legs racking my brain for when I'd hurt my foot in some way, as I had no recollection of a moment when I did the damage to my foot causing all this bother. Finally I remembered as he found a particularly tight part of my hamstring, I'd turned my ankle on my Sunday run. I'm very good at reacting to and stumble or twist the body goes through whilst running on the often very unstable surfaces encountered whilst training off road. I think it's this sense of balance which makes me so suited to cross country running. And because this sort of thing happens all the time, and because the pain didn't hit me straight away I'd forgotten about it as a probable cause for the pain.
The recommendation was cross training, time on the bike or the cross trainer was the order of the day. Non impact training is what I needed, so I headed straight down the gym. And after discovering that I don't much care for the cross trainer it was in the saddle that I spent the rest of the week. I would have loved to have got out on my proper bike, but due to the tight, rigid shoes that numb my feet at the best of times that I'd have to use as I'd cleverly changed my pedals to clip on's to make me faster, I had to use the stationary bikes in the gym.

So for the rest of the week I went absolutely nowhere. I watched 'Bargain Hunt' and Neighbours, which interestingly is now on channel Five! I sweated like I've never sweated before. I'm use to the cooling effect of cold air blowing over my face as I run gracefully down a deserted country path, not a hot, airconditioned, magnolia walled place for muscle worship. Not that I dont like the gym, but spending four hours a day in there will drive anybody mad let alone me!

So that's all I can say about my training on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. I hope to be running soon or I will definitely be forced to make a sign for all the guys with arms much bigger than my legs. 'Hi I'm Will, I'm a long distance runner, and big muscles would slow me down. Which is the only reason I don't have them, if I didn't run my arms would obviously be as big if not bigger than yours'!