You know those days where you’re desperate to find anything to do other than study? Today is one of those days.
By making a conscious effort to avoid all things related to final exams I made significant progress though Hal Higdon’s book, Marathon: The Ultimate Training Guide. It’s so addictive! (<– As an aside, my biggest pet peeve is when people write “addicting” instead of “addictive.” That’s not a word!)
The introduction had some funny snippets of conversations between runners and those who lead a more sedentary lifestyle. One particular runner was asked (very nonchalantly) by his coworker, “So did you run any marathons this weekend?”
Nah. Maybe next weekend.
I’m sure the same type of well-intentioned ignorance can be applied to just about any sport, but I had some good laughs anyway.
Anyway, in an attempt to further procrastinate, I also made a trip to the drug store to restock on some essentials (cotton balls and the like). Unexpectedly, I found something awesome!
Jumbo-sized Redken shampoo for only $20 CAD!! This shampoo has been my holy grail since the beginning of the summer, and since a regular-sized bottle normally retails for $17 CAD I was stoked to come across this little promotion. I’m actually debating going back for a second bottle.
And now, onto addressing why my blog has had absolutely no mention of workouts as of late…
Medial tibial stress syndrome (MTSS) is just the technical term for shin splints, a common overuse injury experienced by many runners at some point in their training.
I finally started seeing a physiotherapist after aggravating my lower legs on a recurring basis. I was getting tired of going through cycles where the pain of inflammation subsided and I could manage a run only to be off again for few days. I was getting the impression that the pain wasn’t going away on its own. Guess what? It’s because I have MTSS (and thankfully it didn’t progress to a fracture!).
I started seeing Kevin (my PT) once a week for the last three weeks and we’ve been working on strength and coordination exercises that have minimal impact. Once I’ve strengthened my lower leg muscles enough we’re going to slowly ease me back into running, but Kevin cautioned me that it won’t be a quick progression. The key focus is to treat the cause of my shin splints to prevent them from recurring again in the future.
As long as we’re doing everything possible to prevent them from coming back, I’m game!
Kevin has been using EMS at the end of each session, and it’s really cool. He’ll leave the electrodes on my legs for about five to ten minutes (it doesn’t hurt) and then I amuse myself by playing Angry Birds.
And taking photos, apparently.
My absolute saviour in this process has been Saucony calf sleeves. I slip ‘em on after a PT session for enhanced recovery and I feel as though they’ve made a major difference. They’ve also come in handy in instances where I’ve felt a bit of pain from walking so much around the university campus. They were a bit pricey ($59 CAD for the set) but I definitely feel that they’re worth it.
Anyway, that’s all I have for now. Have a happy Monday!
You know those days where you’re desperate to find anything to do other than study? Today is one of those days.
By making a conscious effort to avoid all things related to final exams I made significant progress though Hal Higdon’s book, Marathon: The Ultimate Training Guide. It’s so addictive! (<– As an aside, my biggest pet peeve is when people write “addicting” instead of “addictive.” That’s not a word!)
The introduction had some funny snippets of conversations between runners and those who lead a more sedentary lifestyle. One particular runner was asked (very nonchalantly) by his coworker, “So did you run any marathons this weekend?”
Nah. Maybe next weekend.
I’m sure the same type of well-intentioned ignorance can be applied to just about any sport, but I had some good laughs anyway.
Anyway, in an attempt to further procrastinate, I also made a trip to the drug store to restock on some essentials (cotton balls and the like). Unexpectedly, I found something awesome!
Jumbo-sized Redken shampoo for only $20 CAD!! This shampoo has been my holy grail since the beginning of the summer, and since a regular-sized bottle normally retails for $17 CAD I was stoked to come across this little promotion. I’m actually debating going back for a second bottle.
And now, onto addressing why my blog has had absolutely no mention of workouts as of late…
Medial tibial stress syndrome (MTSS) is just the technical term for shin splints, a common overuse injury experienced by many runners at some point in their training.
I finally started seeing a physiotherapist after aggravating my lower legs on a recurring basis. I was getting tired of going through cycles where the pain of inflammation subsided and I could manage a run only to be off again for few days. I was getting the impression that the pain wasn’t going away on its own. Guess what? It’s because I have MTSS (and thankfully it didn’t progress to a fracture!).
I started seeing Kevin (my PT) once a week for the last three weeks and we’ve been working on strength and coordination exercises that have minimal impact. Once I’ve strengthened my lower leg muscles enough we’re going to slowly ease me back into running, but Kevin cautioned me that it won’t be a quick progression. The key focus is to treat the cause of my shin splints to prevent them from recurring again in the future.
As long as we’re doing everything possible to prevent them from coming back, I’m game!
Kevin has been using EMS at the end of each session, and it’s really cool. He’ll leave the electrodes on my legs for about five to ten minutes (it doesn’t hurt) and then I amuse myself by playing Angry Birds.
And taking photos, apparently.
My absolute saviour in this process has been Saucony calf sleeves. I slip ‘em on after a PT session for enhanced recovery and I feel as though they’ve made a major difference. They’ve also come in handy in instances where I’ve felt a bit of pain from walking so much around the university campus. They were a bit pricey ($59 CAD for the set) but I definitely feel that they’re worth it.
Anyway, that’s all I have for now. Have a happy Monday!