Friday, October 15, 2010

Injury update- Part 2

I have not attempted to run since Monday and today, Friday was the worst that the knee has ever felt. For the first time, I am walking with a noticeable limp. This may actually be good news in the long run because my only explanation is that the pain is partially due to the supplements I took in a attempt to fix it. As of today, I will go back to taking nothing and thankfully, I don't have to worry about panic attacks or a severe thyroid/adrenal reaction. All I can do is wait for the results of the medical report and hope for the worst (that's right, I said worst). With a severe indicator of inflammation, I have detected the root cause of the pain. If it's mild-moderate, it's nothing more than an overuse injury.
Good news, I called Atlanta (Marietta to be exact) and guess what, the prolotherapy doctor is able to squeeze me in on Monday morning. I told him that's "fantastic." If the results are as dramatic as with the Achilles injury, I could be back running by the end of next week. I'll have more than a month to get ready for Huntsville. Though I'd just be happy to participate, my current PR is soft and even if I'm not in the best shape, I think I could still run 3:30 with balanced chemistry (I ran 3:35 unbalanced in a time trial). Regardless of how this all plays out, I will plan on not running any more marathons for 4 more years until I turn 34 and my BQ time goes up to 3:15. I reserve the right to change my mind if things go extremely well and I feel that I am talented enough to run a 3:10 on 50 MPW. Possible but highly unlikely. I enjoy the shorter stuff more anyway and it is less time consuming. I still find a half marathon to be plenty challenging.
The pain from this prolotherapy treatment will likely be excruciating. The inflammatory or "healing reaction" is more intense if the patient is in greater pain prior to the treatment. I could be limping badly for 2 more days but that should clear within 5. There is a possibility that the treatment will help but not fully relieve the pain. If that happens, I must wait until 11/2 for my Nashville appointment. I still might be able to run Huntsville but can forget about a decent time.
Stay tuned for another update next week.

2 comments:

Preston said...

If it is an overuse injury, when you start running again, take it slow. It is hard to do, but you must do it, or this injury will plague you. If you want to see a sports medicine doc in Da Ham, I can let you know who I used!

Crazy J said...

Thanks Preston. I'll be posting another update later today. The doc thinks that I may have simply taken a bad step and it was not due to over training at all. Miss you at the Shak.