Injury

Wound.  Damage.  Hurt.  These are all synonyms for injury.  They are all accurate descriptions of me and specifically of my hamstring.

In all the years of being inactive and overweight and all the years of competition and fitness, I have been fortunate enough to stay injury free.  My luck has run out.

Several months ago, (okay, maybe as many as five or so months) I started feeling a small twinge in my hamstring.  I ignored it.  I’ve dealt with a lot of soreness and general achiness from tough training routines.  However, things usually shake out to a normal state.  After our recent adventure race, I realized that I had been feeling some extreme soreness in my hamstring and the muscles around it.  (Those muscles have been compensating for the weakened/injured hamstring).  We recently transitioned to more running in preparation for a race.

Using a foam roller helps relieve tension in my hamstring. 

We completed our first sprint interval training one morning several weeks ago.  My leg hurt so badly that I wanted to cry and could barely move.  Even then, I ignored it.  Two days later, I scrapped together a six mile run.  That was the final straw.

After visiting my doctor, I’ve spent the last several weeks in physical therapy.  I’ve had to temporarily suspend all running.  That’s like asking me not to breath.  I’ve been limited to walking and biking on flat surfaces to minimize calling upon my hamstring.  Which again by the way, I love mountain biking and trail running and those are also off limits.  I’ve had to work on stretching and doing easy movements while slowly adding resistance to try and repair and rebuild the muscle.

It’s been a challenge.  While I feel significantly better, I also still feel a small twinge.  It makes me feel discouraged.  Even after acknowledging I have an injury, I still wouldn’t accept the fact I have to drop out of my next race until just a few days ago.

On the other hand, I’ve been humbled by the acknowledgement that I have functioning legs (maybe injured, but they still work).  I am building a much greater appreciation for what the body does day in and day out.  Particularly because I ask it to push itself so often to let me compete.  I’ve also secretly appreciated the break in hard workouts.  I have walked almost every day and made sure to enjoy the fresh air and nice weather.

The number one thing I’m learning is to listen to your body.  Mine has probably been giving me queues for a while that something was wrong.  I didn’t listen.  What I can do going forward is document my work outs and make note if something feels off/sore/hurt.  It will help me identify lingering pains and take action if something doesn’t seem right.

I’ve also been reminded how important stretching is and strength training.  If I want to demand performance from my body, I need to make sure each muscle has been properly built and trained to handle it.  Post workout and on days off, I need to work on stretching out the muscle.  I often fail to take stretching seriously.

I don’t know if I’ll continue to feel a dull ache in my leg going forward or not.  I will be able to pick up running and intensity in other activities again.  I’ve learned a lot through this experience and I hope that it helps me make smarter training decisions in the future.  As always, I’m interested in other’s experiences.  Have you had an injury you ignored or treated right away?  What result did it have on your training and your everyday activities?  What did you learn from the experience?


Miss FitGab