"Damn!"

Wednesday, June 28, 2017 · Mike Davis

If you are a regular here or know me, you know that I am not one to use foul language, and while "damn" is not all that foul, it certainly can be offensive. However, Monday night, that is exactly the verbiage I used out at the Spaulding high track. Before heading to the track, I was prepared mentally, nutritionally and I even thought physically, to enjoy a kick-butt interval workout, with my good friend, Doug Mackinnon. Doug even watched me to my reverse lunges, before we did our easy one mile warmup run, so I was ready.

After some discussion, our plan was to run 8-400 meter repeats with 200 meter recoveries in between. Not the toughest workout by any means, but would be a good one for helping with our 5K and 10K pace improvement. As we clicked our Garmin watches to begin, I told myself to hold back, as I often jump out a little too quickly (Doug often comments on that). I felt strong and in control and then bang and then “damn!” A sharp pain shot through the lower part of my calf. Not tightness, but a sharp cutting pain and quickly I slowed to a walk. Walking was not painful, but the pain did not subside, so after telling Doug the deal, I just continued walking. Ever hopeful, after walking a bit, I decided to run again and for a few seconds, I thought I might be okay, and then the sharp pain came back. “Damn!”

If you are a regular to Coffee & Chat, you are probably well aware of my calf struggles from last year (and sick of hearing about it), however this pain was completely different, both location and intensity. As I walked around the track, which was a better option than watching Doug do his repeats, I tried to self-diagnose the location and the injury. It was higher than the Achilles and lower than the gastrocnemius, so I was at a loss for what it was. My frustration was considerable, as I had just come off a great week of running and the last thing I want is an injury!

When I got back to Doug’s, I grabbed my anatomy book to find the location and the specific muscle or tendon affected. It was most definitely not a connection point (tendon), so I was sure it was a muscle. Looking at the posterior view of the leg, I thought it was either the flexor hallucis longus or possibly the soleus. Unfortunately, I could not depict from the diagram which it was, so I had to talk to someone that gets paid to know. So, I called my son in-law, who is a physical therapist and hoped that he would give me a free consultation over the phone. Thankfully, Aaron was willing to risk the liability issue and discuss the possibilities of location and explained to me that because the pain was closer to the surface (superficial), it was most likely the soleus muscle. The hallucis longus is deeper and would and is less of a factor with propulsion. He asserted that it was either a strain or a tear, but neither being an overnight fix. Damn!

Rest-Ice-Compression-Elevation (RICE), is pretty standard for most muscle strains or tears, so Aaron pretty much told me what I figured would be the case. The “rest” part really sucks and I am not thrilled, but there is no getting around it. Why it happened? Most likely my muscle at that moment was not ready for acceleration and probably needed better pre-run stretching. Injuries are not fun and I certainly hate them as much as the next runner, however, I know that I will run again. When that is, will depend on my patience and diligence. I would guess that running will not happen for at least a couple weeks and any attempt to minimize that could lead to a lengthier period. Injuries can be very defeating and right now, I am struggling. However, I have no choice but to be patient try to stay positive.

“Damn,” certainly sums up my feeling right now and hopefully I will let go of that and focus on the recovery. I will be in the gym later, doing the things I can do and then sticking with RICE.

Sorry, if my choice of verbiage seems a bit offensive, but trying to keep it real. I hope you have a great finish to your week and get to enjoy your running!

God Bless!

Mike