Had high hopes that my ankle sprain would improve rapidly, but the ligaments are still damaged/painful after almost 3 weeks. Spraining an ankle 2 days before a peak 10k race hurts, but the prospect of not being able to run for 2 months is even more painful.
Latest view from physio is that I might be out for another month from now, which will make it about 6-8 weeks off. She reckoned the soft tissues are still weak for running.
Two weeks ago (8-14 Dec), I went to see a GP and had an x-ray confirming no stress fracture or dislocation. The doctor said with RICE treatment, I should be able to jog within a week. This gave me a high hope that I could resume training quickly. I did no exercise whatsoever, but it turned out that I was still limping after a week.
M: off
T: off
W: off
T: off
S: 30 minutes
S: off
Last week (15-21 Dec), I went to see the GP again and asked for a referral letter for physiotherapy treatment (I need that letter, otherwise my insurance will not accept claims). She said to wait for another week as the swelling and blue/violet lines (from bruising) in my ankle has started to subside. I can't take any chance of losing my fitness materially and I duly began cross training. However, I found that they don't really push my heart rate up as much as running.
M: off
T: 20 minutes jog (virtually on one leg)
W: 30 minutes Arc Trainer
T: 30 minutes Arc Trainer
F: 30 minutes Arc Trainer + 60 minutes Spinning class
S: off
S: 30 minutes jog (still painful)
This week (22-28 Dec), I finally convinced her that I really need a physio treatment. I told her that I am a runner and I can't stand being a sedentary person and just stood there watching my fitness that I have built for years to be eroded away (I found going up the stairs tougher now). While there were no guarantees that the treatment will help, but I gotta take my chances. Had ultrasound, massages, and ankle strengthening exercises.
M: 60 minutes Arc Trainer
T: 35 minutes Arc Trainer + physio
W: physio
T: X-mas big buffet
Not a Christmas gift that I am looking for !
With this in mind, I might have to re-think about my plan for 2009. I was initially hoping to focus on 5-10k races for the first 3 months. But given the longer-than-expected rehabilitation, I really have to start from scratch again (short, slow runs, low mileage). Even after resuming training, I think it is still to risky to do any speed work with the weak ankles. Looks like I have to forget about doing any races for the next couple of months and instead just do base building.
Have a happy and safe holidays everyone !