23 December 2008

Derailed

A frustrating 3 weeks.....

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
!

4 comments:

Unknown said...

Cross trainer is to hold on to the handlebars without moving them. Some people choose to do this to keep their balance if they are not confident when using this machine. Aim to move your arms the way you would when running.

Clown said...

Sling, sorry to hear the news about the ankle.

Another option for you to stay fit if it is ok on the ankle is to get on the exercise bike. The key is to keep the cadence high between approx 80 and 100 revs per minute.

Best of luck in the recovery.

Ewen said...

I hope the physio helps get you back to running before too long.

If you go light on the intensity (speedwork) you may be able to ramp up the mileage fairly quickly - then introduce speedwork in small amounts.

In any case, all the best for 2009.

Unknown said...

You need to see a Chinese sinseh/TCM practitioner specialising in this area if you hope for a fast recovery.