It's become clear that my volume of blogging is directly related to my volume of running. After about a month without running, I've successfully completed two runs. Friday I got in 4 miles on the treadmill. This afternoon I worked through about 5 miles outside.
Neither one was completely pain-free. I should be listening to the recovery/rest die-hards out there. However, although my knee is not 100%, the pain was manageable and did not last past the exercise itself. And I am continuing to be caution. Though I was eager to pick things back up, 5 minutes yesterday was about all I managed before the knee pain was joined by just some run-of-the-mill soreness that, given the circumstances, didn't mesh.
My snail's pace is frustrating, but I'm just grateful for the chance to return to running. And the slower pace and time on the treadmill is giving me the mental alleviation to put some thought into my form and technique. This included some short bouts of deliberate fore-foot running. This style, with many faddish names, is a big craze right now, along with the interest in barefoot/minimalist running.
I finally saw an orthopaedist who has diagnosed the ailment as IT band tendonitis. The IT (illiotibial) band is an odd piece of meat. Not really a muscle, it runs all the way from the glutes down to the knee. Most people who suffer IT band problems suffer from pain along the thigh. In my case, the IT band has likely rubbed too much along the conglomerate of bones that meet at the joint.
This week I've finally begun adding a stretching regiment, after the ortho commented on my tight hamstrings. It's novel to me to put just as much, if not more thought into the cross-training/stabilization routines; however, I know it's something I've been lacking. And if doing so gets me back to the roads and trails and keeps me from the sidelines, then so be it.
