Back in Top Form

After several weeks of recovering from a knee injury(which I injured in mid January), I am thrilled to report that I am very nearly back in top form. I say this with reservation because one can never be certain about such things, as there is always the risk for re-injury or even a completely new injury. For what it’s worth, I’m getting called a “showoff” again when I joggle around the neighborhood.

As you can see in the chart above, I didn’t run all that much for many weeks. In fact, I actually went 1 week with no running at all due to this injury. Yet last week, I managed to run a total of 68 miles, which is just a few miles short of my all time record. This post describes my recovery program – The long snowy road to recovery

The lesson I’ve learned is to not overdo it. Too much mileage all at once is almost always a bad idea. Running 84 miles over the course of 6 days was a stupid idea, since my body was only used to 50 to 65 miles a week at most.

So if you’re injured, don’t give up! To stay in shape, find something else to do to maintain your fitness. If it is really painful and/or inflamed, make sure you see a doctor though before doing anything. You will likely have to take a lot of time off from your favorite activity, you may even become depressed. Do all you can to keep your spirits up, it’s not the end of the world.

Thanks to everyone for your support. It’s great being able to show how fit a vegan can be again.

Longest run and an injury

On Wednesday the 15th, I ran more miles than ever before, completing a 30 mile run in 6:15. I ran as far north as Briarcliff Manor, and ran halfway back to White Plains before taking the train home. It was very foggy, almost dream-like when I started, but the sun came out later during this epic northward run.

The main reason I ran slowly was due to this soreness in my right knee that got increasingly worse after the first half of the run(I was also carrying juice and many energy bars). It seems to be some kind of overuse injury, though I am not sure which one. Running 84 miles in 6 days wasn’t such a great idea after all, though it was hard to resist due to the unseasonably warm weather.

When I stand still, I don’t feel anything in my knee. If I walk, I feel a little bit of soreness in my right knee and the bending movement doesn’t feel as smooth as it used to. If I run, it feels very sore and awkward, like I may pull something and make the injury worse.

The sun came out later. A meadow near Briarcliff Manor, just after the midway point of the run.

Hopefully, this will heal fast. I’ll stay off it for a few days to a week to see what happens. I’ve been injured many times, and have always recovered to a point that I was even better than before. Ever since tearing the medial meniscus and ACL in my right knee in my mid teens during my first ever “long” run, my right knee has always been my bad knee. As a result, my right knee is usually more sore than my left knee after long runs.

While I recover, I will do a lot of juggling for cardio and a lot of walking if I can manage. I will also strength train my legs. Not being able to run is starting to affect my mood, but I will persevere. Do not worry about me. I hope everyone is having fun with their endurance activities. I got to remember to not over do it!

Thanks to everyone for your kind words and support.

Prolotherapy and knee injuries

If you are a serious runner, it is inevitable that you will either get injured or at least experience soreness from time to time. It happens to even the best of us. The most important thing you can do about injuries is do what you can to prevent them in the first place. Basically, don’t overdo it. Pain is your body’s way of telling you you are overdoing it. Also, strength-train your legs twice a week with ankle weights or resistance bands. Weak muscles may increase your risk of injury, besides preventing you from performing at your best.

The knee. Source – Wikipedia/Gray’s Anatomy

The knees of a runner are especially vulnerable to injury. After running a marathon, many if not most of the runners experience at least some knee soreness, and a significant number will injure or re-injure their knees.

Injuries to the knee may involve the cartilage(meniscii), ligaments, or both. The meniscii in the knees serve as cushioning to absorb shocks and allow for smooth motion within the joint. Ligament is tissue that connects bone to bone. ACL(anterior cruciate ligament) injuries are notoriously common among football players, as well as runners.

Minor ACL injuries can sometimes heal without surgery if physical therapy is undertaken. All too many athletes unfortunately can’t return to sport even after reconstructive ACL surgery.

Serious injuries to knee cartilage often require surgery too. These types of injuries seldom heal at all or may heal very slowly, depending on the age of the athlete. This is because knee cartilage receives very little blood flow to help it heal.

Prolotherapy is sometimes suggested as an “alternative” to surgery for knee and other injuries. At its most basic, it involves injecting an inflammatory agent(often dextrose, which is just another way to say glucose) into the injured area to bring about an inflammatory healing response. So if you hate needles, it may not be for you.

When it comes to prolotherapy and ACL injury, it shows some promise. According to the Department of Biometry, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, U.S:

In patients with symptomatic anterior cruciate ligament laxity, intermittent dextrose injection resulted in clinically and statistically significant improvement in ACL laxity, pain, swelling, and knee range of motion.

When it comes to prolotherapy and osteoarthritis(which is similar to “runner’s knee”), the Bethany Medical Center, Kansas City, reports that:

Prolotherapy injection with 10% dextrose resulted in clinically and statistically significant improvements in knee osteoarthritis. Preliminary blinded radiographic readings (1-year films, with 3-year total follow-up period planned) demonstrated improvement in several measures of osteoarthritis severity. ACL laxity, when present in these osteoarthritic patients, improved.

Prolotherapy still isn’t very widely available and is still getting investigated. Insurance providers seldom if ever cover this procedure. It has been studied for use in treating injuries in other parts of the body, with mixed to mostly negative results.

I’ve injured my knees in the past, but luckily they were all minor.