These days I categorise my running problems into three;
- Niggles
- Injuries
- Issues
Niggles, these are slight injuries that still allow me to train and will slowly recover on their own. Although on some occasions, I might subtly reduce my training, while I have a niggle just to help me recover quicker.
Injuries are injuries that stop me training, I have to wait for them to heal and sometimes I may need treatment.
Issues is my latest term to describe my “other” running problems that are not covered by the other two. I think they are a bit of an age thing! I will explain more shortly.
During my 2023 training, I’ve had a few niggles but nothing significant enough to write about.
Injuries this year have mainly been my bad back in February. It was a frustration at the time and lost me some training, but I’m pleased to say it is now “back” to normal. Luckily, I haven’t had any real illnesses apart from the usual winter colds. Hopefully now I have written this, nothing will strike me down in the last few days before my 10in10 starts on Friday.
My real problems are my two “Issues”;
- My first issue is my right groin. It started about one month before the Brathay 10in10 in 2020. It has been diagnosed as an adductor tendinopathy, which in simple English to me is a sore tendon. Since 2020 I’ve not really seemed to be able to fully shake it off. I wholly take the blame for this as I don’t rest for long enough for it to fully heal. Over the last 3 years since I first suffered with it, I have still kept my mileage high, ran on average over 30 marathons per year and completed 3 Brathay 10in10s.
It still comes and goes and has been there during my 2023 training. It makes my groin sore and stiff when I first start running. This makes it painful to run and makes me hobble when it is really bad. Usually, it loosens up after a mile or two and then I get into my stride. The further I get into the event this year, the more I can see this causing me an issue.
- My second and most significant issue is my right knee. I have torn the cartilage twice in this knee and had surgery on it both times. It stopped me completing the 10in10 back in 2017. For the last couple of years, it has been giving me some pain on the inside of the knee and from last autumn this has got worse. I thought I had torn the cartilage again, so had it scanned in January. The good news it isn’t torn but the bad news is the cartilage is noticeably worn. This wear means my bones are not getting the cushioning they need and is causing me pain.
The more I run, the harder I run, if I jar my leg or run hard downhill, the knee joint is aggravated, and it causes me pain. Through my training I have got used to running a marathon with the knowledge it often makes my knee sore, on different days to different levels. Usually overnight it calms down and by morning it is ok again. Hopefully this will be the case each day during the 10in10 but I am concerned that the daily battering of the hilly course will start to take a toll on my knee, pain increases each day and even the knee starts to swell (like it did back in 2017), stopping me from finishing the challenge. I have altered my training slightly since January to minimise aggravating the knee by reducing speed work to almost none and giving it some rest after marathons and tough sessions. I have also included some strength work in the gym to improve the muscles around the knee with the view of supporting the joint.
Hopefully if I can run carefully enough each day, I will complete the 10 days. What I do know is it will give me pain from day 1. I will have to use everything I know to manage it. The question I don’t have the answer to is, will this pain accumulate day after day, over the 10 days to a point it prevents me from completing the event?
What I do know is that this issue will not go away and I will have to start looking after this knee if I want it to keep working for me for the rest of my life so whatever happens this 10in10, it will be my final time.
Brathay Windermere Marathon Start
