To train for the Seattle Marathon (my first), I’ve been following “plan C” listed here. Â I finally hit 18 miles on the 6th (in 3:10, woo!), and hoo boy did it ever hurt! Â I iced and rested for most of the next 24 hours, and then did another 6 miles, per the plan. Â I stuck with the plan through the following Saturday, but by then the nagging pain in my right heel had become painful enough that I thought I might be really injuring myself.
So, I skipped the Sunday run. Â By Tuesday, I was really itching to get out there again, but after the first couple blocks that sharp burning sensation had returned, and I made myself stop. Â I could have pushed through the pain, but with less than two weeks until the marathon, I need to err on the side of too much rest. Â Either my legs are ready at this point, or they’re not (I’ve read it takes about 2 weeks of inactivity for your muscles to start losing strength). Â So I stopped, walked back home, and did some light yoga instead.
Yoga, by the way, is a new thing for me, which I started just after starting training for the marathon, and it has been a HUGE help. Â Several times now, I’ve been sore as hell from all the extra mileage, then went to yoga, and felt great the next day. Â It’s truly amazing, and I’m excited to see where it takes me as I stick with it through the off season.
Anyhow, here it is two days later, and I was finally able to run again. Â There was still a little tenderness in my heel, but this time it didn’t feel like ‘injury’ pain, just ‘healing’ pain. Â I guess we’ll see how I feel tomorrow.