Injured

Some things are hard to write. I left off writing my blog for what felt like a very long time a few months back as I was unable to run, to train and to take part in any competitions. It was very frustrating and I wasn't able to put this into words and pretend that eveything was fine. I think that the pressure I was feeling at work didn't help and I kept these feelings bottled up for a while. Well, I'm injured again after yesterday's race, for which the race report and photos will follow shortly, and I thought it was more important this time to get this out of my system than to write about the race.

When the achilles started aching yesterday, I was half way across a very muddy field at the time. I remember the moment exactly and I just thought "s**t". I left the cornfield and the woman on the road gave me encouragement by announcing that it was all tarmac now until the feeding station. The pain got worse running on the road. I felt like pulling the plug and abandoning. I couldn't run properly and was hobbling as I ran, gritting my teeth with the pain as every stride caused a lance from my heel up my calf. It was bearly bearable.

I waited for François at the feeding station and told him about the achilles. I couldn't give up now as I didn't want to leave him and I wanted those 2 points for the UTMB. I would just carry on as best I could and see how far I could get. The pain as awful for the next 10 kilometres and then it died down a little, letting me run but not letting me forget that it was there.

That was yesterday. Today I'm wondering how I managed to run yesterday as the few strides I made today were awful. My ankle is clearly swollen around the achilles and I've applied ice to try and reduce this. However, this time it's my left ankle and not my right that is injured. I've been through this twice before and I feel better about it this time as I'm sure I'll be able to get over this more quickly and deal with it better. God, I'm even able to write about it.

Race report tomorrow. For those of you who watch 'How I met your mother', in the words of Barney, it was legend.... wait for it... dary !!!

Still injured

I had planned with Nico to go for a jog with him to get out and enjoy the fresh air. The doctor had diagnosed a calf strain, usually caused by inadequate stretching before exercise, tiredness, and old age. Well I recognised all 3 of these factors so it's amazing that I've been so injury free for so long.

I hadn't exercised since Tuesday evening when the damage was done and the limping and pain in the calf had now worn off. It probably wasn't the best of ideas but it surely couldn't do that much harm, could it?

I felt fine for the first couple of kilometres, running at a very easy 12 km/h. Nico and I chatted easily but then when we were passing in front of the sports facilities by the Seine, I could feel the muscle pulling and tightening.

It was time to call it a day. The 2 weeks rest imposed is not to be taken lightly and 3 days was not sufficient time to let anything mend. Despite feeling better initially, I would have to be patient.

8 km all up in 42 minutes. No running now for a couple of weeks while I let this mend properly. I'll just have to find some other form of exercise.

Injured

I was in England for business. I'd arrived that afternoon and having made a couple of phone calls and sent some mails, I'd unpacked my bags and taken my running kit out. I was going to go for an easy run befor dinner so that I could enjoy myself without feeling guilty.

It was a pleasant evening and the rain that had been falling in France was nowhere to be seen here. I was staying at the same fantastic hotel near Bagshot as last time and I was looking forward to the evening meal. I ran out of the hotel drive, admiring the hundredsof bunnies playing in the evening light, and headed up the hill towards Camberley. I took it fairly easily, running the first kilometre in just under 5 minutes to the top of the hill. The road flattened out here and I ran aong this flat and then began the downhill into Camberley.

I was looking to the left to see if I could make a circuit out of the run, rather than the put and back efforts I'd managed last time in the dark. I ran the next kilometre in 4:15 and then the third in 4:10. It was easy going down the hill and I thought I was coasting. I'd just run into town when disaster struck. All of a sudden I felt a sharp pain in the base of my calf and at the top of my achilles. It was if someone had stabbed me with a dagger in this zone and I was forced to stop immediately. I tried to do some stretching thinking that it was some form of cramp, but to no avail. Nothing I did made the slightest bit of difference and I resigned myself to the fact that I'd pulled a muscle.

I walked the 3.3 km back to the hotel, cursing myself the whole way. I was so frustrated at the thought of losing my current form and all of the lost training that I was almost beside myself. How serious was this injury and what would the consequences be? I lost all interest in the fantastic surroundings and no meal, however great, was going to compensate for this.

Early morning run

Decided that it was time to get back into the old habits and start my early morning training sessions again. 6:00 am start and out of the house in the dark to go for the 13km usual run through Maisons Laffitte before breakfast.

Felt great from the beginning, probably due to the easier runs I've been doing lately. Without pushing it too hard, my legs decided that they wanted to have a real workout and the first kilometre was completed in 4:17. The second and third were even faster and then disaster struck. My right knee jarred and it was as if an electric shock had been applied just below and underneath the kneecap. I hobbled for a few steps and then had to reduce the pace drastically to avoid the pain.

This had been threatening to happen for a while now. The build-up in mileage and effort has caused the knee to stiffen and sometimes it feels as though there is a lack of cartilege and a grinding between the different bones, causing me to ease off the pace or stumble downstairs. It seems to occur mostly when I'm overstriding or going up or downstairs. Anyway, I was most disappointed to have to ease off the pace now when I'd been feeling so good from the start of the run.

I took it easy for the next 3 kilometres and the pain gradually eased. I was able to accelerate back to 4:15 pace and finish the run at this speed, having had to ease off to 4:40 pace after the jolt. 12.8 km all up in 54:23 or an average pace of 4:15/ km. Concerned that this knee problem will be with me for a while now.

Early morning session

Last run this week before the races this weekend. No real plans as to how far I was going to run when I left the house, except that I knew that I wanted to run a little further than my normal 10k route. However, I also had to balance my running time against getting into work time. What was I to do : 15km and get to work late or 10km and not satisfy my desire to put some mileage in. I settled for 12.

I set off down the main road with my close friend: the pain in my right thigh. I've been suffering with this for a while now, probably about 2 months as it appeared around the time of the London marathon. I have had a quick search on the internet to try and understand what it may be and the only plausible answer would appear to be a stress fracture in the femur. The pain begins as soon as I start running and then eases off when the endorphines quick in at around 5k. It's more of a dull ache than a sharp pain and I've not been letting it bother me but it doesn't appear to be going away. Anyway, I was thinking of this as I set off and taking it easy down the road, getting into the rhythm and dragging myself out of my sleep at the same time. I looked at the Garmin as it signalled the first kilometre : 5:04 !

I could hardly believe it. I thought that I'd been taking it easy but not that easy. I resigned myself to the fact that I was slow this morning and trudged on at the same pace. The second kilometre flashed up on the watch now : 4:48 - this was already an improvement and I noticed that I was a good 100 metres beyond the usual 2km marker. This was the Garmin playing up again for that 1st k. It had obviously taken a little longer to catch the satellites hence the time. This was confirmed when I went through 3k in 4:48 too - at least I'm regular.

I woke up from this point on and the pain subsided in my thigh. I thought about how well I've been running recently and my gradual return to form since London. The long runs in the Auvergne have also helped and I'm as ready as I'll ever be for the long trail on Sunday. At the same time, I'm dreading that exhausted, hungry, too tired to take another step feeling that hits after 30-40 k and you know you still have another couple of hours to run before finishing. I put this behind me and sped up - 4:30 then 4:25 in the forest and finally finishing back through town with a 4:17 then 4:07 pace. 

12 km all up in 54:50 or 4:34 average pace. A good run and despite my efforts to keep it short, it took me 2 hours to get to work in the traffic this morning. Arrived at 9:50 am and should have run a 15k after all.

Improving

I actually looked forward to going for my run this morning. This is the first time in a while as recently, I've been depressed with the injury and the pain in my achilles was getting me down every time I went out. After Tuesday's training session, I've regained some determination to lose weight, and to improve my training schedule.

My achilles is not the only element that is getting better as the weather as showing definite signs of spring lately. I switched to a sleeveless cotton top and some shorts and headed outside where it was 9°C. I decided to run my usual 10km route at a reasonable pace. Reasonable means not quite marathon speed, but just faster than 4:30 per km. So with all these good resolutions in my head, I lined up the satellites, hit start on the Garmin, and set off down the road. I felt good from the start: not brilliant as I was slightly short of breath but my achilles wasn't even aching - nothing. This was a good sign.

I ran down to the river and ran easily listening to the birds welcoming in the dawn. This encouraged me too as winter is almost over and the days are getting longer. Living without regular sunshine is not an option for me any more. I need some good sunshine to feel better about myself and my running! I was still short of breath as I ran the second and third kilometres but I looked at my watch as the Garmin beeped for the third time : 13:10. This was good: averaging well under 4:30 for the first few kilometres. I was encouraged and more determined to maintain the pace now.

I looked at the Garmin now for each kilometre - 4:24, 4:25, 4:24 again. I was running regularly and easier now. Still no pain or any unusual feeling from my achilles and this was to last until the end of the run. I ran through the park, happy to get off the road and onto a softer but still smooth surface. Back up through town past the church and a last faster kilometre downhill to finish. It was only when I stopped running that I felt a slight twinge from my achilles which was not painful, just a little sign to let me know that I'm not quite over it yet.

10.3 km in 45:04 or an average of 4:21 per kilometre.

I don't have the stamina to manage this for a marathon and London will be simply a question of soaking up the atmosphere and enjoying myself. If I go under 3:30 I'll be more than happy.

15x200m

I finally made it to a club session last night having been treated to another sequence of ESWT on Monday night. It was a close call, leaving work slightly late but arriving just in time to get changed and be ready as the others were all heading out of the door. It had been a while since I'd made it to a mid-week session and there were plenty of faces I didn't recognise, but some more familiar : Nico, Bruno, Jean-Marc, Momo, Jérémie, Vincent and Miguel amongst others.

As we ran our warm-up through the St Germain forest, the talk was about the various performances at the weekend over the half-marathon, either at Rambouillet or at Rueil. A pretty good show overall with José, Thierry and Mireille all doing very well at Rueil, to the extent that Nico and I did put into doubt the exact measurement of the course. Some of the 10km performances looked too good to be true too - will have to run this next year to achieve a new PB! We managed to avoid following Michel into the darkest sections of the forest and ran back to the track. I discussed running injuries with Bruno who appears to have taken a subscription to ESWT at the local physio's. Apparently, he appreciates the pain !

By the time we got back to the track, I was already suffering from a slight stitch due probably to too much food at lunchtime and the 4kg of extra weight that I'm currently carrying. The options at the track amounted to trying to keep up with the big boys running 200m and 1000m intervals, or joining a group of lesser mortals to run 15 x 200m as marathon training. I chose the latter along with Vincent, Laurent, Nat, Alex and Bruno. These started off well and I felt very comfortable for the first 4 or 5 intervals which we were running at around 38 - 39 seconds and off 30 seconds rest. I didn't have a watch on (since I'd left it at home and wasn't initially going to run seriously anyway) and relied on the others to tell me how we were doing. By the time we reached 10, I was over-heating and suffering. 'Endurance' is not my middle name anymore - it's now 'curl over and die in agony'. I stripped my top off and let the others suffer by having to watch my pale flabby stomach trundle around the track for the last few intervals. By ythe time we finished, I was seriously tired and my achilles was beginning to show signs of wear.

Pleased to have run the session overall and it's given me new resolve to reduce my weight. I'll need this if I'm to improve. Looking forward to getting out there again now that the weather is starting to brighten.

About 11km all up and achilles is on the mend.

Bike and run

Laurence and I are running the half-marathon at Rambouillet together. It's official ! Offered to run with her last week and she hesitated as she wasn't sure if she could cope with the pressure of me running beside her for 21 kilometres. Finally, she accepted, knowing that I have no chance of beating any records and since I was already entered at least we would have the enjoyment of running together and I could be helpful at the feeding stations. So the challenge between Nico and myself is off for tomorrow and since there were no longer any real obstacles tos top me training the day before, I decided to go for a run to Cora this morning.

I told Laurence what I was preparing to do and she said that she could come with me on the bike as she was only looking to run about 5 km this morning. We hatched our idea of the bike and run then and there with me running the first 10km and then Laurence running the last 5km.

I got up this morning and first thing to do was to mend the bike. One snapped chain and a couple of flattish tyres later and I was in the basement putting Laurence's bike back together. That done, we set off. I felt fairly good but my ankle was telling me from the start that it hadn't had its usual 2 days rest. It didn't hurt but I could feel it pulling from soon after the start.

I had a great run nevertheless. I started easily running the first km in 4:52 and then gradually sped up to run the 4th km in 4:22 and then increase until I managed the 6th km in 4:08. I'd had it from here and slowed down slightly running the next 3 aroud 4:20 pace before easing off on the last kilometre to finish.

10km all up in 44:20. So not bad going. Ankle is not brill today though and hop it'll be feeling better by tomorrow. Next ESWT is Monday night so that will help.

Looking forward to running Rambouillet tomorrow. Shame Nico isn't feeling too well as I was sure he was going ot beat his record and aim for a sub 1:21. Laurence and I will be happy with a sub 1:45. We'll see how it goes...

Getting better

Who said running was a cheap sport ? I've been adding up the costs over these last few weeks and the totals are rising: €65 for the massage at the osteo; €60 for the ESWT treatment; and a cool €150 for the orthotics at the chiropodists last night. €275 spent on injury treatment and I haven't anything tangible for my money (well a set of insoles hardly counts does it?).

I had been advised to go to the chiropodist by the physiotherapist who applied the shockwave treatment. The chiropodist advised to me is based just to the west of Paris and is specialised in feet treatment for sportsmen. I arrived in his clinic and was impressed by the range of equipment on display for the analysis. Firstly, he makes me stand on an electronic pad linked to his PC which measures all of the pressure points under the soles of my feet. Then he puts me on the treadmill and films me as I run. I'm watching my feet on the screen just in front of me and recognise my natural 'curving' movement as each foot lands in an outward arc from take off to landing. Then it's on to the foam cushions where the heated strips form a thermo-moulding of the shape of my feet and finally he makes the insoles as I wait.

We have a long discussion as to the rise in running injuries that he's having to deal with over the last few years and he blames the shoe manufacturers for the problems they're causing in runners. The torsion bars in most manufacturers are excellent in providing a dynamic shoe returning the energy from the sole back through the ankle as the foot leaves the ground. However, our achilles tendons just aren't strong enough to take this sort of pressure on a permanent basis and it doesn't take much to cause tendonitis through overtraining, over-striding or just badly placing your foot while running. He advises me to drop the Mizunos and the Brooks and to adopt the Nike Lunarglides as they are one of the only brands not to have adopted the torsion bar in the sole construction. As this guy is also the chiropodist for one of the leading French female runners, I'm going to follow his advice when I replace my shoes in a couple of months. We also discuss the latest marketing in shoe sales on pronators, universal and supinators which he dismisses as pure b******t - I like the guy !

Left the house to go for an early run and try my new insoles. The first few steps are a bit unusual as I feel as though I'm running on the shoes rather than in them. This is the first time that I've ever had orthotics made for me and it takes a little getting used to. I run a couple of kilometres around the usual loop and think about how my ankle is doing. For the first time in a long time, there is virtually no pain or discomfort from the achilles or the base of the calf. Whether this is due to the ESWT, the orthotics or just natural healing, I don't know but it's very pleasant to feel that I'm almost over this injury and that I'll be able to run properly soon.

Ok, so I'm running pain-free now but my lungs are telling me that they're struggling to keep up. I'm running at 4:30 per km and the 4 extra kilograms hanging around my waist are taking their toll on my performance and my cardio-vascular system's capacity at this speed. I want to slow down but tell myself that I'm a lazy lump and need to carry on to work off the fat. I take the 10 km course option and run around the back of the park, enjoying the sun rise as Spring arrives and the course isn't totally pitch black anymore. I'm able to maintain my pace until the slight slope back through town in the last 2 km. I drop to 4:45 pace before picking up a little towards the end of the run.

I finish the 10km in 44:40 or an average of 4:28 per km. Best run in ages and although there is a slight grating with the achilles, I can tell that it will wear off realtively quickly during the day.

Life is looking up.

On the mend

I wrapped up warmly this morning as the recent cloudless days have brought some much needed sunlight to the land but also mean that it is cold first thing in the morning. Yesterday, it was -2°C when I left for work in the car. I wasn't going ot be caught unawares when I left the house so I prepared some long running tights, a running top, a long sleeved polar fleece, and a windbreaker to put on over the top. I needn't have bothered: it was 6°C outside and after 200m, I realised that I was going to be too warm.

The achilles felt far better than it had done in recent days. The first couple of kilometres were really pain-free and I only felt a slight niggle at the top of the tendon. I had set off at a reasonable pace since now that I'm only running every other day, I feel that I have to make the most of it and I have more energy compared to when I was training every day. I went down to the river and ran hard along the road from the 1st kilometre marker to the second. It was just after this point that I began to lose my energy and get out of breath. It was no longer a question of the pain in the achilles, but lack of training and endurance that was taking its toll.

My pace dropped from 4:24 then 4:18 to 4:35 - 4:38 over the next 3 kilometres. I felt dreadful and it was if my legs were laden with lead and I was running in deep water. Obviously, my thoughts were black as I remembered my training sessions where I would run faster than this pace with ease and over longer distances. Still, I consoled myself with the thought that my first objective is to get better and to build back up the mileage gradually. The pace and the stamina will follow automatically. The good news is that the achilles is on the mend.

At least the 3 layers I was wearing kept me so warm that I was sweating profusely by the time I got back and able to measure a small weight loss since last weekend. Thank god for small mercies.

7.6km all up in 34:15 so 4:30 per km exactly.

Will run Rambouillet this weekend with Laurence and hopefully we'll set a new PB for her over the half-marathon. I couldn't help wondering whether I'll be able to keep up with her after this morning's performance.

Early morning limp

I was full of hope and excitement this morning as I got up to go for an easy jog around the short route of Maisons Laffitte. Yesterday had been a great day and had boosted me psychologically into thinking that the injury was almost behind me and that I could see the light at the end of the tunnel and whatever other overused cliché comes to mind. I was really looking forward to getting out again and putting in some mileage even if the quality training wasn't there yet.

It was chilly when I left the house with the thermometer reading about 1°C. This may have had an effect on my tendon as it felt stiff and after the first few paces, I knew that the euphoria of yesterday would be short-lived. I told myself just to take it easy and not to push the pace so I contented myself with an easy jog along by the river and then back through the park. The achilles was tight and slightly painful after the first kilometre and I just kept waiting for the moment when the ankle would warm up and the pain would subside. This didn't really happen so I was a little disappointed, to say the least, when I got back home.

7.6km all up in 38:00 so 5:00 per km average. I thought I'd been running faster than this even if I had been taking it easy so no solace here either.

Shockwaves and ESWT

So after a couple of weeks getting very depressed about my ankle situation and my inability to run over 10k without putting myself out of action for a couple of days, I heard about extracorporeal shock wave therapy (ESWT) from some guys at the club and Laurence booked me in for a session on Friday night.

I turned up at the clinic and the doctor took me into the treatment room. There was a huge contrast between 'magic max's' room stuck in a timewarp in the 1970's and this whitewashed clinic with its state of the art Swiss Dolorclast machine ready for action. Before starting the treatment, I was made to lie down and the doctor made an ultrasound scan of both ankles. He was able to clearly see the slight swelling in the left ankle and the liquid around the tendon where the strain had occurred. After this initial analysis he made me lie down on my front and began the treatment proper.

20 minutes of torture was about to begin. The start of the treatment involved holding my ankle and in his hand while he poked me around the tendon enquiring where the pain was greatest. Having ascertained that it was on the outside of the left ankle at the base of the calf he then reached for the Swiss Dolorclast and applied this to the tendon.

Anyone having studied a minimum of latin will realise that this ESWT machine is very appropriately named - the Dolorclast. Dolor in latin evoloving into "douleur" in French meaning pain derived from the latin verb for suffering. This machine did exactly that - I suffered intensely. The only thought that was going through my mind was that with all of this pain, it must be doing some good. There had to be some consolation as the shockwaves blast through the flesh causing very intense, localised agony. I've had more fun eating glass (*). I gritted my teeth and buried my face in the tissue covering the bench on which I was lying. How long could this last?

Just as the pain was getting really unbearable, the doctor informed me that I'd had enough. I'm glad he realised this because I'd been thinking exactly the same thoughts for 5 minutes at this point. He then applied gel to the area and wrapped up the ankle in clingfilm, telling me to leave this in place overnight to allow the swelling to subside. My ankle now looked like a knuckle of pork in the fridge, ready for roasting. I thought that he was supposed to be helping me mend and he's just explained that the bruising will be severe and that it needs gel over 12 hours to ease the swelling - great!

So more pain, less pinching and the same cost. At least this time health insurance covers the cost - a small consolation. I booked in for another session in 10 days - I'm just a glutton for punishment.



(*) kids please don't try this at home.

Cora last week

I ran to Cora and back with Nico last Saturday and again I didn't post as it was a blow to me.

I was able to manage the pace, albeit a lot more exhausted on arrival back at the house than usual, but the pain in the achilles was a huge disappointment.

How can I express this ? It's not that it truly hurts when I run. I begin by feeling a slight tension in the left ankle. This tension builds and builds and feels like a large bruise at the base of the calf. The pain gradually increases and I know that I should stop to let my body recover, but I don't. I carry on as I'm determined to maintain my fitness, to keep up the mileage and to keep down my weight.

When I got back last Saturday though, I knew I'd gone too far and my ankle was sore all weekend. I put off my usual Monday run and delayed it until Tuesday to give me time to recover.

Basically, the ankle grates and grinds as I move my foot up and down and no amount of ice on the ankle will stop this. This feeling gradually disappears with time. After a standard run (7.5k) this takes a day. After Cora last weekend it took 2 days. I knew I wasn't improving and I needed further treatment if I was to get rid of this burden.

It was great to run with Nico but the disappointment was ovewhelming hence my silence. So why am I writing again ... this will take another posting by itself.

Still sore

I haven't been writing up my runs for the last 2 weeks as there has not been much to write home about.

I have been trying not to force the pace, not to put too much tension in the tendon and to just get out as often as the ankle will let me. This has been once every other day on average.

7.6 km has been my standard run and I 've been running this between 43:55 and 47:00 minutes depending on the pain.

To begin with I was able to run 4 km before the pain began to kick in, by the end of the 2 weeks I'd run just over a kilometre and I'd begin to hurt. Something had to be done.

Training

The session with Max worked. The pain in the achilles has subsided and I've made a few tentative attempts at running in casual shoes just to check if the pain reappears. In fact, one of these attempts at running was forced upon me as an urgent need to relieve myself following copious cups of tea meant that I had to run down to the park to find a quiet spot beside a tree. This reminds me of walking around town with my parents years ago when Dad was running competitively. Every now and then he would stop, hawk up a gob of spit and deposit this neatly in the road. Mum would be horrified but Dad explained quite calmly that all runners do this !

Anyway, the ankle seemed to be better and so after a couple of days rest having seen the osteo, I decided to give it a try Monday morning. I got up at 6:00 am and ran my old short route around the castle in Maisons Laffitte before heading through the park and then back home. The achilles was quiet for the first 4 kilometres before it began to show that it was still there and a slow discomfort made itself felt.

Luckily the total route is only 7.6km so the last 3 I eased off and finished at 12km/h running the whole loop in 37 minutes exactly. I was pleased to have made it out nonetheless. The rest of the day I could feel my ankle "creak" as the achilles moved the foot up and down. There was a little grinding feeling. in the ankle that lasted all day and only wore off by the evening. This was the first attempt at getting out again and boy did it feel good.

The frsutration when you can't run is tremendous and the relief at being out again, despite the slight discomfort from the 4th kilometre onwards, was huge. The feeling of achievement, of freedom and of fitness is only something that I can find in my running routine. It's good to be back albeit slightly diminished from the achilles still.

The room

Three knocks on the plain wooden door off the narrow landing. Nothing happens. I check the nameplate beside the door and it is correct. I wonder how many other people living in the flat can have the same name. It's already taken me a good twenty minutes to find the block of flats in a maze of urban construction just south of Paris. No, this has to be the place.

The door opens and an old man with grey hair lets me enter.

"I thought I would get up and let you in. I don't know how long he'll be".

So, apparently the man is not the person I've come to see and I enter the flat following my doorman as he enters what must be the waiting room. I sit down on one of the chairs lining the walls of the small room and examine my surroundings. The decoration is mid-seventies with previously garish wallpaper now faded and starting to peel off the walls in places. The light switch is coming away from the wall too with the wiring just visible behind the beige bakelite casing. The only natural light comes into the room from a small window at the far end of the room with a view out over the concrete jungle outside.

Several cycling shirts have been pinned to the wall, their bright colours in direct contrast with the faded wallpaper. All have been signed by local or national cyclists expressing their thanks to the osteopath: "Many thanks to Max and his magic fingers" is a typical comment and encourages me. I ask myself if he'll be able to work wonders on me and enable me to start training again after almost a month of rest now.

A very short man about 60 years old comes out from a room, helping an old lady to one of the seats. My doorman appears to be her husband and listens carefully as the osteo explains that the neck problem she suffers from was probably caused at birth from a forceps delivery. I can't help but feel that the 120 kilograms of fat that she has to carry every day aren't doing anything to help her condition. A last word of encouragement from Max to the woman and it's my turn to to be treated.

I enter the room with Max and tell him about the achilles problem I have. He makes me lie down on the bench and grabs my left leg in both hands massaging first the achilles and then the calf. He pulls the skin away from the achilles and pinches down the back of the calf and along the tendon to the ankle. He might have magic fingers but this is really hurting. He holds my left foot down with one hand as he treats the ankle and calf with the other. The temptation to fight back and kick out is strong hence the footholding.

The treatment continues for half an hour and by the end my left leg feels that it has been bruised into submission. He explains that the problem with the achilles is the lack of blood supply and that his treatment encourages the circulation to that area. This is his version of chinese acupuncture using a pinching technique. I'm ready to take the pain as long as I know that it'll succeed in enabling me to run shortly. He tells me to rest for a couple of days and then to start running easily again afterwards. Relieved of my cash and my calf and ankle bruised to hell, I leave the room and walk downstairs to go outside. Was it worth the bother ?

Injured

Well it's confirmed : a peritendonitis of the achilles. The whole area is swollen and inflamed and very sore to touch. I'm upset as I had confirmation from the club that they'd managed to get me a place in the next round of the x-country championship and now this has happened.

Don't know when I'll be able to run again. It means at least a week off while the swelling goes down and it begins to mend. Will test next Saturday if I can run then and review my participation in the race for next Sunday.

Bum, bum, bum - just when I began to feel good about my performance again.

Injured

I don't know whether it was anything to do with the tough double session on Tuesday but yesterday everything seemed to go downhill.

I woke up fine after a good night's sleep and thought that the small pain in my neck that I've been suffering from since coming back from the US had finally gone. I arrived at work and my neck slowly began seizing up until at the end of the day my head was at 45° and every small movement was agony.

I've just come back from the chiropractor and he's massaged the area where the problem is and cracked a few bones in my back and I'll see if this has done the trick in a couple of days. I'll not run until Saturday when I'm doing a sprint triathlon.

The problem, apparently, has probably been caused either by stress or fatigue. Fatigue I can understand from my training schedule but stress ... I must be more concerned about realising a good time in this next marathon than I realised !

Disappointment

Went running this evening with the club but the injury is still not better.

The warm up was painful with pains still in the top of my right buttock. I didn't feel comfortable at any point during the run. The group was running 10x600m with Régis, Fabrice, Nick, Philippe all together. I tried to start with them but the pain was too much from the start and I pulled up to stop before the pain became unbearable.

I watched the others run afterwards and decided that despite having told Nick that I would run Rambouillet with him, the most sensible idea is not to run at all and to try and recover asap.

Nick was running well sticking to the group and finishing the session on a sprint. Laurence ran well too, running her VMA session of 6x 2m30 at 4:14 - 4:20 pace.

Upset with myself and the fact that the injury isn't better. Drank a couple of rums to get over the worst of it.

Test run

I went out this morning to see if the osteopath's attempts to straighten me out had done any good or not.

Laurence volunteered to come along with me as she had managed a long run of 30km yesterday and wanted to ease off the muscle aches with a cycling sesssion. This has been an amazing week for her as she's run 95km in the week and is showing no sign of excessive fatigue. We set off slowly from the house and headed up to the forest for the standard Sunday run path to the barrier and back.

I felt easier from the start with the run. The muscle pain in my right buttock was still there but it felt as though the cause of the pain had disappeared. Unfortunately, the path through the forest had been churned up considerably by vehicles that are laying a water network to the next village. This meant that I was very cautious picking my way through the ruts in order to avoid throwing my back out of joint again. Once this section was over, I picked up the pace and began to feel a lot more comfortable running around 4:30 - 4:40 per km.

Towards the end of the route, the pain began to return to my lower back area so I'd probably forced a little too much again but it was definitely bearable and I'm not in any discomfort now, writing this 5 hours later.

Nice to get out again and put some kilometres in, even despite the lack of pace. Laurence enjoyed the outing too, very easy accompanying somebody at this pace on the mountain bike ! I really believe that yesterday's treatment has done me some good and that the muscle pain will wear off more quickly now. The big question is whether or not I can run the semi in Rambouillet. I'll take that decision after this weeks training sessions.

12.5km all up in one hour exactly.