bad legs - Triathlon Week

rajbir · 09-28-2005, 12:43 AM

hi
my legs are ruined. i have pain in my knees, ankles, shins and feet in both legs plus a painful sciatic nerve on my right side.

am laying off for a few weeks. does anyone know when muscle atrophy will start setting in?
am keen on doing yoga but am scared to do weight baring moves, any ideas.

regards
rajbir

themenace · 09-28-2005, 01:14 PM

Get thee to a doctor specializing in sports. Then do some physiotherapy. You're right to back off for a bit but don't despair. This is when you need a professional to look you over. I recently found out my left leg is longer than my right and have been prescribed orthotics. They also ruled out arthritis in my lower back. Insurance will often cover it but if you don't have it, pay for it out of your own pocket. It will be worth it if you can continue with something you have a passion for.

rajbir · 09-29-2005, 12:27 AM

thanks 'the menace'

will get meself to one as soon as possible, whatever the cost.
fingers crossed, hope its not serious.

cheers

themenace · 09-29-2005, 05:16 AM

I mentioned this in another thread. Running in water. Get to the deep end and try to mimic your run stride. use a waist float if you need more bouyancy. You'll get the all important aerobic workout without the strain on your legs.

Smartt/RST · 09-29-2005, 03:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by themenace

I mentioned this in another thread. Running in water. Get to the deep end and try to mimic your run stride. use a waist float if you need more bouyancy. You'll get the all important aerobic workout without the strain on your legs.

Water running can indeed be a great supplement to your training when you can't take the pounding of the road - Indoor trainer, low intensity spins of 30-60min can also keep your muslces loose and promote blood flow while allowing for overall recovery over time. Either way, you need to keep things easy for sometime.
On a more big picture level rajbir, sounds like you have been going too hard for some time to be hurting in so many places. Once a specialist has prescribed a recovery period for you, I suggest looking at your training that got you this point and making some changes. It could be biomechanical, like 'the menace', but you may just be doing more than your body can handle.

rajbir · 10-04-2005, 02:54 AM

thanks for the advice michael,
heres the thing, i went to the sports med orthopedic surgeon on saturday complaining of a hip flexor pain. after doing some tests he diagnosed it as illiopsoas tendonitis and said it would take a year to heal. he also said that the restricted mobility in my hip flexor (specially during uphill sections) was causing my ankle to try and compensate thereby messing it and the rest of my mechanics up.

the interesting thing is, he told me that i dont need to rest for too long and that rest might actually be counter productive. do you have any idea when i can get back to running and how much i should start with. i've had this problem in my hip for like 5 months now.

thanks
rajbir

Smartt/RST · 10-04-2005, 08:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rajbir

thanks for the advice michael,
heres the thing, i went to the sports med orthopedic surgeon on saturday complaining of a hip flexor pain. after doing some tests he diagnosed it as illiopsoas tendonitis and said it would take a year to heal. he also said that the restricted mobility in my hip flexor (specially during uphill sections) was causing my ankle to try and compensate thereby messing it and the rest of my mechanics up.

the interesting thing is, he told me that i dont need to rest for too long and that rest might actually be counter productive. do you have any idea when i can get back to running and how much i should start with. i've had this problem in my hip for like 5 months now.

thanks
rajbir

I'm afraid that I can't give you such specific advice; the specialist you saw is most qualified to tell you when you can get back to running. But as I suspected, they don't want you to just lie around, so you pretty much need to try different activites at very low intensity and see which one causes the least amount of discomfort while still promoting blood flow to the effected areas. In training, we've all heard of "active recovery"...it's really the exact same concept, except in a rehabilitation scenario, you obviously need to do it for much longer.

rajbir · 10-04-2005, 10:09 PM

appreciate the advice michael,
i'm afraid i havent heard of active recovery, can you givr some ideas on run specific activer recovery.
i'm still doing swim and cycle workouts but at 65 - 70% of what i used to. is this enough?

julian · 10-06-2005, 12:32 AM

If running is the problem just lay off it for a while and do what themenace suggested and do some in the pool. You asked is this enough, are you planning on racing?
If you are just training to keep fit until you have recoverd I would say you are doing enough.
Cheers
Julian

rajbir · 10-08-2005, 12:44 AM

hi julian
was planning on racing but i don;t see it happening anytime soon. will lay off, try to lose some of th bulk that i put on from 3 years of bodybuliding, and then start from scratch.
is there any web site or book that i can go to for this water running thing, i've never actually seen it done so i don't know how to start.
any ideas on how to get my slow twich muscles in gear after ages of training the fast twitch ones?

thanks
rajbir

themenace · 12-27-2005, 07:36 PM

Just wondering how things were going for you now. We're in off season in this part of the world. I'm trying to find the time to do some base training. I'm taking a clinic at the end of January. It will be my first one.

rajbir · 01-01-2006, 03:37 AM

hey,
thanks for asking. i'm recovering alright but its slow. no running yet, but the swimming is much better . will keep you posted.
hope you have a great year ahead.
cheers
rajbir