All Machines Need Maintenance and Oil

This is my first post since my 19 mile run last week. Unfortunately, the knee pain I felt towards the end of the run...never went away like it normally does.

I didn't sleep well on Saturday night, my knee was swollen and hurt each time I would turn over in bed or even move my leg a little bit. Sunday, when my feet hit the floor, I knew something still wasn't right.

We had a family lunch and dance performance to go to on Sunday. Sitting at the dance performance was physically painful. Crossing my right leg over my left hurt just as bad as crossing my left over the right. Keeping my knees uncrossed was painful... trying to stretch my leg was painful...

I had to travel to Detroit this week, which meant finish up the packing. I had several things downstairs that I needed for the trip. As I started to descend the stairs I felt a pain like I had NEVER experienced. Going up the stairs no problem.... I went ahead and packed all of my running gear for the week. I had 3 days of running and packed all 3 days worth.

Monday, headed out to the airport for Detroit. Sitting on a TINY regional jet was one of the most uncomfortable plane rides I have ever experienced.

We landed in Atlanta and I was 3 terminals away from my next flight. For those of you that are not familiar with the Atlanta airport, it is HUGE. There is a tram that can take you from one end of the airport to the other. I used to take the tram, but haven't taken it since approximately May. I will walk to my destination...and sometimes that is literally from the first terminal to the last. I love the freedom of walking, people watching and just knowing I am doing something good for my body.

The pain I was feeling was a lateral knee pain. It went from the outside of my knee and continued along the bottom of my knee cap.

As I was walking to my terminal, I began wondering am I doing harm in walking or should I take the the tram, should I just stand on the moving walkway? It is extremely hard for me to let a piece of 'machinery' get me from point a to point b when not necessary. I continued to walk.

When I arrived in Detroit, my plan was to go to the client site, get out of there by 5:00 and go get my 5 miles in. After the day 0f sitting on planes, trying to descend the stairs of the escalators, walking from terminal to terminal and sitting in the conference room, it became apparent I was NOT running today. Panic started setting in...

Tuesday, I was hoping to wake up and maybe get a mile or 2 run in before the day started....not happening. As I sat in the conference room my knee pain was still as bad as it was on Sunday and Monday.

After the work day was complete, I started researching what the symptoms were for IT band issues, short name for Iliotibial Band. Definition from Wikipedia: **The iliotibial band is a superficial thickening of tissue on the outside of the thigh, extending from the outside of the pelvis, over the hip and knee, and inserting just below the knee. The band is crucial to stabilizing the knee during running, moving from behind the femur to the front while walking. The continual rubbing of the band over the lateral femoral epicondyle, combined with the repeated flexion and extension of the knee during running may cause the area to become inflamed.**

Some non runners, new runners, may be asking how I knew to even research IT Band issues???? I truly believe all things happen for a reason. I typically don't talk to the person next to me on flights...headphones in and book/magazine open. On a flight home from Oregon, last September, I had just purchased the most recent Runners World magazine and had it on my lap and it became a conversation piece. The guy who sat next to me saw the magazine and said he had just read it and it was a great edition (he typically didn't read RW). As conversation continued, I realized...he is a CRAZY EXTREME runner. He was flying to Salt Lake City to run in some extreme ultra warrior mud run.

At that point, I couldn't relate to paying an airfare to go run in another city or state or run in these warrior dashes, mud runs...anything other than street runs. I knew that I had paid for the Austin Marathon, but in my head....I still wasn't convinced that I could complete it. I was still relatively new in my running and trying to soak up anything and everything I could. We talked for the entire flight about running.

He had asked if I had experienced any IT Band pain or 'stingers', I will talk about stingers in another post. I told him I had not and he started explaining the IT Band to me. He was actually recovering from some significant IT pain and this was his first run since it had presented. He pulled his jeans tight over his knee and you could see where the tissue had thickened...it was almost like a golf ball on the side of his knee. He is a person that I will always remember. His passion for running, his generosity with knowledge, his encouragement of me and moving towards my goal.... Runners are some of the most generous unselfish people that I have met. I am so glad to call myself a runner and be part of that community.

The more I researched, the more I knew, but didn't want to admit, I couldn't 'run through the pain and just deal with it'. If I wanted to run and finish the marathon in February, I was better to rest, stretch and address the pain.

I posted on Facebook and asked the advice of some fellow runners. All of them said REST and stretching. Not what I wanted to hear, but knew it deep in my heart. One of my running friends has a blog and posted a couple months back about Magic Juice and referenced me to that post to try out. Magic Juice is Castor Oil, Saran Wrap and an Ace Bandage.

If you want a good blog read...go to washamrunning.blogspot.com This was the first blog I started following and peaked my interest in blogging.

Tyson and I had been talking through the week and he has had some type of congestion, cold, respiratory issue this week. He was also not running. This made me sad for him, but comforted me knowing that when we meet up for our next long run, 23 miles by the way, that we would be at the same place...or so I hoped.

Wednesday, I called the massage therapist that I go to and she was able to get me in on Friday to work on the IT band.

Let me just tell you how hard it is to NOT run regularly, when you are used to it. I am worried about losing what I have built up to, I am worried that this will impact my training for the marathon....

Fast forward to Friday. Woke up excited to go to the massage therapist and have 30 minutes focused on my IT band. No other part of my body was going to be acknowledged...just this one little area. As she started at the top, towards my hip OUCHIE MAMA!!!! It hurt, but felt so good at the same time because I knew it was helping. Once she got to my knee, she would find the trigger point and massage. She described it as 'Ropey'...from hip to knee. I was sad when my 30 minutes of pain were up. I could tell a difference, instantly, upon my feet hitting the floor.

She advised me to come back in, TUESDAY...YES!!!! and to not run until after that day.

JB bought everything I needed for the Magic Juice... I couldn't wait to try it out. So.... here it goes.

**Excerpt from washamrunning.blogspot.com: Well, it's as simple as taking Castor Oil (weirdly a laxative) applying it to the injured area, wrapping with cling wrap, then an ace bandage, and sleeping in it overnight. Boom! In the morning healed!**

Now, I don't know if it was all in my head or what...but as I applied the Castor oil, it felt as if the pain was 'pulling' to the surface of the skin and leaving... Again, it may be in my head, but if that is the case and I feel better....great, I am now a MENTAL runner that is getting back on track. I wrapped it all up and headed off to bed.

It may all be a coincidence, but when I woke up on Saturday morning, my pain is virtually gone. Going down the stairs in our home, no problem. I was out and about all day on Saturday...no pain at all.

I am going to pick back up on my training plan this week...I can't wait.

Moral to this story, whether you are in a car, on a bike or using your body for the mode of transportation...all machines need some maintenance and oil... Pay attention to your body, listen to what it's telling you and take care of it along the way.