A new feel

If you don't want to feel comfortable while running and have all those little niggles stop then don't read on.... For those who are sick of those little injuries while running and can't seem to catch a break, you in luck I caught a break last weekend. While sitting the Qantas lounge I was surfing my sponsors web sites - www.xosizeactive.com.au - and I spied something new, a pairs of shoes that looked funky. It just so happened that my other long time sponsor - www.bngsports.com.au - had them in stock.

They are ON Running's Cloudsurfer and I got say they are the bomb. I borrowed a friends pair and ran in them on the Friday for 2km and said "Yep I'll have a pair." I grabbed a pair that afternoon laced them up and waited till race day. Saturday morning I vassed them up then away we went. My first run was race day. I loved them and no dramas at all, I went for a other run last night just to check on my first impressions and I was right, they are the bomb.

Check out this little vid - http://vimeo.com/25867424 - Check out the website - www.on-running.com - and the read all the facts on how they work and why, try a pair on and I promise you you won't be disappointed.

Time heals all wounds???

Time heals all wounds? Really? To a certain extent it does, but unfortunately as triathletes we always seem to be short on time no matter how well prepared we are for a race we are always short of time. Then along comes an injury. What do you do? Do you stop training and rest it completely, do you slow your training down and try to make a comprise between resting and training. Do you seek help, do you get an ultrasound, do you see a physio, do you get a massage, acupuncture, chiro???? All these questions start racing around the mind and you slow tare yourself apart on what you should do next.

I know, the last 3 months have been like that for me. While trying to get ready for the start of the season (which is in 7 days for me) I thought it would be a good idea to do physical instructors course to help out at work. The course went for 2 weeks where we were shown and took circuits classes and resistance training. Doesn't sound so bad.... after 2 days of intense circuits - 12 x 15mins circuits back to back - my ankle wasn't liking me too much. Turns out that because 99% of my training is done in one plain - forward and back - I wasn't used to doing a lot of agility work and developed crepidus in my left Achilles. Best explained crepidus is an inflammation of the sheath that surrounds the muscle, along with a lot of fluid build up felt like I had a cheese grater in my ankle. Needless to say it wasn't much fun and it put me behind the 8ball massively in my running.

I have had this problem before in my right ankle so I thought no dramas, I'll just do what i did last time and it'll be gone in no time...WRONG. It took 3 months to get it to a point where the fluid is slowly going and the cheese grater has gone. I had an ultrasound to make sure there was nothing major wrong and thankfully there wasn't. I just had to continue with physio, a lot of ice packs, wrapping my ankle in glad wrap with DOMOSO ( check it out good stuff), run in the pool for 2 months and then try to manage my training accordingly, which can be very frustrating indeed.

From all of this I have learned a few things - 1. Don't stop training completely, just modify it to minimise the pain and to a point where it won't inflame it, 2. See a physio, chiro, massage ASAP and continue with 3. Google the shit out of your problem, because there is always someone out there that has had the same problem as you but might have tried something slightly different that might be worth giving a go.

Happy training