Stomach

Quick update on my stomach. For the last few years I have had stomach cramps and bloating and tried all sorts of medication and an endoscopy. There's a lot of inflammation down there. TOTALLY independently of any medical advice, over the last year I had started to wonder about the effects of hydration on the stomach's irritation and inflammation. That has come and gone as an idea, but I am now nearing a point of certainty that the impact is significant.

I am now trying to get into the habit of drinking a large glass of water before meals. It's strange and unnatural because it is totally unlinked in my mind to my need to drink, so I have to consciously remind myself to do this. In an "emergency", like the other night when my Mum and had made a delicious meal for us and I couldn't ingest a single mouthful, in time and by drinking almost a litre of water, I managed to "make space" for a small helping, even though it wasn't exactly a joy, it became possible, and therefore encouraging.

Rest day 4, time is ticking and the rest seems to be working: 0.0.

Pain and discomfort = 0
I don't think I have felt anything from the knee for 24 hours. Maybe there is hope yet!

Rest day 3

Woke up with stiffness in the knee. Possibly funny sleeping angle. Not great way to start the day. 1.5.

Rest day 2

Virtually unaware of knee. A couple of stretches. 0.5

another week of rest, it's starting to hurt!

Having dropped in to a health centre in Bath yesterday for some further advice on the knee, the advice is a full week off with Ibuprofen - to be taken orally (leaving the ibuprofen gel for the time being). I can swim, however. HOWEVER, I really don't enjoy swimming, especially when I think the whole marathon project may be failing anyway.

From the emotion you can sense already in this post, you can probably see that I am battling with frustration and regret, especially as this impact injury could have so easily been avoided. But the discipline of accepting the situation and forming and adapting a recovery plan is actually very valuable, and I will not only see the negatives. During this rest period, and into the following resumption of training (which, if my knee does recover, will probably have to "reverse taper" given the date of my marathon) it would be useful to score and record the stiffness/ache/pain/discomfort.

Yesterday = 0.5
2hr walk.

OFF

Well, the knee wasn't sorted, so I decided to go for it and stop! I am at the end of day 2 of no running, and the memories of the first six months of 2012 are there, although I don't feel haunted by them. I am really trying to see this as an opportunity to think about my training, the blog, build in other forms of exercise like core training...

I am just listening to a helpful interview on approach to injuries with Tim Cruse-Drew. He is asking relevant questions. Check it out here.

recovery run: my slowest shortest and best ever....

after yesterdays long run, and the decision to go the full distance, my knee has been aching more strongly again. after umming and erring for  while, i decided that a recovery run was probably a good idea still. Wow, it was so short and slow... and amazing! The next day the knee was feeling improved. For me this stimulates still further reflection about the train gently to train and race hard. I am certain I have never come close to running in a sustained way this gently before, and yet I kow that it was the best possible session for me at that time.
It took me an injury to really do justice to this method, which in some ways is a pity, but it is a light injury that is manageabl and I am learning a lot through it.  am grateful for these never ending learning opportunities :)