So, the Eugene Marathon is coming up at the end of this month. I haven't written an update about training for a little bit, so here's the text of an email I just sent to Joe Henderson, the head of the Eugene Marathon training group and my old running coach:
Hi Joe!
I've got a couple questions for you about training. I may be asking them a bit late, but they've been bugging me. Justin and I appear to have both developed persistent 'runner's knee' and we're a little worried about how to proceed.
Let me give you some background...
Both of us dealt with some discomfort during the 17-mile run a few weeks ago. During the last half, I'd had pretty bad knee pain that seemed to go away as long as I kept moving. But if I stopped to take Gu or water or something, it was really hard for me to get started again. That knee pain stuck around for a few days and turned into lingering soreness. I don’t really remember what we did for the next run after that, or how it felt.
We were in Amsterdam two weeks ago and our long run there. What was supposed to be an estimated 19 miles turned out to be 21.5 once we clocked the distance, and man did it seem to take forever. We were in both really uncomfortable toward the end— I was dealing with the same knee pain and Justin with knee and foot pain. He’s had knee issues in the past as well.
My knee has been bothering me since then. It doesn’t hurt with a sharp pain... it just aches and sort of feels thick and swollen. It especially hurts if I have to keep my leg bent in one position for some time, like if I’m sitting on a plane (boy, that was fun) or at a desk. I was careful not to over-stress it by running again after the 21.5 but did some biking and it seemed to handle that ok. At the gym, I’ve been using the stationary bike to cross-train, but anything weight-bearing (like elliptical or treadmill) seems to make it ache after 20 minutes or so. At first, I figured rest was the best medicine.
I picked up a short neoprene knee brace at REI to see how it would help me the next time we ran. Last weekend, we decided to axe running 10 miles and opt for 6 instead. Justin didn’t make it very far before he had to turn back. I went the whole course and the knee brace seemed to help a bit, although my knee started to ache and when it did I would walk fast, with a long stride, for a while. It wasn’t great, but I made it.
Needless to say, we decided not to run 21 miles this weekend. We figure that we ran the longest training distance and at this point we just want to make sure we let our injuries rest and just do our best in the marathon. We’re going for a long bike ride today to see how that feels. The next two weekends, I plan on trying to run appropriate “short” distances again, and perhaps try running outside again during the week as a precursor.
I’m also going to try some weight-lifting exercises I researched online that are used to help stabilizing muscles around the knee in cases of runner’s knee (straight-leg lifts).
I know you’re not a doctor, Joe, but I did want to ask your experienced advice about whether or not you think our training plan is OK. We’re both doing really well, aside from knee pain while running, and I can’t say I’m really at all surprised we’re having this problem. Marathon training is tough!
I’m still really psyched for the marathon and I can’t wait to see you again.
Have a Happy Easter!
Cheers,
Kat
Joe says about what I expected he would :) ...
Kat:
I'm sorry that you're hurting. Having both of you fighting knee pain at the same time isn't fair.
As you suspect, I don't have a miracle cure for this problem. But I can tell you that your training is in the bank. It wasn't planned that way, but you covered your 21 miles two weeks early -- and now have an extra two to get well. You don't need much running in the homestretch, and certainly not another 21.
Joe
Posted on April 08, 2007 @ 12:12 PM | 2 comments
Comments:
Ha, you, me, and Kyle all wrote him holy-shit-marathon-is-so-close emails this week, how funny.
Kyle also did not run the 21 miler today, due to foot pain.
I predict that Joe will tell you, as he told Kyle and as he has written in his books, that it's all good that you didn't run this week b/c he ran a marathon with one 20 mile training run 6 weeks prior and he was fine.
I hope your knees and feetes feel better soon. I ran the 21 mile today and my body hurts real gud. I also stopped letting the other faster group members (notice the use of the word group, not team) intimidate me and I just had fun.
We need us some llama tatoos / stencils / hats, something to tie the five of us together through this craziness!
By 
Rachel, at
10:28 PM, April 08, 2007
tattooooooooos.
Take care of your knees. Family experiences tells me knee surgery is not that much fun. :-)
By LazyLightning, at
7:05 AM, April 09, 2007
