Marathon Training Weekly #4: Be Patient

Getting injured isn’t always bad. It can make you a better runner.

Last week, I fell behind my training schedule. No big deal though.
This week, I injured my right calf muscle and can’t run at all. Um… not cool.

I have no idea how or what caused this injury. I was running at a comfortable pace and by the start of mile four, my calf muscle started to feel sore. I didn’t think too much of it because there had been plenty of times I’ve ran through similar discomforts and usually they dissipate on their own. Half or so mile later, I stopped my workout to prevent further injury.

Even walking was difficult. What the hell was going on? Is this what they call aging? Was I #Lebroning because I was dehydrated? Can’t be. I drank plenty of water in advance, and the weather was nice. Context: Lebron James, the King of Basketball, had to be carried off the court due to severe leg cramps from dehydration.

This was definitely a new type of injury for me. The first three miles of that run went fine. I warmed up like I usually do. The more I traced back, the more futile it felt. I said screw it, I played some Pokemon Go, stretched, and drove back home.

When I got back, I couldn’t help but google my symptoms. And surprise surprise, I was inundated with a bunch of possibilities. All these images of ruptured calf muscles freaked me out. From partially torn to completely bifurcated muscle fibers, these graphics (even the hand-drawn ones without blood on them) just made me feel sick. That’s when it hit me. What’s the point of doing all this research? Does knowing what it’s called help me in anyway? I can’t run but I wasn’t carried off in a stretcher either. In other words, it‘s not a big deal.

I think it’s pretty common for runners to self-diagnose or head over to the discussion board of their choice and ask for opinions. But the thing is, only you know the context; the context being your body. And things get lost in translation when you write down what your body is experiencing into words.

In general, if nothing popped or broke in your body, chances are it’s just a minor strain. When I press around the injured calf area, it feels like a bruise. I’ve rested two days since my injury and although I am still not fully recovered, it feels better than before. And because of that improvement, I’m just going to trust in the amazing ability of the body to self-heal.

Doing research on ‘symptoms’ can be a huge time sink, and for me, closing all those browser tabs related to ‘calf symptoms’ was super liberating. Sometimes, all it takes is patience for time to pass and the willingness to delegate your body to do its work.