Monday, March 16, 2015

400 Meter Repeats & Bursitis

After the Phoenix Marathon, I took a week off from running.  Not by choice.  I usually like to get out and run a few "active recovery" miles in the days after the race, but I just really couldn't work it into my schedule.  So my first run after the marathon was the following Saturday, when I did seven miles ... and in full disclosure ... I probably ran them a little too fast.  That's when I first started noticing a dull tightness, bordering on pain, on the outside of my left hip, directly at the top of the femur.

The pain persisted for the week, but I managed to get my light recovery workouts in.  This past Saturday, I had a 13 miler scheduled, with three miles at a 6:40 pace, which I completed.  But after the run, my hip ached all day.  I was starting to get worried and began over-analyzing it.  On Sunday, I got up and went through my typical core workout, and then was going to go for a light four mile recovery run.  But I only got about a mile into the run when I had to return home because of pain.

I started performing the typical self-diagnosis internet research, and after speaking to a couple of experienced and trusted runners, I determined that is was 99% most likely hip bursitis - inflammation of the trochanteric bursea.  Basically, a common overuse injury that many runners experience.

The problem is ... ain't nobody got time for this!  I have a race that I'm trying to PR in, in about six weeks,  So I've been icing and taking anti-inflammatory med's like a madman ... and it's feeling A LOT better.

So, what did I do on this perfect 82 degree Spring afternoon in KC?  Went out and ran way too fast of course! Actually, I had a track workout scheduled for Wednesday morning, but there's supposed to be a cold front moving through and I couldn't resist running in the warm sunshine.  Here are the splits from the workout ...

2.5 mile warm up
10 - 400 Meter repeats with 400 Meter rest after each
400M - 1:24 
400M - 1:25 
400M - 1:22 
400M - 1:22
400M - 1:19
400M - 1:20
400M - 1:20
400M - 1:20
400M - 1:19
400M - 1:23
1.5 mile cool down
9 miles total - avg about 5:20/mile pace during repeats

It was a pretty good workout that I didn't have to push too hard to complete.  I had 12 repeats scheduled, but I cut out the last two because my hip was really tight, but not overly sore.  After I got home, I immediately iced, and I'll ice again before I go to bed.

I'll try to play this by ear.  I think as long as I stretch, ice, load up on protein, and get plenty of rest, I can run through this - but I'll be smart about it.  I want to have a really good running year, and if I don't take care of this issue, it will linger through the summer.  I'll keep you updated!
... Be Great Today!

10 comments:

  1. You're spot on there. If you don't look after it now it'll come back to bite you on the arse again and again and again. I hope it's just a quick fix for you.

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    1. Yeah, I think I can manage it Char, I just want to make sure I stay on top of it.

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  2. Take care of that hip bursitis Jim. I had something similar and basically it was IT-band of the hip. My IT-band was rubbing against my bursa and caused a lot of pain. Occasionally after long runs I still get stabbing pain in there, but it usually resolves itself in a few hours. If it is bad enough, you may find some relief in taking NSAIDs. I eventually went to PT for it and was proscribed Celebrex, but I was out of commission for about 4 - 6 weeks.

    Your best weapon against this will be your foam roller. If you don't have one, I suggest getting one - pronto. Also, check to see what sort of terrain you are running on. I notice I get it if I am doing a lot of road running where the road is cambered. That results in one leg being slightly off than the other.

    So you are eyeballing the Colfax marathon too? I was looking at that as well.

    Definitely baby this injury before it turns into something debilitating...

    Eddie

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    1. Yeah, the foam roller is my best friend, especially for my quads - so like you suggested, I'll be putting it to good use. The plan right now is to run Colfax if the hip stays healthy. I won't run it fast, it will basically just be to check a State off. We have some friends in the area that we plan on visiting and it fit into my schedule. But we'll see.

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  3. So glad your hip is feeling better!

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  4. Great 400's! I have those up tomorrow. Been a while since I've run those! Glad to hear your bursitis is getting better. I had that in my knee after LRM one year but fortunately it was a quick recovery!

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    1. Thanks Tia (nowhere near your paces, ha), at this point I'm hoping the hip thing will be short-lived.

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  5. I hope it gets better really quickly. I am struggling with a sore upper left leg and it is so frustrating. Take care Jim!

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  6. Good luck, hope it heals up quickly. There is nothing more frustrating than the body not cooperating with plans!

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