So there has been no running, no walking, no biking, no yoga, no stretching, nothing since Saturday. I decided to rest and give my leg a chance to heal.
Monday it was time to head in to see the Dr. and take advantage of the great free Health care Canada Provides.
The shin pain was still there and my calf was hurting too and not getting better. It hurt to walk up and down stairs and nothing seemed to make the pain better, you know it's time to see your Dr. if after a week you still have the same issue.
My Dr. was convinced that this is simply a case of shin splints and the pain in my calf is my leg compensating for the pain in my shin. She recommended one week of NO RUNNING and R.I.C.E (Rest, ICE, Compression & Elevate), she also perscribed an anti-inflamatory to use for the next two days/twice a day.
She did however feel like it would be a good idea to send me for an Ultrasound to rule out a Blood clot, due to the fact that I am on Birth Control. I didn't have any of the symptoms, but you never know in these cases.
So Tuesday I went for my Ultrasound and was very confident that indeed it was NOT a blood clot.
HOWEVER today I got a call for my Dr. and she wanted to see me to go over the results... I hate that!! It's never good when they ask you to go in to go over test results.
Good News not a blood clot.
Bad News they found a Popliteal Cyst aka a Baker's Cyst. It is fairly small, only 2.5cm and from examining my leg you would not be able to tell it's there and it's NOT what's causing the pain... I guess we just lucked out finding it.
What is a Popliteal cyst you may ask, it is a cyst that forms when the joint lining produces too much fluid in the knee. The extra fluid builds up and pushes through the back part of the joint capsule which in turn forms a cyst .
The symptoms are knee pain, which funny I haven't had during running ... I mean the usual aches and pains, after a long run especially when I first started running. But nothing that would make go to the Dr. I had more knee pain when I was 25lbs heavier, so really it's nothing. These cyst can also suddenly burst which causes pain and swelling in the calf.
Treatment it all depends on how big and painful the cyst is. They can drain the cyst or in some cases remove it. Rest and elevating the leg for several days also helps.
But the key is find the reason why the cyst got there in the first place as they do tend to come back, most common reasons are osteoarthritis, injury to the knee (cartilage tears) or other knee problems.
So where do I go from here ... well next week I go for a Knee ultrasound and x-ray to see if we can find the cause of the cyst.
The Dr. wants me to rest for another week, this means no running. At the end of next week I can run on the treadmill IF my shin and calf feel better. Once we get the results back then we will decide the game plan.
I guess this probably means I wont be running the Harry's Spring Run Off on April 3rd and not sure what will happen with my 10k race on May 2nd.
I still have 3 wks left on my running program and with having to ease back into running I'm not sure how long it will take me to be up to 'speed' again.
I'm not happy about this little set back, but I'm taking it one day at a time and it's all part of the experience.
How did you deal with injury and not being able to run and how did you ease back into running?
9 comments:
Oh dear! That's so frustrating! I hope you can heal up and be back at it soon :)
Sorry hun! I hope you feel better soon and recover from that pain you're feeling!
I don't deal with it well but do listen if I am told not to - pretty much. Good luck and take care of yourself.
I'm sorry to hear that you'll be missing your races but hopefully by listening to your body now you'll be able to enjoy many more years of activity.
Last summer I hurt myself just three weeks before my half marathon. I was really frustrated but I could barely walk so I knew running the race was out of the question. Instead I took to the pool and ran in the pool everyday. It provided great relief to the pain I was feeling and allowed my body to release some of the tension that was building up in my sore muscles. I also went for a couple of massages. After about a month my body was back to normal. I still had to be careful and continue to do strengthening muscles but as you know I just ran a half marathon injury-free so it seems the resting worked!
Last year before my half I think that I had an over use injury. I self diagnosed myself with IT band issues. Took about 6 weeks off from running before the half on May 3rd (or that's what it felt like). I then had surgery June 3rd last year. I was out of running for 6 weeks. Dr's orders. Then I just eased back into it. I'm still not "up to speed" but my endurance is getting back there. It takes time and patience! But, you can do it. My advice is if you're on some sort of restriction, FOLLOW it! You don't want to re injure yourself or make it worse!
Oh, and 6 weeks of no running is better than a lifetime without it cause you've reinjured yourself or something. That's what I had to keep telling myself!
It can be so frustrating to rest but like Kelly said it's better to rest now than to be laid up for the rest of your life! can you do some light lifting or something?
thanks for all the well wishes and encouragement!
Kelly I totally agree!! I'm so happy with taking up running and what it has done to my body, so I take 6 wks over a lifetime of not being able to run.
I haven't worked out at all, since Saturday... today the pain in my shin & calf seems a bit better so I think tomorrow I will attempt to either bike or perhaps some yoga and weights.
Oh my gosh...It has been a rough road for me as far as injuries go...Back in November, after my last marathon, I had tendonitis in my foot and could not run for 9 weeks. I was able to do some biking and weights..Not too long after recovering from that, I got a hip flexor strain after a strenuous ride in a spinning class. My running hads been sporadic, at best, the past 6-7 weeks since. Unfortunately, with the hip flexor issue, i haven't been able to much of anything cardio..no spinning, swimming, very little weight lifting or walking, and hardly any running. I'm finally on the road to recovery, but I'm having to go to PT twice a week...it's a very slow process. I have had some great people who have helped me maintain perspective and I hope that the strengthening I am doing will help me avoid injury in the long run. Saddest part is all the races I have missed out on and being able to run with my friends...
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