Marathon Blues

The week after a marathon is a bit like the week before: frustrating. If you’re anything like me, you find yourself spending a lot of time wishing that you could go for a nice long run but aware that it’s a really bad idea. Every article I’ve read about marathon recovery drums it into you: a long run like a marathon damages your muscles and stresses your immune system. It is important to take time off to allow these to recover, otherwise getting back to running will take even longer. But it’s not easy.

Last time I ran a marathon, I gave myself a stress fracture in one of my metatarsals. I blame running in the wrong shoes, with a poor running technique. As soon as I crossed the line, my foot was in excruciating pain and for the next two days I could barely walk. The final result was 6 weeks in an air cast and no running for nearly 8. I hated it.

This time round, I finished feeling fine. My quads and hamstrings hurt, but no more than expected. And then Monday was fine. I walked to and from work, which is just part of my usual routine. I felt sore but ok. On Tuesday, I started walking to work and my foot started hurting. The idea that I may have another stress fracture made me want to cry, the thought of missing out on weeks of running was almost too much to bear. A clear x-ray and a quick assessment from one of my colleagues did little to reassure me. And now, three days later, it still hurts, though not quite as much.

The period after a big event is always a struggle to get through, because so much energy and time has gone into planning for it – Marathon Blues is not an unfamiliar term to anyone who runs them! Adding potential injury to that makes things even more stressful. But I’ve got enough time as a runner – and a doctor – under my belt to know that, no matter how much I want to just go for a run and see how it is, that will only lead to more heartache down the line. So the plan for now is this: rest from running. Walk a little, because that’s unavoidable. Swim if your desperate. And if it still hurts by next week, see the physio. But no running until the pain is gone.

Maybe I’ll just start looking at which race to run next instead…