I met with my Trainer yesterday morning and we spent most of the time chatting and I gave him an update on how things have gone and how I’m feeling. We are still working on diagnosing how my IT Band gets aggravated so quickly and how the fluid sack by my knee then flairs up and gets inflamed within minutes. I can feel the aggravation and know when it’s happening, yet I can’t figure out what in the world I did that caused it. It sounds like it should be a simple solve, but it’s really not. We decided I’m going to go and see a chiropractor when I’m back from my vacation. I believe I have an alignment issue. My knees don’t track correctly, at least in my non-medical opinion, there’s an alignment issue. I’m not sure if it’s causing all of my issues, but at least it’s a place to start.
My Coach asked me how my Tempo run went last week and when I explained how unbelievably hard and uncomfortable it was, he said that I was probably swearing and cursing him out. When I told him that I wasn’t actually cursing him out, but instead I saved my swear words for my husband for when he told me I could run faster, that made him laugh. And he’s not necessarily a laugh-when-he’s-on-the-clock-kind-of-guy. I actually managed to make him laugh – okay it was more of a smile or a chuckle compared to a laugh – twice. The second time was when he asked me how it was doing a workout on the treadmill. I told him that it wasn’t horrible but I do have one concern (for the record, running on a treadmill is horrible, this workout is a cross between walking and running, which makes it a bit tolerable). My concern is that I have a problem running on the treadmill and that’s because I can’t run in a straight line. He said he never heard of that before. I said, yep, it’s only a matter of time before I bump into the side of the treadmill and trip or fall off and totally embarrass myself in front of the whole gym. He said they’ve only had 2 people fall of the back of a treadmill. I said, I may not actually fall off the back, but I will definitely run into the side of the machine. Hopefully I recover and don’t actually take a tumble off of the back because I don’t want to become # 3 in the history of the Y. Not an honor I need.
Also during our discussion we talked about the other strength training I was doing. He didn’t reprimand me for doing upper body strength training on my own. But it was kind of comical when he said, and I quote, “I was taken aback, I read your email and reread it a few more times to understand what you were doing, I don’t like surprises”. But he said he actually didn’t have a problem with what I was doing and felt confident in what I was doing based on what’s he’s seen of me so far and in my description of my routine that I know what I’m doing. So, I think that was a bit of a compliment. But it was also a definite reminder that I need to tell him what I’m doing. I’m glad Brian talked me into telling him about it now – because I wasn’t going to. I just didn’t think he’d care. But as he said, he needs to know what I’m doing and make sure I’m not overdoing anything or being counterproductive to the routines he’s got me on. I just think it’s funny because I think my Coach and I are very similar. Very routine, detailed, and used-to-being in control. So it’s a bit of a battle now with each of us trying to maintain the control we both want and need. But as Brian keeps telling me… I hired him for a reason, let him do his job.
And while I didn’t exactly know what I was getting when I hired my Coach, after yesterday I realized I’m getting something so freaking valuable, something I really need. I’m getting someone who listens and genuinely is concerned and cares about my training. And not in the way that you guys do, but he cares about the smallest details and the ups and downs. He cares about things I didn’t think he’d care about. And while at first it took me off guard, I now realize I LOVE it. He really has my best interest in mind and is going to get me to the start AND finish line as physically and mentally prepared as possible. While for some, the way to be the most prepared may be a hard-core 30 minute cardio workout. But for us, yesterday it was an honest conversation. And that’s worth a lot!
Until next time,
Gotta Run!
#TooStubbornToQuite #DoEpicShit
The view from the back-of-the-pack 
I had a similar problem but the opposite way on my left knee. Eventually I went to a running coach who put me on a treadmill and used a video camera to film me from the back and side. When we sat down to watch it back it was evident that I ran with my left shoulder down, which had the effect of making my left leg shorter, so I was bending the leg or bowing it out, putting pressure on my knee on the inside. We worked on me lifting my shoulder and cured it. Even now though, when on a long run, I feel discomfort, snap my brain into gear and lift my left shoulder. Seems there is sometimes an easy solution. Good luck with yours.
Hhhmm, a gait analysis… I never thought of that. I may need to look into doing one. Thanks for the idea!