Category: Healthy Running

Diary of an Injured Chili, Chapter One: AFOG
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Chili after the Shotgun Trail Race, feeling studly

Running has been my life for the past 7 years. I rediscovered it on a beach in Jamaica, and when that happened, I rediscovered myself.

Then my husband roped me into Salsa lessons. At the first sign of foot distress, I blamed the dancing. For a couple of months I suspected it was the salsa shoes and opted for “dance sneakers” to help ease the force placed on the ball of my foot. But before I could even try these beauties out, the damage had already been done. Sure, I enjoyed the Salsa, but it wasn’t worth the cost of my passion.

We all have an injury story. I’ve had my fair share, but never to the extent of what I have now: a diagnosed partial tear of the Flexor Hallucis Longus, a new part of my anatomical vocabulary, and literally one of those muscles you never even knew you had.

Guess what? I’m special. Tearing the FHL is such a rare condition that nobody really knows how to treat it. Doctors are forced to look up case studies and, at best, provide a prescription for the most conservative treatment out there: Boot and Scooter, or what I now coin as “BS” for short.

My good pal Joe labels this sort of thing A.F.O.G.: Another Fucking Opportunity for Growth.

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Step by Step: The Runner’s Guide to Postpartum Recovery
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We runners are an impatient bunch. After a year or so of downshifting our running due to pregnancy and childbirth, we’re raring to find that running identity again. But physical changes mean physical challenges. Runners who’ve ever been pregnant often joke about peeing our pants – just a little! – on the run. Is it sweat on those gray shorts, or is it pee? Tee hee. And we laugh at the outdated medical advice that women shouldn’t run because their uterus might fall out, but pelvic organ prolapse is a real phenomenon (read Poppy’s guide to pelvic floor 101!)

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Coping with Injury…Again
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Welp, the dreaded plantar fasciitis has come back to bite me in the heel. It’s the other heel this time, for some reason. I’ve fought this monster before and emerged victorious, but it took a long time. This time around, I’ve started fighting it more quickly and more seriously, rather than trying to run through the pain before giving up and starting treatment weeks or months later. Hopefully this will let me get back to running as quickly as possible. In the meantime, since this is not my first rodeo (to switch fighting-animals-metaphors midstream there), I’ve got some coping techniques at my disposal. Not gonna lie, I am seriously unhappy and dealing with injured-runner-rage over the return of this injury. But the advantage of having to fight again is that I know what to do. Read more >>

An Ounce of Prevention: Essential Exercises for Strength and Flexibility
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This one weird exercise could cure all your running ills! 

As a physical therapist, I’m going to let you in on a little secret. There are a few exercises that every runner could do that could very well keep you from ever having to see me. Not that I don’t want to see you, I’m sure you are awesome. But, needless to say, there are some areas we all neglect in our strength training routine. These weaknesses may not manifest themselves on shorter runs, but more often than not, longer mileage and more time on our feet will exacerbate all of our little flaws! I’ve compiled a list of exercises (strengthening and stretching) that I feel can benefit most runners in some way!

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Rewriting My Running Story
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I started running because it felt good and offered relief from a stressful home environment. I mean, it wasn’t that bad, but in my family, something was always wrong. And after a run, it always seemed like everything was eventually going to be okay.

Over time, it got addictive. If I couldn’t control my home life, running was one thing I could control. Food had entered the equation, too, so there were two things. I started competing in high school track and cross country in 11th grade. Competition was fun, especially as I slowly improved on my meager 84-second 400 meter PR. But as the desire to control continued to escalate, my happiness decreased. I just couldn’t see it yet.

Underneath the carefully calculated miles and calories logged lay the belief that I wasn’t ever good enough. Read more >>

Bleeding While Running: What Are My Options for Period Products?
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Salty Running is here for you for all of your most intimate questions on running, especially if it pertains to bodily fluids (or solids — some of our most popular posts!).

Today I’m talking about blood. We Saltines have a collective 5 million runs on the rag, so here are some of the most common period products we’ve tried and how they worked for running. Read more >>

You Got A Running Stride Analysis. Now What?
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So you went to the physio and had your running stride analyzed. Maybe they filmed you on a treadmill? Or they hooked you up to a few sensors and watched you run down a track? Now that you have been videotaped, photographed, and are probably super self-conscious about your running form, it is time we tell you what to do about it all!

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I Quit Running. Here’s What Happened Next!
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In January, I stumbled across the finish line of the Houston half marathon exhausted, disappointed, and completely burned out on running. After I caught my breath and realized I wasn’t going to puke on the volunteers, my first thought was “now I never have to train for anything again!”

It’s been over 2 months since the race ended, and although I’ve run a little, I’m not ready to train again. Taking a break like this was scary for me — I’ve been training pretty much non-stop for some type of race for almost 9 years — but it’s been eye-opening too.

First, let me share all the things that did NOT happen when I took a break. Read more >>

A Visit to the Physiatrist
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Hi, I’m Thyme, and I get injured a lot. When my future in-laws recommended that I see a physiatrist, my first reaction was “physia-what-now?” I had never heard of this medical specialty, and judging from reactions when I’ve mentioned it to others, I’m not alone. Heck, spellcheck doesn’t even recognize the word! My online research revealed that a physiatrist (pronounced fiz-EYE-a-trist) is an M.D. who specializes in “physical medicine and rehabilitation.”

Physiatrists take a holistic approach, evaluating the body as a system, looking at functional movement, and devising treatment plans that incorporate pain management, physical therapy, occupational therapy, and/or medications as appropriate. Unlike most orthopedists, physiatrists tend to focus on non-surgical solutions. They often collaborate with other practitioners, like physical therapists, to implement rehabilitation plans for patients.

This all sounds great, but I still wondered: I’ve had my fair share of running injuries. Why haven’t I heard of these doctors before?

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When Change Is Needed: An Update from Turmeric
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Being a new mom, having a full-time job, and training is not all butterflies and giggles. Let’s be honest, being a mom is both taxing and wonderful at the same time. I returned to work as an ICU nurse just 12 weeks after William was born last June and was just rolling with the punches. As I wrote in my last post, I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis 6 months after William’s birth. I always expected to be tired and that being a mom would be tough sometimes, but the disease was pushing me to a whole new level of exhaustion. Read more >>

Running Gave Me Acne. Here’s What Helped.
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volcano

Originally posted by Olive on April 5th, 2017 – one year ago today!

Running gave me a strong heart and lungs, but crappy skin.

To be fair, I can’t blame running completely for my newfound skin issues. I was lucky to have good skin in high school, so I suppose some of it might be karma. I’m sure my mid-thirties hormones shoulder some of the responsibility too.

Either way, my once-smooth face is suddenly covered with lumps, bumps, and whiteheads. I’ve tried my fair share of, and spent a small fortune on, acne-fighting products. I’m happy to share my wealth of knowledge with all of you here at Salty Nation, to hopefully spare you a little aggravation with running zits.

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Why You Shouldn’t Try To Lose Weight During Peak Training or Taper
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Originally published by Mint on April 2, 2013 (five years ago today).

You know that saying that sometimes bad runs happen to good people? I have another one: sometimes smart runners do really dumb things (which in turn causes bad runs to happen to good people). Of course that smart dumb runner is me.

This week, I broke one of the cardinal sins of training:

I cut too many calories during my peak training week all in the name of weight loss and reaching my ideal race weight.

I paid for it dearly too.

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The Saltiest Safety Tips for Springtime Running
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Originally posted by Caraway in March 2017

safety tips for female runnersIt’s that time of year again! After a long winter of slogging out miles on the treadmill, the ladies are again venturing outdoors. It won’t be long until we’re flooded with articles reminding us of the many ways these ladies are asking to be attacked by creeps every time they leave the house. You know the ones telling women they should never run without varying their routes, or bringing mace, a phone, that plastic claw-thing that turns them into Cat Woman, their barbed … uh … inserts, and their Rottweilers?

But the research suggests there are more sure-fire ways for women to run safely and here they are.
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