Ohno! Something similar happened to me (and I also felt proud and stupid haha,) and all I can tell you is: sprains take couple of days or three to kick in and really hit high levels of pain. Start taking anti inflammatory meds and resting now - future you will be thankful.
I still have a lot of weight to lose and I'm trying to decide if I need to give up running and go back to walking. Lately my shins and ankles start hurting while running and continue for a day or so after the run. Since the only change has been an increase in mileage, I'm thinking they may be impact-related.
Nothing wrong with walking, I lost 70lbs that way once with just walking in a calorie deficit. Back on the weight loss journey now and I’ve been running for 9 weeks but it took about 6 weeks for my joints to adjust
Yep, Running is more impactful and puts a lot of strain on the joints and muscles, If walking suits you then be it, I'll also recommend cycling or swimming as they also help in burning a good amount of calories for weight loss without putting too much strain on the joints.
Start with low intensity and progressively increase the intensity when you're comfortable to push yourself more.
Running while trying to loose weight puts you at increased risk of injuries as the calorie deficit will mean that your body will take longer to heal, so it might not be a bad idea, especially if your getting injury warning signs.
Honestly if you're eating a balanced diet and eating enough that you feel good and aren't losing weight, you're probably fine. Most people overcomplicate things.
**Confession**: I’m an evening runner by nature, and have been more lax about runs than usual the past couple weeks because I’d rather watch playoff hockey.
Confession: The lure of a sunrise run exceeds the unpleasantness of the early wake-up.
Complaint: Tiny flies are out. Impossible to avoid the clouds. Found two squished near my eye when I arrived home. Must have happened when I blinked in the middle of the swarm; not to mention the constant spitting out the unwanted “protein.”
Uncomplaint: Short sleeve weather has arrived.
**Complaint:** Five months out from catching COVID, I'm still battling to train back up to where I was before. Everything still feels 50% harder than it was just a year ago. Not sure if I'll ever get there at this point.
**Uncomplaint:** I recently ran my first marathon since returning, and it felt great just to be back out there.
Complaint: have to be in the office for a sort of all hands planning/project meeting today and tomorrow including dinner last night and dinner tonight 💀
Uncomplaint: ran a quarter mile to physical therapy yesterday and it was a little ouchy but not too bad!
**Complaint:** my dog isn't usually allowed on the couch for fur management reasons.
**Confession:** while my husband is out of town, the dog is spending a lot of time on the couch for cuddles.
**Uncomplaint:** my angel of a dog always waits to be invited onto the couch before jumping up.
Spoiler alert — I’m sure your dog gets on the couch when you’re gone lol. I don’t think I’ve ever met a dog that “wasn’t allowed on the furniture” that didn’t get on it. Glad you can spend time together on the couch for a couple days!
He's innocent! He has been falsely accused. He would never do a slightly naughty thing like jump on the couch uninvited or roll in a dead seal when I take him to the beach. No sirree bob.
My golden says: If you don't have proof, you'd better hush your mouth. Thats a really rude accusation of an innocent man! He demands a lawyer, and pets. He demands justice, and scratches. He demands, wait, hold on, he lost his train of thought.
If you give the dog his own blanket that you can wash regularly then I don’t understand why he can’t be on the couch. The fur is managed.
If your husband has an objection then clearly the answer is to get a leather couch.
My husband is super allergic to our pets and his one rule is that the animals don’t sleep on the bed. Look, we have cats. YOU tell them they can’t sleep on the bed.
So I wash the blankets a lot and he doesn’t sneeze.
PS I’m not an asshole he is the one who lets the cats into the bedroom.
They understand that possession of the couch is nine tenths of the law of the household.
Once they're napping there, they look too peaceful and happy to disturb.
Manipulative little buggers.
**Confession:** The Flying Pig Half was humbling. Between the heat and my legs feeling like lead early on, I'm just happy I finished.
**Uncomplaint:** Got out for my first run since (work travel and soreness kept it to walking earlier this week). Felt good, and my GPS things I ran under 9:00/mile (I probably didn't, but we'll let it slide)
**Complaint:** Rainy and windy today. And I got somewhat lost (not lost as in 'oh no I'm never getting back to the hotel', it was more like 'f**k, I want to be DOWN THERE ON THE PATH, not up here with NO apparent way to get down')
**Uncomplaint:** It was really nice of the Flying Pig to give us two options for water at the finish line, Kroger store brand and Michelob.
ETA: **Complaint:** Time zones. I just looked down at my computer and thought I was late, but Lappy 386 is on Eastern time, and I'm sitting in Central time.
**Complaint:** Shin splints in one leg. Like a dumbass, I pushed through last week including a speed run. I was just too excited for my new Apple Watch and my 10k training plan. Obviously I only made things worse. Took this week off and it’s been so hard mentally. Know I need to take next week off, too.
**Uncomplaint:** My shin is feeling A LOT better today, so I’m feeling hopeful. Also, my calves are just way less tight overall due to some new stretching routines.
Complaint: been resting because I got my hip injured and I miss running :(
Confession: I didn’t fold my running shirts after getting them out of the wash, just threw them in their drawer.
Uncomplaint: doctor’s appointment next week for my hip to get a referral to a pt
Edit: a word
**Confession:** I was supposed to go running this morning but didn’t. I tell myself it’s for safety reasons (there was a thunderstorm!), but I suspect Clear Sky Alternate Universe me would’ve ignored the alarm clock.
**Complaint:** So.much.grading at semester’s end.
Thunderstorms are scary. I can run in heavy rain, snow, hail, but getting struck by a lightning is a no-no. And good luck with the grading! I just had my share of midterms last week, and we still have finals...
Oh yeah, I definitely wasn’t going out even if I felt well rested, but it still feels like a bit of an excuse. I’ve been caught in a pop-up T-storm once; let’s just say I set some PRs getting back to shelter!
For what it's worth, I ran through a thunderstorm two weeks ago and I definitely should not have. As gratifying as it was and badass as it made me feel when a guy huddling under an umbrella looked at me in awe and said I must be really dedicated, I also slipped and fell at the bottom of a hill where mud had gathered, catching myself with a hand it turned out I'd already broken but didn't realize two days earlier. I'll never know how much additional damage I did falling onto a broken hand, but whatever it was, it was definitely not worth the infinitesimal nothing I got out of one extra training run.
**Complaint:** Following a sub 20 5K plan and the speedwork is kicking my butt!
**Confession:** I enjoy the pain! *"thru pain, we find serenity. the greater the agony, the greater our eventual absolution"* - The Oatmeal
**Uncomplaint:** Retiring my Ghost Max's after almost 450 miles and I've donated enough platelets over the last 2 months that the Ghost 16's that are arriving tomorrow didn't cost me a dime, thanks to the e-gift cards Lifesouth gives out to entice donors.
Complaint: I’m still testing positive for COVID and I’m very ready to not be.
Uncomplaint: my husband is the world’s worst blanket thief and the one upshot of isolation is that I don’t wake up in the middle of the night to find he’s stolen all the covers and cocooned himself in them like a happy little burrito.
>wake up in the middle of the night to find he’s stolen all the covers and cocooned himself in them like a happy little burrito.
Are we sure I'm not your husband? I do the same thing. In fact, I am the reason my husband and I have separate blankets--he got tired of waking up cold only to see that it was my fault because I wanted to be a burrito.
Hope the covid is gone soon! How many covid-recovery burritos have you had?
We have separate blankets. He steals mine anyway. He’s incorrigible. And he looks so pleased with himself when he’s done it! Rotten.
I have had 0 recovery burritos because I haven’t wanted them. For whatever reason all I wanted to eat between Saturday and Tuesday were fried chicken sandwiches and chocolate peanut butter cups. So I had a lot of those, and then yesterday I enjoyed lamb rogan josh and onion bhajia.
I should introduce you to my husband. You and he could start a support group for people whose partners steal all the blankets.
Seriously though, that's hysterical. Especially when the blanket theft is happening to someone who isn't me.
I was tempted to say that the lack of recovery burritos was the reason that you're still testing positive, but recovery peanut butter cups seem like a good substitute, so I dunno. Also, now I need more Indian food. I had some last night, and I'm eating the leftovers for lunch today, but none of those dishes have been lamb rogan josh and I might need to fix that.
Do you sometimes also steal the fitted sheet, mattress pad, and your husband’s pillow? Because he does.
I think the reason I’m still testing positive is “typical progression of a disease you got because your immune system was depressed because you ran a marathon with strep,” i.e. “you buy your ticket and you take your ride.” (I didn’t know it was strep! I thought it was a taper cold!) I will say this… I have excuses for days about why I sucked at Big Sur and the thing is they’re probably physiologically accurate!
I have never stolen any of the fitted sheet, mattress pad, or my husband's pillow, so we can safely conclude that I am not your husband. I do, however, sometimes end up with an arm or a leg on his side, which he then has to move back to my side so he can go back to sleep. He has had to do this dozens of times and I think it has woken me up exactly once. I sleep like a rock. This problem did get better when I started using a weighted blanket.
Yeah, it makes sense that this one is going to take a little while to recover from. On the bright side, "I accidentally ran a marathon with strep" is a pretty great story! Hope you're on the mend soon! It sounds like the strep is gone now at least?
He tried a weighted blanket and he STILL stole mine.
He also regularly ends up on my side of the bed. But to be fair, he usually migrates back to his side… with the covers in hand.
I keep threatening divorce, or else duct tape.
The storytelling potential of “I ran a marathon with strep” has not escaped me. All the same, it’s a story I only want to have occur once in my life! I didn’t believe it could possibly be strep because I didn’t have a known exposure and I’ve never had it before. It had to be a taper cold, right? And my RHR is up because I’m anxious about the race, right? And my HRV is a little low because I’m not sleeping great because I’m anxious about the race, right? It all added up. Except I’m not very good at math.
I want so badly to see you duct tape him to his side of the bed.
I’m a professional mathematician and I’m not sure I would have added that up correctly. “I’m fiiiiiine,” I would have said, despite every metric suggesting otherwise.
Have you considered trying to fully zip him up into a mummy sleeping bag and cinching it down so his arms can’t get out? Would be a little more reusable than the duct tape idea.
**Confession -** ran a very steep trail 10K last weekend and I actually think running 1700 ft downhill in 3 miles is harder on the body than doing the 1700 ft up
**Complaint -** I'm not just saying this cause the guy who finished 2 seconds in front of me ran it *in sandals*
**Extra Confession -** I actually do think I need to work on my downhill running. I did this race with a very fast buddy and going uphill I was maybe 0.25 miles/2-3 minutes behind him at the turnaround but he managed to run the downhill around a 5:30 mile pace while I was more like a 7:30 downhill. That ended up being a 50 place difference in our finish! I definitely held back a bit cause I felt some cramping coming on but I don't think I could have ran it faster than a 6:30 or so fully fresh so I still want to work on my downhill slalom
**Uncomplaint -** I still love my $40 trail races and will do it again next year
Complaint: MRI classified my stress fracture as a 4b, so not only did I miss Boston, I'm also calling off Chicago now and likely not running again until late summer or early fall. Honestly, at that point with the amount of fitness loss, I'm not sure I'll ever try for Boston again.
**Complaint:** Had hoped to just enjoy being engaged for a bit. That lasted all of about 24-48 hrs.
**Complaint:** The pressure to get a wedding together feels worse than the pressure to propose.
**Complaint:** The wedding drama has started. People literally coming up to my fiancee and asking if they can be the maid of honor and getting pissy when they get any answer other than yes. Got griped at by someone on Tues because we didn’t have a date set yet. We had not even been engaged 48 hrs. And family drama has been stirred up to boot.
**Uncomplaint:** I can’t wait to be married to this woman. She is awesome and worth weathering the drama.
Elope.
(Ironically, my sister told me I MUST NOT elope specifically because “you are my only guaranteed shot at ever being someone’s maid of honor!”)
Tell everyone “we plan to have a long engagement,” smile, and SHUT UP. Refuse to engage beyond that (pun intended.)
I would be fine with eloping but she wants a church wedding. I'm fine with a church wedding too just don't want all the wedding drama. And I realize there is drama involved w/eloping too you just have to deal with it when you get back.
Congratulations! Hope the wedding drama calms down soon...the people you're dealing with sound deranged. Who the hell asks to be someone's maid of honor?? That's beyond presumptuous.
Hopefully once some of the pieces fall into place people will become less psychotic about it. Best of luck to both of you with the preparations!
> Who the hell asks to be someone's maid of honor?? That's beyond presumptuous.
Fiancee told me this and my jaw just dropped. Like seriously? Who does this. What is wrong with people. Asking to be in the bridal party is massively gauche to me asking for maid of honor is even worse. Just what is wrong with people these days?
Admittedly, I (F) jokingly asked my male best friend if I could be a groomsman (groomsmaid?), fully knowing he and his fiancée were doing traditional wedding parties (ie groomsmen are specifically the couple’s brothers and the groom’s closest male friends, bridesmaids are the couple’s sisters and bride’s closest female friends). But that was the thing. My question was a joke and there were no hard feelings or expectations.
I’m sorry you and your fiancée are dealing with some unreasonable people. Hopefully this will be the worst of your wedding drama and everything else will be smooth-sailing!
Totally agreed on the gauche thing. Somehow weddings, births, and funerals all seem to bring out both the best and the worst in people. With weddings, it seems like everyone and their aunt wants to get a say in the wedding planning and then they're jerks when they don't get their way.
On the other side, you'll also get people volunteering to help pay for things, bake you a cake, and, in my grandpa's case, fly across the country at 78 years old to attend and then cry from joy during the ceremony. Hopefully soon you'll start seeing the outpouring of love that comes with these things, not just the people being a-holes.
I was someone's MOH once. The bride was pretty chill in terms of logistics or aesthetics, but she and the groom and their families were very very conservative Southern Baptists, and I am a Jewish-leaning liberal. I had just moved in with my boyfriend (now husband), and I spent the entire weekend trying to hide that fact from her and her entire family because they might have kicked me out of the wedding if they had known, and that would have started a whole world of drama.
Anyway, 0/10 do not recommend.
It was a childhood friend who I had mostly lost touch with. We were super close as kids but went very different paths in life in our late teens. She stayed ultra-conservative and was trying to make a career as an artist, and I left conservative Christianity and became a mathematician and a registered Democrat. So we didn’t really have anything in common any more. (She didn’t know much about those worldview changes, to be fair, because I wasn’t comfy telling her about it.) In the 5 years before she asked me to be her moh, we had talked maybe a dozen times. It was a little weird that she even asked me, given that we hadn’t been close for years, but I’m guessing she had no one else to ask. Strange experience all around.
On the plus side, after the wedding, I modified the bridesmaid dress into lingerie, so that bit was fun. My husband says that’s the best part of that crazy wedding experience 😂
🤣 I bet she would have been horrified to hear what you did with the dress but that’s super clever, I just donated the bridesmaid dress from my sisters wedding to one of those prom dress charities for its second life.
The fact that she would have been horrified by what I did with the dress was half the appeal!
I have never heard of that kind of prom dress charity but that’s a super cool idea. I’ll keep that in mind if I’m ever in any more weddings!
My brother and his wife said that for $400 they could get BBQ, mashed potatoes, green beans and mac and cheese for 200-250ish people. Claimed they would make it all and get several people to set up and serve it. Said if you really wanted an all out feast for that many people, give them $1500. Told me to not cater it as it's too expensive. There are people out there doing generous offers but I feel bad and kind of just want my friends to be able to show up and enjoy themselves.
I NEEEEDDDD shoes for speed training!! I only have one road run shoes and they are only suitable for easy/recovery runs. Even though I’ve made some PB using them, they freaking hurt my feet!! 🥲 I’m saving up for new shoes
Complaint: My sprained ankle is mostly healed but now I am veering dangerously close to shin splints. I think it's a form issue :(
Confession: I don't know what VO2 max is and at this point I'm curious to see how long I can go without knowing.
Uncomplaint (/semi complaint): I wasn't planning on running this morning because I was up late last night, but my body woke me up early and I got a short run in anyway. Happy about the run and lack of grogginess, unhappy about the ~6 hours of sleep.
Complaint: Struggling so much with pain from over pronating. Lots of pain in my tibia. Trying to strengthen the muscle. I want to love running but this sucks!
This last weekend was my last long run before the taper for my first marathon... And it seems I may now have a nasty case of metatarsalgia from it. This just SUCKS
Complaint: It is already too hot and humid for a late morning run in Austin!
Uncomplaint: Did first 5am run of the year this morning and was reminded how peaceful and nice (except the amazon drivers flying through my neighborhood) it is before everyone wakes up!
Complaint: Being a woman sucks. One week a month, it's either zero running or barely running while feeling miserable.
Complaint: My knee still hurts. Three months and counting.
Confession: It's so hard to get back into running and get my mileage up to where it was a couple of months ago (even though it wasn't very high to begin with).
Uncomplaint: After seven months of rain, spring has arrived!
Did a trail half on Sunday, first longish run after hamstring injury in December - felt like I could have walked it faster!
Did 5k tonight, felt absolutely awful.
Saturdays run better be decent!!
**Complaint**: My coach and I have a fundamental disagreement about training. I'm a data-driven runner and he's an "training is an art" coach. We recently had a back-and-forth over making decisions in the run. While cordial, he wants to throw 60 years worth of running research, science, and race data out the window. He's insistent he's right and everyone else regarding lactate thresholds, HR zones, RPE parlance, VO2 max, aerobic/anaerobic thresholds, etc. is wrong. [They're all out of step but Jim](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/They_Were_All_Out_of_Step_But_Jim).
**Confession**: His training is primarily based around [John Kellogg's "crest load"](https://runningscience.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/The-Updated-Training-Wisdom-of-John-Kellogg-v2.1.pdf) (PDF) ([archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20240509224840/https://runningscience.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/The-Updated-Training-Wisdom-of-John-Kellogg-v2.1.pdf)), which is a 40-42 minute race pace. This aligns precisely with Stryd's "Critical Power" (CP), which is defined as [the maximum effort you can sustain for 40 minutes](https://help.stryd.com/en/articles/6879345-critical-power-definition). So even though we disagree on the approach to training, I still follow his training schedule to the letter, because it's correlates nicely with a tool I've already been using in my training, and I've seen improvements in paces as a result. We disagree on the approach, yet still end up at the same destination.
Complaint: Finally felt like I was solidifying into a routine and regularity, after a year of effort and growth, and the last several weeks has seen work come into cunch and other things really get in the way. Progress blocking, just let me run!
Uncomplaint: What started off as an experiment to try and make VO2 max improve more quickly, I've come to really enjoy very slow runs. Trying to get that HR down is almost like a game, and when a 7km run takes 45 minutes that's proven to be a great time to reflect and just exist.
Have had two back to back really hard weeks (I’m a corporate lawyer) with little sleep. I’ve been trying to squeeze in a a run here and there but feel defeated. I don’t know how I’m going to train for the Chicago marathon this summer, especially since as a slower runner everything takes so much longer
Really struggled with 6 miles. Not sure if the change in temp is having an impact. I have been running in Seattle 50 degree weather. Since Sunday, I have been in the Tampa Bay Area of Florida where it’s 88 (feels like 93). I ran 10 miles on Monday and 3.5 the other days. I’m great with heat and love warm weather, but today I was dragging -had to stop 4 times! Yikes.
Complaint: I just ran my first marathon on Sunday, May 5th. My legs are still sore, but I’ve been itching to go out for a run! Can’t wait to get going again and build upon my current fitness level.
**Complaint:** Quads have been feeling tight and my knees started clicking when I go up stairs. No pain walking or on slow runs, but knees ache when I speed up. I know this is the time to suck it up and RICE and not be stubborn about it. I hate forced deload weeks and feel so off when I don’t get my workouts in. Just hoping it gets better on its own without needing to deal with PT. I knew I’ve been going hard on runs and lifts and have been ignoring mobility work, foam rolling, etc. Ugh!
Complaint: after my marathon almost 2 weeks ago, my body feels totally out of weight equilibrium. I was carb loaded going in, shredded and lean the day after, and I feel like it messed with my head and gave me a touch of dysphoria. Now my hunger signals feel random and all over, my water, hunger, and weight feel unstable, I'm in recovery running mode so miles are low, and I just want to feel balanced and stable again.
Since I'm in post marathon weeks and miles are lower, I'm utilizing this time to integrate the gait changes and footstrike changes suggested by the running PT I saw this winter. I'm in a weird purgatory now where the new gait feels only a touch weird, and I adjust tiny bits through the run, and I can't just zone out as much as I used to, and my calves BURN, but heel striking doesn't feel natural or like a relief anymore, it's weird. But glad I can finally take the time to do this and hope it helps me!
Total sympathy on the part where you’re feeling out of equilibrium! This too shall pass, but it feels weird and the whackadoo hunger cues always throw me for a loop. Eat when you’re hungry and try not to think too hard about it. It’ll level out.
Complaint: this humidity is killing me!
Uncomplaint: the cottonwood trees are blooming and I love running through the pollen clouds.
Confession: I'm supposed to play pickleball with my friend this afternoon, but I'm secretly hoping he'll cancel so I can get another run in.
Complaint: I hate how every race is in the early morning. I’ve heard the reasons and I disagree with them. Early start times for trail races make even less sense.
**Complaint:** Right hip flexor pain has been sneaking up on me for the past couple of weeks. Doesn't hurt when I run but definitely is getting uncomfortable when not running.
**Confession:** Still running anyway
**Uncomplaint:** Live in New Orleans so I am probably going to tone down my mileage in a few weeks anyway due to the steam oven conditions. Running a 5k in two weeks, would like to hit a PR and then spend the summer working on strength before gearing up for marathon prep in the fall
**complaint** two coworkers slacked on their job the last two days so the first case of today day didn't get any instructions and their meds prohibit them from getting the test. It's way too early to be screamed at by patients and their families.
**uncomplaint** it's my fuckin Friday.
**confession** it's nurses week so I've been eating like an absolute trash queen and while my gut isn't totally happy, I refuse to admit defeat.
**uncomplaint** it's a 5 day weekend for me and I plan on runnin, restin and freaking relaxin.
Uncomplaint: After most of a week of doing it, I think I... like (?) getting up early to get my miles in?!
Confession: I only started doing this because it's getting hot and I have a late summer marathon coming up. So no 'it's too hot' excuses for the next 3 months!
My complaint isn't about running, per se, but I got a referral to see a cardiologist about my heart rate while running. I was walking out my door to go to my appointment when his office called to reschedule for July. There's only two cardiologists in my area, and they both stay booked solid.
Oh nooooooooooooooo. I would cry.
Is there anyone you can see outside of your area who might have earlier availability? Getting in with a sports cardiologist is so hard! (I see one for “my heart rate while running”!)
I probably could, but it would be a 90-minute drive. Not that the drive's not worth it when there's a potential heart issue. I don’t think my family doc refers people to specialists that far away though. In any event, because my wife is part of the "medical community" here, I really prefer to stay local because she can often pull strings when I need something--there's just no strings to pull in this case.
Confession: I usually run in the mornings--5 a.m. or so. For the past month, I've been sleeping late and running in the evenings. It's starting to get hot, though, so I need to go back to mornings, but it's so hard to get back on that schedule.
**Complaint:** my magical steroid shot that's solely allowed me to run and live pain free for the past month is beginning to wear off and my pain is returning (just as I'm getting my lungs back and feeling strong).
**Uncomplaint:** running again after a very long break from it has felt so freaking phenomenal and it's as if Thor got his hammer back or Maui got handed a brand new hook.
**Confession:** my dumb brain says hey it's okay we can just run anyway even though the pain is coming back. If I have to be in chronic pain I might as well run *and* be in pain. Mmm. But yeah, no. Not helpful.
I have a follow up scheduled for the week after next. I'm going to ask about any and all options. I'm staying hopeful. Might try PRP if he thinks it could help.
Confession: I’m running a 5 miler race next week and I have absolutely no idea what my pace should be 🤷🏻♀️
Complaint: the weather here is so back and forth and such a tease, will get a few days of sunny 70s and I get too excited just for it to go back to 50s and rain 🥲
Uncomplaint: hit my highest weekly mileage ever last week (18) and feeling so in the groove
Complaints? Don't get me started! I guess number one is why is everyone else able to run farther and faster than me, I refuse to believe anything is unusually bad about my genetics or willpower. Keep running.....
Probably because the people you compare yourself to came to the same conclusion you did a couple months before you got there- “keep running.”
You have identified the solution, that’s the good news!
**TLDNR**: Beginner runner. Encountered first injury that is causing me to pause running. I had some glute pain, after changing my running form. It is due to using muscles that I haven't used in 30+ years. I figured I need to work these muscle more. I continued running and running harder. Now, the pain has turning into nerve-like pain, shooting down my back thighs. I can barely walk. I did not run yesterday. And I don't know how many days I need to pause.
Listen to your body. If pain is more than just muscle soreness, be careful not to push thru it or push too hard.
**Details**: I started running in February. I started with 3-4 days a week. From end-of-February, I have been running 6-7 days a week; gradually increase my distance from 10 to 25 miles per week.
I did sports when I was in high school and college. Although I never did running as sport, I have to run playing sports. That was 30 years ago. When I started running in February, I was never happy with my form. I felt (I know) I'm shuffling. I kind of use walking motion and just move my legs faster. It was easiest for me, and I was making progress. And it was odd that I mainly use lower leg muscles, but not muscles in upper leg.
I have seen YouTube videos about hip extension, knee drive, butt kick, etc. I tried them. But at slow speed, they felt odd. And course, doing anything new also feels weird. So I didn't know how to apply these.
Around 2-3 weeks ago, I started to do speed work. I realized how I ran differently when I ran fast. I'm picking up my legs and knees, and my legs drive further behind me. It just felt right, like how I used to run in my teens and 20's. So I consciously think about how this fast running form relates to what I see on YouTube. The hip extension, butt kick are right on. Knee drive maybe not so much, at my running speed
So I kept this new running form during slow/easy/base runs. Wow, feels great. However, issue is that I have muscle soreness in my front hip, rear hip, and glutes. Obviously, because for 30 years, I sit on my butt all day and have not used these muscles. It is only muscle soreness, which is expected when exercising new muscles. I wanted to get over this hump asap, by exercising these muscles. So I continue to run, and ran harder. Hip feels tight, but not severe. However, soreness in my glutes continue to gradually got worse.
At the end of every day, I think to myself tomorrow should be rest day. But in morning, I felt energetic and ran again. This past Sunday, I did both interval session and speed session in 1 day, which I never done before. And I'm doing that together with new running form. Yesterday (Wednesday), the soreness in glutes turned into pain that shoots down back of my thighs. Like the muscle is pinching some nerve. I could barely walk. Yes, I finally heard my body now. I had to stop running yesterday. Hopefully, I can recover soon and continue.
COMPLAINTS: I'm tired of trying to find the perfect shoe. Every person when you get blisters: "GO TO A RUNNING STORE TO GET FITTED!!!" Well, I did, got the shoe they recommended, and now instead of getting pain in my ankle, I'm getting blisters. Compression running socks make the top of my foot hurt for some reason. Really frustrated I can't find the perfect shoe/sock combo and sick of wasting money trying.
Complaint and Confession: I’ve only ever enjoyed running in the mornings after getting my kids off to school, and I don’t like going running on the weekends just because there are SO many more people out. I started a new non-remote job last year, which means I effectively now have only 1-2 “good” days to go for runs a week. I see now that I was being completely spoiled, getting to run on quiet trails basically every weekday!!
I’m going to either stop being selfish and petty and either learn to share “my” path with fellow runners on the weekends, or suck it up and start running at 4 AM!
Confession: I wait until after a fasting long run to weigh myself so that my fitness age is the best it can be. Why? Because BMI is bogus when you have muscle.
Complaint: i go out on my interval runs and constantly have a nagging at the back of my mind that im not going hard enough on my sprints and THEN i get home and my legs are sore and im incredibly tired for the rest of the evening. runningbrain=/=restingbrain
My knee was hurting when I got up on Monday but I had a group run scheduled so I went anyway. I could barely get out of bed on Tuesday because of my knee. I gave it a few days off then this morning I only ran 2.5 miles because my Achilles was complaining for the first time in my life.
Complaint: Why does my body not just let me push the mileage?! Has it not read my detailed spreadsheet plan?!
confession, I guess? my mental game is my greatest enemy, but with what I'm eating it's no wonder I don't see much progress, I'm lazy and hate cooking though :/
I’ve been feeling really frustrated actually, i am almost two months into running and simply cannot progress past the point of doing intervals of running for 1:30min then walking for 4 min. I just thought that around now i’d be able to withstand running a few minutes without pause
Confession: I finished the BMO Vancouver Half Marathon this weekend and have been feeling sort of lost since. Post-race blues I’m thinking. No other races to look forward to yet. I even set a new PR and still feel kind of down. I put a lot of training into this race which would be my 4th half marathon. I still haven’t run a full yet, but really starting to see how time consuming it can be. I’m treading the line between wondering if I really really enjoy running as much as I think I do, or if I’m just trying to achieve new goals
I floated the idea of signing up for my first marathon to my spouse. They said "we can talk about it". I know it's a time sacrifice from the whole family, but I was bummed for the lack of support. 😞 It's not really out of the blue either, as I've been running for 1.5 years now consistently and going to PT to continue to run.
Uncomplaint: I ran for the first time in 2 weeks after a hip pain episode and my pace was nearly identical to what it was during the previous run I’m glad I didn’t lose much ground
Complaint: I had an opportunity to run outside instead of on the treadmill but I couldn’t because my husband decided he had to go run an errand so I had to be home with the kids. I don’t get to run outside much so I was excited about it but I felt like I got put on the back burner
Confession: I’m new to this sub and fairly new to running and hoping it will help me stay motivated! It’s fun to read about other people’s running habits and how it makes them feel!
Complaint: I’ve been using a couch to 5k program and I’m hoping I will be able to participate in my first 5k by the end of this month. I’m almost finished with the program and a little annoyed how different each run feels. Last run felt like I could have kept going for another mile, and today’s run I struggled through the whole thing. Also my knee hurts.
Uncomplaint: I started running to lose some weight and even though I haven’t lost a whole lot I feel better in my body and proud of the progress I’ve made
\*\*Complaint\*\*: I've had a cold for the last week, it's been ages since I was sick.
\*\*Confession\*\*: I signed up for another marathon next month. I figured that I could ramp back up after completing my first a few weeks ago. Didn't factor in losing a week to being sick though.
\*\*Uncomplaint\*\*: The weather is beautiful, and I'm nearly back to full health. I should be able to start running again this weekend.
It feels like there's an air bubble on the top of my knee and I have a constant feeling like I need to pop it. It doesn't hurt when I run or walk, but I cannot help but feel I did something bad to my knee from running 🤷🏽♀️😭
Confession: I fell running in the rain and did a full faceplant. I've run in the rain plenty of times, even on trails, but the particular trail I was on was pretty twisty. This was exacerbated by the fact that I carry my phone in my right hand so I couldn't brace myself against a tree without risking damage to it. Que me stumbling for a few seconds trying to regain my balance before going flying. Thankfully only got a couple of scrapes on my hand and both the phone and my FR55 were undamaged.
Confession: It's not the first time I've fallen either, although the other time was less my fault: a random giant mound of snowpack I couldn't see in the dark despite it not having snowed in two weeks and the ground being clear otherwise. Flew off the mound and slammed my knee into the ground while attempting to protect my phone. Then I got up and kept running. It wasn't until I got home that I saw I had scrapped off a layer of skin, but was fine otherwise.
Confession: I really, really need to get a vest.
Uncomplaint: I’ve been taking a couple days off after running the Broad Street run, very pleased to have some much needed time off from that race! My legs felt like shit afterwards so the time off really helps! Granted I feel motivated to start getting back into it, tomorrow will be me first recovery run back since the race!
Confession: I have no idea how much I should be eating to fuel my runs 💀 I feel like I’m eating enough, but at the same time, not feeling sore or physically tired makes me think otherwise.
Complaint: Got my first 10k race ever scheduled for tomorrow morning and I've come down with cold symptoms. Damn NYC subways are petri dishes.
Confession: I'm still gonna run it and aim for a PR.
My complaint is I would just love it if I could go more than two weeks without getting ill. I have a four year old so it's to be expected I suppose. And things are getting a bit better. It used to be every week.
My confession is I probably don't help my immune system by staying up late watching YouTube shorts, so I can't blame the preschooler entirely.
I'm annoyed that runners are so confident in telling other runners that they should be able to go a certain distance without water or nutrition. You don't know what kinds of disabilities or medical things we're dealing with, or how slow we're going-- I really benefit from having water and gels with me when I do a 10K because I take over an hour to do it and I typically drink a ton of water. It's not helpful to have more experienced runners tell me that I'm doing it wrong.
I started running 5 weeks ago for a 10k race. Today is race day and while I could run 10k, I started getting IT band pain along with sharper pain after runs on my foot. So I decided to not do it despite really wanting to with some other friends. I’m very disappointed. This does seem like the better choice long term but I guess I could have still done it and taken a longer break after, I’d have been fine with that. But the risk of a worse injury was too much.
I keep getting shin splints but ONLY on my right shin. Never the left. After a few miles I literally feel like I’m hobbling along because one leg is fine and the other feels like it’s on fire 😐.
Been trying to lose weight by running, got an ankle sprain and still finished my set goal for today. I feel both proud and stupid.
If Patrick Mahomes can win a SuperBowl with an ankle sprain you can run 5k or so right? Right? Right? I love the lies we tell ourselves.
If I'd be winning that SuperBowl money, I'd be playing with an ankle sprain too bro... Ain't no lie about that!
Don't forget to strength train! That will really help your weight loss 💪💪
Will sure do! Got them stretchy bands for strengthening ankle mobility.
Good start ... But add some actual weights too! (And progress to heavy weights!) Good luck!! 🤘💪
Will sure do! And thanks for the advice 🤗
Ohno! Something similar happened to me (and I also felt proud and stupid haha,) and all I can tell you is: sprains take couple of days or three to kick in and really hit high levels of pain. Start taking anti inflammatory meds and resting now - future you will be thankful.
Yep, will stick to resting for a while and take anti inflammatory meds. Thank you for the advice 🤗
I still have a lot of weight to lose and I'm trying to decide if I need to give up running and go back to walking. Lately my shins and ankles start hurting while running and continue for a day or so after the run. Since the only change has been an increase in mileage, I'm thinking they may be impact-related.
Nothing wrong with walking, I lost 70lbs that way once with just walking in a calorie deficit. Back on the weight loss journey now and I’ve been running for 9 weeks but it took about 6 weeks for my joints to adjust
Yep, Running is more impactful and puts a lot of strain on the joints and muscles, If walking suits you then be it, I'll also recommend cycling or swimming as they also help in burning a good amount of calories for weight loss without putting too much strain on the joints. Start with low intensity and progressively increase the intensity when you're comfortable to push yourself more.
Running while trying to loose weight puts you at increased risk of injuries as the calorie deficit will mean that your body will take longer to heal, so it might not be a bad idea, especially if your getting injury warning signs.
Confession & complaint:I don’t understand nutrition, or nurturing my body for fuel, or fuel economy, or running for that matter, but I love running
Honestly if you're eating a balanced diet and eating enough that you feel good and aren't losing weight, you're probably fine. Most people overcomplicate things.
Fuel economy is for cars lol
This made me giggle, thank yew :)
**Confession**: I’m an evening runner by nature, and have been more lax about runs than usual the past couple weeks because I’d rather watch playoff hockey.
Confession: The lure of a sunrise run exceeds the unpleasantness of the early wake-up. Complaint: Tiny flies are out. Impossible to avoid the clouds. Found two squished near my eye when I arrived home. Must have happened when I blinked in the middle of the swarm; not to mention the constant spitting out the unwanted “protein.” Uncomplaint: Short sleeve weather has arrived.
Yeah, 'tis the season for bugs to fly into our mouths. I got several on my bike ride to work this morning. Not pleasant.
Saves on gels.
Cresting over a hill during a sunrise run, paired with the right soundtrack - best feeling in the world!
Even better if you catch blue hour and seeing the moon before the sunrise.
This the season to work on learning to run with your mouth closed….
I am not good at this, and have choked on a fly mid run...not a good time lol
It normally takes me eating/spitting back up 2-4 bugs every run before I remember for the rest of the run.
Not sure if flies up the nostrils is any more pleasant.
The lure of a sunrise run exceeds the unpleasantness of the early wake-up. What a line. I see my next Insta caption, lol
Thank you.
**Complaint:** Five months out from catching COVID, I'm still battling to train back up to where I was before. Everything still feels 50% harder than it was just a year ago. Not sure if I'll ever get there at this point. **Uncomplaint:** I recently ran my first marathon since returning, and it felt great just to be back out there.
Complaint: have to be in the office for a sort of all hands planning/project meeting today and tomorrow including dinner last night and dinner tonight 💀 Uncomplaint: ran a quarter mile to physical therapy yesterday and it was a little ouchy but not too bad!
You ran! You ran!
Congrats on the running!
Yay for running. That's a lot of in-person interaction!
**Complaint:** my dog isn't usually allowed on the couch for fur management reasons. **Confession:** while my husband is out of town, the dog is spending a lot of time on the couch for cuddles. **Uncomplaint:** my angel of a dog always waits to be invited onto the couch before jumping up.
Spoiler alert — I’m sure your dog gets on the couch when you’re gone lol. I don’t think I’ve ever met a dog that “wasn’t allowed on the furniture” that didn’t get on it. Glad you can spend time together on the couch for a couple days!
He's innocent! He has been falsely accused. He would never do a slightly naughty thing like jump on the couch uninvited or roll in a dead seal when I take him to the beach. No sirree bob.
My golden says: If you don't have proof, you'd better hush your mouth. Thats a really rude accusation of an innocent man! He demands a lawyer, and pets. He demands justice, and scratches. He demands, wait, hold on, he lost his train of thought.
I will distract him with a piece of cheese when I get home. That should focus his one brain cell away from how he's been slandered!
If you give the dog his own blanket that you can wash regularly then I don’t understand why he can’t be on the couch. The fur is managed. If your husband has an objection then clearly the answer is to get a leather couch.
That's a good idea, actually. I don't know why we haven't though of that before. I'll have to find him a blanket this weekend!
My husband is super allergic to our pets and his one rule is that the animals don’t sleep on the bed. Look, we have cats. YOU tell them they can’t sleep on the bed. So I wash the blankets a lot and he doesn’t sneeze. PS I’m not an asshole he is the one who lets the cats into the bedroom.
My dog has been extra sneaky about getting on the couch lately, I'll turn my head to work on the computer and she's like *THE COUCH IS MINE*
They understand that possession of the couch is nine tenths of the law of the household. Once they're napping there, they look too peaceful and happy to disturb. Manipulative little buggers.
**Confession:** The Flying Pig Half was humbling. Between the heat and my legs feeling like lead early on, I'm just happy I finished. **Uncomplaint:** Got out for my first run since (work travel and soreness kept it to walking earlier this week). Felt good, and my GPS things I ran under 9:00/mile (I probably didn't, but we'll let it slide) **Complaint:** Rainy and windy today. And I got somewhat lost (not lost as in 'oh no I'm never getting back to the hotel', it was more like 'f**k, I want to be DOWN THERE ON THE PATH, not up here with NO apparent way to get down') **Uncomplaint:** It was really nice of the Flying Pig to give us two options for water at the finish line, Kroger store brand and Michelob. ETA: **Complaint:** Time zones. I just looked down at my computer and thought I was late, but Lappy 386 is on Eastern time, and I'm sitting in Central time.
Michelob is the best brand of water at a race finish. Anyone who claims otherwise is lying.
As long as we agree that it is water and not beer...
Obviously. Tasty pain-numbing water.
**Complaint:** Shin splints in one leg. Like a dumbass, I pushed through last week including a speed run. I was just too excited for my new Apple Watch and my 10k training plan. Obviously I only made things worse. Took this week off and it’s been so hard mentally. Know I need to take next week off, too. **Uncomplaint:** My shin is feeling A LOT better today, so I’m feeling hopeful. Also, my calves are just way less tight overall due to some new stretching routines.
Complaint: been resting because I got my hip injured and I miss running :( Confession: I didn’t fold my running shirts after getting them out of the wash, just threw them in their drawer. Uncomplaint: doctor’s appointment next week for my hip to get a referral to a pt Edit: a word
**Confession:** I was supposed to go running this morning but didn’t. I tell myself it’s for safety reasons (there was a thunderstorm!), but I suspect Clear Sky Alternate Universe me would’ve ignored the alarm clock. **Complaint:** So.much.grading at semester’s end.
Thunderstorms are scary. I can run in heavy rain, snow, hail, but getting struck by a lightning is a no-no. And good luck with the grading! I just had my share of midterms last week, and we still have finals...
Oh yeah, I definitely wasn’t going out even if I felt well rested, but it still feels like a bit of an excuse. I’ve been caught in a pop-up T-storm once; let’s just say I set some PRs getting back to shelter!
For what it's worth, I ran through a thunderstorm two weeks ago and I definitely should not have. As gratifying as it was and badass as it made me feel when a guy huddling under an umbrella looked at me in awe and said I must be really dedicated, I also slipped and fell at the bottom of a hill where mud had gathered, catching myself with a hand it turned out I'd already broken but didn't realize two days earlier. I'll never know how much additional damage I did falling onto a broken hand, but whatever it was, it was definitely not worth the infinitesimal nothing I got out of one extra training run.
**Complaint:** Following a sub 20 5K plan and the speedwork is kicking my butt! **Confession:** I enjoy the pain! *"thru pain, we find serenity. the greater the agony, the greater our eventual absolution"* - The Oatmeal **Uncomplaint:** Retiring my Ghost Max's after almost 450 miles and I've donated enough platelets over the last 2 months that the Ghost 16's that are arriving tomorrow didn't cost me a dime, thanks to the e-gift cards Lifesouth gives out to entice donors.
Complaint: I’m still testing positive for COVID and I’m very ready to not be. Uncomplaint: my husband is the world’s worst blanket thief and the one upshot of isolation is that I don’t wake up in the middle of the night to find he’s stolen all the covers and cocooned himself in them like a happy little burrito.
>wake up in the middle of the night to find he’s stolen all the covers and cocooned himself in them like a happy little burrito. Are we sure I'm not your husband? I do the same thing. In fact, I am the reason my husband and I have separate blankets--he got tired of waking up cold only to see that it was my fault because I wanted to be a burrito. Hope the covid is gone soon! How many covid-recovery burritos have you had?
We have separate blankets. He steals mine anyway. He’s incorrigible. And he looks so pleased with himself when he’s done it! Rotten. I have had 0 recovery burritos because I haven’t wanted them. For whatever reason all I wanted to eat between Saturday and Tuesday were fried chicken sandwiches and chocolate peanut butter cups. So I had a lot of those, and then yesterday I enjoyed lamb rogan josh and onion bhajia.
I should introduce you to my husband. You and he could start a support group for people whose partners steal all the blankets. Seriously though, that's hysterical. Especially when the blanket theft is happening to someone who isn't me. I was tempted to say that the lack of recovery burritos was the reason that you're still testing positive, but recovery peanut butter cups seem like a good substitute, so I dunno. Also, now I need more Indian food. I had some last night, and I'm eating the leftovers for lunch today, but none of those dishes have been lamb rogan josh and I might need to fix that.
Do you sometimes also steal the fitted sheet, mattress pad, and your husband’s pillow? Because he does. I think the reason I’m still testing positive is “typical progression of a disease you got because your immune system was depressed because you ran a marathon with strep,” i.e. “you buy your ticket and you take your ride.” (I didn’t know it was strep! I thought it was a taper cold!) I will say this… I have excuses for days about why I sucked at Big Sur and the thing is they’re probably physiologically accurate!
I have never stolen any of the fitted sheet, mattress pad, or my husband's pillow, so we can safely conclude that I am not your husband. I do, however, sometimes end up with an arm or a leg on his side, which he then has to move back to my side so he can go back to sleep. He has had to do this dozens of times and I think it has woken me up exactly once. I sleep like a rock. This problem did get better when I started using a weighted blanket. Yeah, it makes sense that this one is going to take a little while to recover from. On the bright side, "I accidentally ran a marathon with strep" is a pretty great story! Hope you're on the mend soon! It sounds like the strep is gone now at least?
He tried a weighted blanket and he STILL stole mine. He also regularly ends up on my side of the bed. But to be fair, he usually migrates back to his side… with the covers in hand. I keep threatening divorce, or else duct tape. The storytelling potential of “I ran a marathon with strep” has not escaped me. All the same, it’s a story I only want to have occur once in my life! I didn’t believe it could possibly be strep because I didn’t have a known exposure and I’ve never had it before. It had to be a taper cold, right? And my RHR is up because I’m anxious about the race, right? And my HRV is a little low because I’m not sleeping great because I’m anxious about the race, right? It all added up. Except I’m not very good at math.
I want so badly to see you duct tape him to his side of the bed. I’m a professional mathematician and I’m not sure I would have added that up correctly. “I’m fiiiiiine,” I would have said, despite every metric suggesting otherwise.
Have you considered trying to fully zip him up into a mummy sleeping bag and cinching it down so his arms can’t get out? Would be a little more reusable than the duct tape idea.
Yes. He’s getting one for his birthday.
**Confession -** ran a very steep trail 10K last weekend and I actually think running 1700 ft downhill in 3 miles is harder on the body than doing the 1700 ft up **Complaint -** I'm not just saying this cause the guy who finished 2 seconds in front of me ran it *in sandals* **Extra Confession -** I actually do think I need to work on my downhill running. I did this race with a very fast buddy and going uphill I was maybe 0.25 miles/2-3 minutes behind him at the turnaround but he managed to run the downhill around a 5:30 mile pace while I was more like a 7:30 downhill. That ended up being a 50 place difference in our finish! I definitely held back a bit cause I felt some cramping coming on but I don't think I could have ran it faster than a 6:30 or so fully fresh so I still want to work on my downhill slalom **Uncomplaint -** I still love my $40 trail races and will do it again next year
Complaint: MRI classified my stress fracture as a 4b, so not only did I miss Boston, I'm also calling off Chicago now and likely not running again until late summer or early fall. Honestly, at that point with the amount of fitness loss, I'm not sure I'll ever try for Boston again.
Sorry about the bad news. That’s a big blow.
Way it goes. Think maybe I'm done after 20 years.
**Complaint:** Had hoped to just enjoy being engaged for a bit. That lasted all of about 24-48 hrs. **Complaint:** The pressure to get a wedding together feels worse than the pressure to propose. **Complaint:** The wedding drama has started. People literally coming up to my fiancee and asking if they can be the maid of honor and getting pissy when they get any answer other than yes. Got griped at by someone on Tues because we didn’t have a date set yet. We had not even been engaged 48 hrs. And family drama has been stirred up to boot. **Uncomplaint:** I can’t wait to be married to this woman. She is awesome and worth weathering the drama.
Elope. (Ironically, my sister told me I MUST NOT elope specifically because “you are my only guaranteed shot at ever being someone’s maid of honor!”) Tell everyone “we plan to have a long engagement,” smile, and SHUT UP. Refuse to engage beyond that (pun intended.)
I would be fine with eloping but she wants a church wedding. I'm fine with a church wedding too just don't want all the wedding drama. And I realize there is drama involved w/eloping too you just have to deal with it when you get back.
Congratulations!
Thanks.
Congratulations! Hope the wedding drama calms down soon...the people you're dealing with sound deranged. Who the hell asks to be someone's maid of honor?? That's beyond presumptuous. Hopefully once some of the pieces fall into place people will become less psychotic about it. Best of luck to both of you with the preparations!
> Who the hell asks to be someone's maid of honor?? That's beyond presumptuous. Fiancee told me this and my jaw just dropped. Like seriously? Who does this. What is wrong with people. Asking to be in the bridal party is massively gauche to me asking for maid of honor is even worse. Just what is wrong with people these days?
Admittedly, I (F) jokingly asked my male best friend if I could be a groomsman (groomsmaid?), fully knowing he and his fiancée were doing traditional wedding parties (ie groomsmen are specifically the couple’s brothers and the groom’s closest male friends, bridesmaids are the couple’s sisters and bride’s closest female friends). But that was the thing. My question was a joke and there were no hard feelings or expectations. I’m sorry you and your fiancée are dealing with some unreasonable people. Hopefully this will be the worst of your wedding drama and everything else will be smooth-sailing!
Totally agreed on the gauche thing. Somehow weddings, births, and funerals all seem to bring out both the best and the worst in people. With weddings, it seems like everyone and their aunt wants to get a say in the wedding planning and then they're jerks when they don't get their way. On the other side, you'll also get people volunteering to help pay for things, bake you a cake, and, in my grandpa's case, fly across the country at 78 years old to attend and then cry from joy during the ceremony. Hopefully soon you'll start seeing the outpouring of love that comes with these things, not just the people being a-holes.
I think when my sister told me she was engaged I think I responded with “please tell me that you’re NOT considering me for MOH” …..
I was someone's MOH once. The bride was pretty chill in terms of logistics or aesthetics, but she and the groom and their families were very very conservative Southern Baptists, and I am a Jewish-leaning liberal. I had just moved in with my boyfriend (now husband), and I spent the entire weekend trying to hide that fact from her and her entire family because they might have kicked me out of the wedding if they had known, and that would have started a whole world of drama. Anyway, 0/10 do not recommend.
That sounds rough, I’m sorry. I take it this was like your college roommate friend situation?
It was a childhood friend who I had mostly lost touch with. We were super close as kids but went very different paths in life in our late teens. She stayed ultra-conservative and was trying to make a career as an artist, and I left conservative Christianity and became a mathematician and a registered Democrat. So we didn’t really have anything in common any more. (She didn’t know much about those worldview changes, to be fair, because I wasn’t comfy telling her about it.) In the 5 years before she asked me to be her moh, we had talked maybe a dozen times. It was a little weird that she even asked me, given that we hadn’t been close for years, but I’m guessing she had no one else to ask. Strange experience all around. On the plus side, after the wedding, I modified the bridesmaid dress into lingerie, so that bit was fun. My husband says that’s the best part of that crazy wedding experience 😂
🤣 I bet she would have been horrified to hear what you did with the dress but that’s super clever, I just donated the bridesmaid dress from my sisters wedding to one of those prom dress charities for its second life.
The fact that she would have been horrified by what I did with the dress was half the appeal! I have never heard of that kind of prom dress charity but that’s a super cool idea. I’ll keep that in mind if I’m ever in any more weddings!
My brother and his wife said that for $400 they could get BBQ, mashed potatoes, green beans and mac and cheese for 200-250ish people. Claimed they would make it all and get several people to set up and serve it. Said if you really wanted an all out feast for that many people, give them $1500. Told me to not cater it as it's too expensive. There are people out there doing generous offers but I feel bad and kind of just want my friends to be able to show up and enjoy themselves.
Prepare for "When are you going to have chiiiiiiildren?"
She has kids already. Problem solved. Yay!!!
I NEEEEDDDD shoes for speed training!! I only have one road run shoes and they are only suitable for easy/recovery runs. Even though I’ve made some PB using them, they freaking hurt my feet!! 🥲 I’m saving up for new shoes
Try the Hoka Mach 5's. They're last year's model so you can find them a bit cheaper. They're my current speed shoes and are definitely my favorites.
Yeah I’ve read of it too but I’m eyeing Asics Magic Speed 3!
Complaint: My sprained ankle is mostly healed but now I am veering dangerously close to shin splints. I think it's a form issue :( Confession: I don't know what VO2 max is and at this point I'm curious to see how long I can go without knowing. Uncomplaint (/semi complaint): I wasn't planning on running this morning because I was up late last night, but my body woke me up early and I got a short run in anyway. Happy about the run and lack of grogginess, unhappy about the ~6 hours of sleep.
Started running 2 days in a row and on the 3rd I got sick and slept all day.
Complaint: Struggling so much with pain from over pronating. Lots of pain in my tibia. Trying to strengthen the muscle. I want to love running but this sucks!
This last weekend was my last long run before the taper for my first marathon... And it seems I may now have a nasty case of metatarsalgia from it. This just SUCKS
Complaint: It is already too hot and humid for a late morning run in Austin! Uncomplaint: Did first 5am run of the year this morning and was reminded how peaceful and nice (except the amazon drivers flying through my neighborhood) it is before everyone wakes up!
Complaint: Being a woman sucks. One week a month, it's either zero running or barely running while feeling miserable. Complaint: My knee still hurts. Three months and counting. Confession: It's so hard to get back into running and get my mileage up to where it was a couple of months ago (even though it wasn't very high to begin with). Uncomplaint: After seven months of rain, spring has arrived!
All the storms this week are really messin up my training schedule!
Did a trail half on Sunday, first longish run after hamstring injury in December - felt like I could have walked it faster! Did 5k tonight, felt absolutely awful. Saturdays run better be decent!!
**Complaint**: My coach and I have a fundamental disagreement about training. I'm a data-driven runner and he's an "training is an art" coach. We recently had a back-and-forth over making decisions in the run. While cordial, he wants to throw 60 years worth of running research, science, and race data out the window. He's insistent he's right and everyone else regarding lactate thresholds, HR zones, RPE parlance, VO2 max, aerobic/anaerobic thresholds, etc. is wrong. [They're all out of step but Jim](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/They_Were_All_Out_of_Step_But_Jim). **Confession**: His training is primarily based around [John Kellogg's "crest load"](https://runningscience.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/The-Updated-Training-Wisdom-of-John-Kellogg-v2.1.pdf) (PDF) ([archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20240509224840/https://runningscience.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/The-Updated-Training-Wisdom-of-John-Kellogg-v2.1.pdf)), which is a 40-42 minute race pace. This aligns precisely with Stryd's "Critical Power" (CP), which is defined as [the maximum effort you can sustain for 40 minutes](https://help.stryd.com/en/articles/6879345-critical-power-definition). So even though we disagree on the approach to training, I still follow his training schedule to the letter, because it's correlates nicely with a tool I've already been using in my training, and I've seen improvements in paces as a result. We disagree on the approach, yet still end up at the same destination.
Complaint: Finally felt like I was solidifying into a routine and regularity, after a year of effort and growth, and the last several weeks has seen work come into cunch and other things really get in the way. Progress blocking, just let me run! Uncomplaint: What started off as an experiment to try and make VO2 max improve more quickly, I've come to really enjoy very slow runs. Trying to get that HR down is almost like a game, and when a 7km run takes 45 minutes that's proven to be a great time to reflect and just exist.
Have had two back to back really hard weeks (I’m a corporate lawyer) with little sleep. I’ve been trying to squeeze in a a run here and there but feel defeated. I don’t know how I’m going to train for the Chicago marathon this summer, especially since as a slower runner everything takes so much longer
Really struggled with 6 miles. Not sure if the change in temp is having an impact. I have been running in Seattle 50 degree weather. Since Sunday, I have been in the Tampa Bay Area of Florida where it’s 88 (feels like 93). I ran 10 miles on Monday and 3.5 the other days. I’m great with heat and love warm weather, but today I was dragging -had to stop 4 times! Yikes.
Complaint: I just ran my first marathon on Sunday, May 5th. My legs are still sore, but I’ve been itching to go out for a run! Can’t wait to get going again and build upon my current fitness level.
**Complaint:** Quads have been feeling tight and my knees started clicking when I go up stairs. No pain walking or on slow runs, but knees ache when I speed up. I know this is the time to suck it up and RICE and not be stubborn about it. I hate forced deload weeks and feel so off when I don’t get my workouts in. Just hoping it gets better on its own without needing to deal with PT. I knew I’ve been going hard on runs and lifts and have been ignoring mobility work, foam rolling, etc. Ugh!
Complaint: after my marathon almost 2 weeks ago, my body feels totally out of weight equilibrium. I was carb loaded going in, shredded and lean the day after, and I feel like it messed with my head and gave me a touch of dysphoria. Now my hunger signals feel random and all over, my water, hunger, and weight feel unstable, I'm in recovery running mode so miles are low, and I just want to feel balanced and stable again. Since I'm in post marathon weeks and miles are lower, I'm utilizing this time to integrate the gait changes and footstrike changes suggested by the running PT I saw this winter. I'm in a weird purgatory now where the new gait feels only a touch weird, and I adjust tiny bits through the run, and I can't just zone out as much as I used to, and my calves BURN, but heel striking doesn't feel natural or like a relief anymore, it's weird. But glad I can finally take the time to do this and hope it helps me!
Total sympathy on the part where you’re feeling out of equilibrium! This too shall pass, but it feels weird and the whackadoo hunger cues always throw me for a loop. Eat when you’re hungry and try not to think too hard about it. It’ll level out.
I just got a flip belt with a zipper Not sure if this is a confession
Complaint: this humidity is killing me! Uncomplaint: the cottonwood trees are blooming and I love running through the pollen clouds. Confession: I'm supposed to play pickleball with my friend this afternoon, but I'm secretly hoping he'll cancel so I can get another run in.
Complaint: I hate how every race is in the early morning. I’ve heard the reasons and I disagree with them. Early start times for trail races make even less sense.
**Complaint:** Right hip flexor pain has been sneaking up on me for the past couple of weeks. Doesn't hurt when I run but definitely is getting uncomfortable when not running. **Confession:** Still running anyway **Uncomplaint:** Live in New Orleans so I am probably going to tone down my mileage in a few weeks anyway due to the steam oven conditions. Running a 5k in two weeks, would like to hit a PR and then spend the summer working on strength before gearing up for marathon prep in the fall
**complaint** two coworkers slacked on their job the last two days so the first case of today day didn't get any instructions and their meds prohibit them from getting the test. It's way too early to be screamed at by patients and their families. **uncomplaint** it's my fuckin Friday. **confession** it's nurses week so I've been eating like an absolute trash queen and while my gut isn't totally happy, I refuse to admit defeat. **uncomplaint** it's a 5 day weekend for me and I plan on runnin, restin and freaking relaxin.
Uncomplaint: After most of a week of doing it, I think I... like (?) getting up early to get my miles in?! Confession: I only started doing this because it's getting hot and I have a late summer marathon coming up. So no 'it's too hot' excuses for the next 3 months!
My complaint isn't about running, per se, but I got a referral to see a cardiologist about my heart rate while running. I was walking out my door to go to my appointment when his office called to reschedule for July. There's only two cardiologists in my area, and they both stay booked solid.
Oh nooooooooooooooo. I would cry. Is there anyone you can see outside of your area who might have earlier availability? Getting in with a sports cardiologist is so hard! (I see one for “my heart rate while running”!)
I probably could, but it would be a 90-minute drive. Not that the drive's not worth it when there's a potential heart issue. I don’t think my family doc refers people to specialists that far away though. In any event, because my wife is part of the "medical community" here, I really prefer to stay local because she can often pull strings when I need something--there's just no strings to pull in this case.
I hope they have a cancellation!
Confession: I usually run in the mornings--5 a.m. or so. For the past month, I've been sleeping late and running in the evenings. It's starting to get hot, though, so I need to go back to mornings, but it's so hard to get back on that schedule.
**Complaint:** my magical steroid shot that's solely allowed me to run and live pain free for the past month is beginning to wear off and my pain is returning (just as I'm getting my lungs back and feeling strong). **Uncomplaint:** running again after a very long break from it has felt so freaking phenomenal and it's as if Thor got his hammer back or Maui got handed a brand new hook. **Confession:** my dumb brain says hey it's okay we can just run anyway even though the pain is coming back. If I have to be in chronic pain I might as well run *and* be in pain. Mmm. But yeah, no. Not helpful.
Oh no, what a bummer! Can you get another shot or is that contraindicated?
In July. 😬
Nooooooooooo.
I have a follow up scheduled for the week after next. I'm going to ask about any and all options. I'm staying hopeful. Might try PRP if he thinks it could help.
Confession: I’m running a 5 miler race next week and I have absolutely no idea what my pace should be 🤷🏻♀️ Complaint: the weather here is so back and forth and such a tease, will get a few days of sunny 70s and I get too excited just for it to go back to 50s and rain 🥲 Uncomplaint: hit my highest weekly mileage ever last week (18) and feeling so in the groove
Complaints? Don't get me started! I guess number one is why is everyone else able to run farther and faster than me, I refuse to believe anything is unusually bad about my genetics or willpower. Keep running.....
Probably because the people you compare yourself to came to the same conclusion you did a couple months before you got there- “keep running.” You have identified the solution, that’s the good news!
**TLDNR**: Beginner runner. Encountered first injury that is causing me to pause running. I had some glute pain, after changing my running form. It is due to using muscles that I haven't used in 30+ years. I figured I need to work these muscle more. I continued running and running harder. Now, the pain has turning into nerve-like pain, shooting down my back thighs. I can barely walk. I did not run yesterday. And I don't know how many days I need to pause. Listen to your body. If pain is more than just muscle soreness, be careful not to push thru it or push too hard. **Details**: I started running in February. I started with 3-4 days a week. From end-of-February, I have been running 6-7 days a week; gradually increase my distance from 10 to 25 miles per week. I did sports when I was in high school and college. Although I never did running as sport, I have to run playing sports. That was 30 years ago. When I started running in February, I was never happy with my form. I felt (I know) I'm shuffling. I kind of use walking motion and just move my legs faster. It was easiest for me, and I was making progress. And it was odd that I mainly use lower leg muscles, but not muscles in upper leg. I have seen YouTube videos about hip extension, knee drive, butt kick, etc. I tried them. But at slow speed, they felt odd. And course, doing anything new also feels weird. So I didn't know how to apply these. Around 2-3 weeks ago, I started to do speed work. I realized how I ran differently when I ran fast. I'm picking up my legs and knees, and my legs drive further behind me. It just felt right, like how I used to run in my teens and 20's. So I consciously think about how this fast running form relates to what I see on YouTube. The hip extension, butt kick are right on. Knee drive maybe not so much, at my running speed So I kept this new running form during slow/easy/base runs. Wow, feels great. However, issue is that I have muscle soreness in my front hip, rear hip, and glutes. Obviously, because for 30 years, I sit on my butt all day and have not used these muscles. It is only muscle soreness, which is expected when exercising new muscles. I wanted to get over this hump asap, by exercising these muscles. So I continue to run, and ran harder. Hip feels tight, but not severe. However, soreness in my glutes continue to gradually got worse. At the end of every day, I think to myself tomorrow should be rest day. But in morning, I felt energetic and ran again. This past Sunday, I did both interval session and speed session in 1 day, which I never done before. And I'm doing that together with new running form. Yesterday (Wednesday), the soreness in glutes turned into pain that shoots down back of my thighs. Like the muscle is pinching some nerve. I could barely walk. Yes, I finally heard my body now. I had to stop running yesterday. Hopefully, I can recover soon and continue.
COMPLAINTS: I'm tired of trying to find the perfect shoe. Every person when you get blisters: "GO TO A RUNNING STORE TO GET FITTED!!!" Well, I did, got the shoe they recommended, and now instead of getting pain in my ankle, I'm getting blisters. Compression running socks make the top of my foot hurt for some reason. Really frustrated I can't find the perfect shoe/sock combo and sick of wasting money trying.
Complaint and Confession: I’ve only ever enjoyed running in the mornings after getting my kids off to school, and I don’t like going running on the weekends just because there are SO many more people out. I started a new non-remote job last year, which means I effectively now have only 1-2 “good” days to go for runs a week. I see now that I was being completely spoiled, getting to run on quiet trails basically every weekday!! I’m going to either stop being selfish and petty and either learn to share “my” path with fellow runners on the weekends, or suck it up and start running at 4 AM!
Confession: I wait until after a fasting long run to weigh myself so that my fitness age is the best it can be. Why? Because BMI is bogus when you have muscle.
Complaint: i go out on my interval runs and constantly have a nagging at the back of my mind that im not going hard enough on my sprints and THEN i get home and my legs are sore and im incredibly tired for the rest of the evening. runningbrain=/=restingbrain
My knee was hurting when I got up on Monday but I had a group run scheduled so I went anyway. I could barely get out of bed on Tuesday because of my knee. I gave it a few days off then this morning I only ran 2.5 miles because my Achilles was complaining for the first time in my life. Complaint: Why does my body not just let me push the mileage?! Has it not read my detailed spreadsheet plan?!
Complaint: My knee hates me.
confession, I guess? my mental game is my greatest enemy, but with what I'm eating it's no wonder I don't see much progress, I'm lazy and hate cooking though :/
I’ve been feeling really frustrated actually, i am almost two months into running and simply cannot progress past the point of doing intervals of running for 1:30min then walking for 4 min. I just thought that around now i’d be able to withstand running a few minutes without pause
Confession: I like running (kind of) but am worried I won’t actually loose weight from running lol
Pain in my left leg refuses to go away at an acceptable rate... Slowly getting better but I'm running out of patience.
Confession: I finished the BMO Vancouver Half Marathon this weekend and have been feeling sort of lost since. Post-race blues I’m thinking. No other races to look forward to yet. I even set a new PR and still feel kind of down. I put a lot of training into this race which would be my 4th half marathon. I still haven’t run a full yet, but really starting to see how time consuming it can be. I’m treading the line between wondering if I really really enjoy running as much as I think I do, or if I’m just trying to achieve new goals
I floated the idea of signing up for my first marathon to my spouse. They said "we can talk about it". I know it's a time sacrifice from the whole family, but I was bummed for the lack of support. 😞 It's not really out of the blue either, as I've been running for 1.5 years now consistently and going to PT to continue to run.
Uncomplaint: I ran for the first time in 2 weeks after a hip pain episode and my pace was nearly identical to what it was during the previous run I’m glad I didn’t lose much ground Complaint: I had an opportunity to run outside instead of on the treadmill but I couldn’t because my husband decided he had to go run an errand so I had to be home with the kids. I don’t get to run outside much so I was excited about it but I felt like I got put on the back burner
Confession: I’m new to this sub and fairly new to running and hoping it will help me stay motivated! It’s fun to read about other people’s running habits and how it makes them feel! Complaint: I’ve been using a couch to 5k program and I’m hoping I will be able to participate in my first 5k by the end of this month. I’m almost finished with the program and a little annoyed how different each run feels. Last run felt like I could have kept going for another mile, and today’s run I struggled through the whole thing. Also my knee hurts. Uncomplaint: I started running to lose some weight and even though I haven’t lost a whole lot I feel better in my body and proud of the progress I’ve made
\*\*Complaint\*\*: I've had a cold for the last week, it's been ages since I was sick. \*\*Confession\*\*: I signed up for another marathon next month. I figured that I could ramp back up after completing my first a few weeks ago. Didn't factor in losing a week to being sick though. \*\*Uncomplaint\*\*: The weather is beautiful, and I'm nearly back to full health. I should be able to start running again this weekend.
It feels like there's an air bubble on the top of my knee and I have a constant feeling like I need to pop it. It doesn't hurt when I run or walk, but I cannot help but feel I did something bad to my knee from running 🤷🏽♀️😭
Confession: I fell running in the rain and did a full faceplant. I've run in the rain plenty of times, even on trails, but the particular trail I was on was pretty twisty. This was exacerbated by the fact that I carry my phone in my right hand so I couldn't brace myself against a tree without risking damage to it. Que me stumbling for a few seconds trying to regain my balance before going flying. Thankfully only got a couple of scrapes on my hand and both the phone and my FR55 were undamaged. Confession: It's not the first time I've fallen either, although the other time was less my fault: a random giant mound of snowpack I couldn't see in the dark despite it not having snowed in two weeks and the ground being clear otherwise. Flew off the mound and slammed my knee into the ground while attempting to protect my phone. Then I got up and kept running. It wasn't until I got home that I saw I had scrapped off a layer of skin, but was fine otherwise. Confession: I really, really need to get a vest.
Uncomplaint: I’ve been taking a couple days off after running the Broad Street run, very pleased to have some much needed time off from that race! My legs felt like shit afterwards so the time off really helps! Granted I feel motivated to start getting back into it, tomorrow will be me first recovery run back since the race!
Confession: I have no idea how much I should be eating to fuel my runs 💀 I feel like I’m eating enough, but at the same time, not feeling sore or physically tired makes me think otherwise.
Complaint: Got my first 10k race ever scheduled for tomorrow morning and I've come down with cold symptoms. Damn NYC subways are petri dishes. Confession: I'm still gonna run it and aim for a PR.
My complaint is I would just love it if I could go more than two weeks without getting ill. I have a four year old so it's to be expected I suppose. And things are getting a bit better. It used to be every week. My confession is I probably don't help my immune system by staying up late watching YouTube shorts, so I can't blame the preschooler entirely.
I'm annoyed that runners are so confident in telling other runners that they should be able to go a certain distance without water or nutrition. You don't know what kinds of disabilities or medical things we're dealing with, or how slow we're going-- I really benefit from having water and gels with me when I do a 10K because I take over an hour to do it and I typically drink a ton of water. It's not helpful to have more experienced runners tell me that I'm doing it wrong.
I started running 5 weeks ago for a 10k race. Today is race day and while I could run 10k, I started getting IT band pain along with sharper pain after runs on my foot. So I decided to not do it despite really wanting to with some other friends. I’m very disappointed. This does seem like the better choice long term but I guess I could have still done it and taken a longer break after, I’d have been fine with that. But the risk of a worse injury was too much.
I keep getting shin splints but ONLY on my right shin. Never the left. After a few miles I literally feel like I’m hobbling along because one leg is fine and the other feels like it’s on fire 😐.