Several times recently, I ran a marathon on the weekend, but
didn’t run again until the next weekend.
That’s not a good way to stay in shape, but I’m trying not to aggravate my
injuries. I didn’t have a race this
weekend, so I went for a run yesterday. Then
a miracle happened.
Last night, my legs felt normal. I woke up several times during the
night. (That’s normal for me.) My legs were never stiff when I woke up. I didn’t have any cramps. I didn’t have to do anything to restore
circulation to my legs. I felt
normal! I also noticed a few times that
my legs felt slightly sweaty. I had good
circulation in my legs.
This wasn’t a complete surprise. I have good days and bad days. I’ve noticed the good days are usually days
that I went running. Unfortunately, I haven’t
had many of those days, other than races.
Usually on a good day, I don’t get as stiff after sitting for a while,
and I don’t get stiff as quickly.
Usually on a good day, I’m still prone to nighttime cramps, but they’re
not as severe. This was the first time
in recent memory that I actually felt normal.
Once I realized these symptoms were a circulation problem, I
also realized my daily runs were masking an old problem. The only reason I don’t have these problems
all the time is because I’m constantly stimulating blood flow in my legs by
running. When I’m healthy, I run often
enough to have good circulation all the time.
I’ve tried to remain optimistic that the circulation
problems in my legs will eventually go away when I’m able to resume a normal
training schedule. That’s still about a
few months away. I’ve been cautiously optimistic,
but I didn’t know for sure. Last night
went a long way to reassure me.
I’m also cautiously optimistic that I’ll eventually stop
having problems with my legs stiffening up during races. Right now I experience something that feels like
stage one hypothermia, which is something I first experienced during a 24-hour
race in cold, wet conditions. When you
lose blood flow to your legs, they just stop working. I’ve been experiencing something similar, but
less severe. I can still move, but it’s
slow and sluggish.
I’d like to think that when I’m healthy and can resume
training, I’ll have a chance to get back in shape. It might take a long time, but I should be
able to get there eventually. Again, I
won’t know for sure until it happens.
Last night gave me hope.
There’s a light at the end of the tunnel, and it’s not a
train.
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