Dog Attack!

Nope I haven't been attack by a dog yet but I had a close shave not too long ago. I was lucky compared to this lady and this lady but I am sure they will admit they are lucky too if they compare themselves to this gentleman.

Anyway, while it is generally pretty safe to run in Singapore, and there are not that many dogs or even other animals like monkey attack, still I was curious enough to find out how to defend myself in case it happened. So I turned to Mr Dog Whisperer himself, Cesar Milan and this is what he advises: 

" I get very calm. Believe it or not, what will be instrumental in blocking the animal from attacking you is for you to be calm and unafraid. ........Once I have asserted myself, I claim my own space. Often, I use a walking stick, an umbrella, or anything I happen to be carrying and place it out in front of me, so I make myself appear bigger and feel more in command of my space. What I am saying with my body language is, I don’t want the dog’s space; I don’t want that tree over there, I just want this space that I am standing in. n Again, I am maintaining a very calm and assertive state. That energy creates a barrier that automatically demands his respect. I’m letting him know that I’m not afraid of him."

Huh? That sounds very cheem. And me think 99.999% of runners here don't carry any stick, umbrella  except maybe a water bottle when they run  so the advice might present some difficulty to carry out.

But I have this theory. Animal only attack when other animals including human intrude into its territory or threaten its young. So the right thing to do is to avoid going near to them. but if there is no choice, do not run away from them. I learnt this from my previous encounter. When I saw the 3 dogs, I stopped running and just walked across. They stood there and barked but made no other move. But when I thought I had passed them sufficiently and resumed running, they chased after me. To the dogs, it could be a game or it could be big fish eat small fish and if I run, means I scare of them so they attacked. I don't know but reading other advices from other websites, the consensus is don't run, don't do anything that will cause the dog to interpret as hostile. Wait until the dog lose interest and walk slowly away.

Will it work? Try it out the next time and let me know!

Figuring out the Cause

I got a fair bit of well wishes. Most of them are the usual get well soon. But from my colleagues, a number came with a reminder not to run too much. Because I am the only chap in the office to run, they think that the running caused the injury. Of course, technically, that is not wrong. The injury was a direct result of running but the question that I have been muddling over is - what was the actual cause of the current injury?

Was it really a result of running too much? I really don't think so. Compared to a lot of my other running friends, my weekly mileage pales in comparison to what they are doing. Most weeks, I am averaging about 35km spread over 3 to 4 sessions which works out to an average of less than 10km per session - certainly not a lot by any running enthusiast's standard.

Which leads to the next likely cause. Was it a result of my slightly more unconventional footwear? I now wears a myriad of different shoes - from a conventional trail shoe, to the stability Zoot Ultra+ to a minimalist wannabe the Brooks Launch; a real minimalist Terra Plana and then there is the Tyr booties and finally I run barefoot occasionally.  Not for me sticking to one favoured brand or certain type of shoes. I wear whatever I get foc or is cheap. Did these cause the injury? If so, I should have got it like a year ago when I started the trend instead of now much later when my mileage is very much reduced and logically my legs have gotten used to the changes.

Deja Vu

Not bad. My earlier guess. Unfortunately, it is not tendonitis but a metatarsal stress fracture. The affected bone is the2nd toe and the site is almost at the joint portion which means it is more serious because the more movement the more the fracture will develop. The earlier x-ray at the A&E did not show up anything but today's x-ray shown very clearly the break in the bone.

So end up with this super big and super heavy shoe and a pair of clutches + mc for another 21 days.

Wonder whether I can get a refund for the Marina21?

Another Break

It was good while it last. I knew my luck wouldn't hold out for so long. It's been rare for me not to sustain one major injury a year but the last major injury was the stress fracture in September 09. There were some minor scares here and there in 2010 but nothing that developed into anything major or force me to lay off running for a longer time.

But this time, it looks like going to be a long break. Was running at Meridien JC. Had ran the 2km from home to the JC without any problem. There, I had barely ran 100 metres of the track when I heard a loud snapping sound from the left foot and then the pain shot in. Walking, not to even mention running was almost impossible as I couldn't even put the foot down.

Quick check of the web reveal 2 possible causes: tendonitis (hopefully is this) or worse case scenario: metatarsal stress fracture. However, an x-ray at CGH expectantly revealed nothing.Will need to go for a follow up at the Sports Medicine Centre a few days but meantime, there goes the final TNF Trail Run, the Marina 21K but hopefully should recover in time for the No Frills Run in August.

Meanwhile, it's makan time!

Ouch!!!!!!!!!

Interesting.

3 weeks ago I ran 4km barefoot and got no problem. 2 weeks before that,did 2.4km also without problem. I thought I finally overcome the thin skin problem.

But surprise, on Tuesday after 6 rounds on the track, could feel the skin tearing on the little toe. By the 8th round, there were at least 2 more. Enough for me to call it a day and ran another 2 painful km back.

Final tally, 4 on the left foot (picture above) and 1 on the right.

Sighed. Back to square 1.

Strange

On Tues evening, when I went for my run, had barely gone 10metres when shooting pain started emitting from the right ankle. What the hell? Not willing to take any risk so abandoned the run immediately. Subsequent close examination of the ankle shows no swelling. Neither was there any pain when pressed. The arch was still a bit sore and the top of the foot where the chairs went on top was a little painful to the touch but otherwise, the foot seems okay.

Resumed the abandoned run the next evening. This time everything seems okay. No pain. No nothing. And I managed to complete the run in one piece.

The only difference appears to be the shoe. On Tuesday, was wearing the Terra Plana Evo. Last night, I wore the Zoots Ultra. Could it be the lack of cushioning in the Evo? Or the arch pain is really the dread Plantar Fascittis and the movement of the foot in a more minimalist shoe causes the tendon to stretch too tightly during the arch movement and the pain to shoot up? 

My Poor Right Foot

That could quite sum up the state of the poor right foot.

2 weeks ago doing a short run, developed a pain in the arch. So naturally being the typical kiasu guy, consulted my panel of 'experts' and the diagnosis was. It could be just a simple case of over stressing the foot (likely) or a sprain arch (possible) or the dread plantar fascittis (probably). Unfortunately, my panel of 'experts' cannot give me a conclusive diagnosis since they are all rather dumb in nature. So the next best thing was to self cure. So first some RICE for the overstressed foot. Reduced number of runs and short easy runs. And ice of course. Next generous application of muscle rub (of whatever free sample I have in the house) for the sprain arch and finally stretch and anti-inflammatory cream for the plantar fascittis. Did it work?

Unfortunately before I can know for sure. Over the weekend, somehow somewhere the top of the foot; and yes it is the same foot; started to swell. Did I sprain it? Not that I can recall. Again I called into action my panel of experts. It could be tendonitis or worse case a metatarsal stress fracture. Sighed. Out comes the koyok again.

They said all bad things come in 3. On Sunday while helping out at a funeral, dropped a lot of chairs, all 8 of them onto my right foot. Fortunately I didn't manage to break any bone but now there is another piece of plaster on top of the koyok and the muscle rub and the inflammatory cream.

Double sighed. Let's hope 3 is enough. Now time for a run!

Miracle Product?

Some time ago, I was at RL and being the naturally kapo old man, I eavesdrop on the conversation between one of the staff and a customer. This lady customer was trying on a pair of Chot-Pat. She was explaining to the staff that she was doing the SCMS but her knees were swollen and painful and she wanted to use the Chot-Pat so that she can do the SCMS which was just 1 week away. Naturally, I was a bit puzzled. Having used a Chot-pat extensively in the past, I couldn’t figure out how the Chot-Pad could enable her to run on her swollen and painful knees.

Recently, I met another runner. He had bad knees and had stopped running. Apparently he had after a recommendation by a friend, bought a pair of Vibram Five Fingers. And he was now running again! And this seems to be a very common story. People who had some injuries in their legs switched to the VFF and volia, everything is cured!

Then there is this runner friend I know who wears an ITB strap and continue to run.

Miracle products?

With due respect to my friends in the same situation and are wearing the ITB strap; Ebene knee guard, VFF or whatever, there is no such things as a miracle product that can cure injury just by wearing it. If there is an injury, wearing any of these products probably will relieve the pressure and possibly allow one to do normal activities including running for a short distance but the underlying problem remains and will most likely become worse if the person continues without seeking proper medical care. Read this sentence from the Chot-Pad website: As such, while it may alleviate the symptoms of Iliotibial Band Syndrome, the cause of the affliction may still be present. It is suggested the user seek evaluation and treatment by a medical professional in conjunction with the band’s use.

What I am trying to say is, get real. If there is an injury, be it knee, ankle or arch, stop running for a while and rest. A 2 week break is not going to kill! If the injury is still there after a break, seek medical attention. Don’t ignore the pain and continue running because that will make the injury worse.

Silly and Stubborn

I have always heed the age old advice of never wearing brand new attire for a race. I even use it as a mantra to all my running friends.

So what behold me to ignore my own advice? Maybe it is vanity, maybe it is old age. As everybody knows, old people can be silly and stubborn.

So what did I do? To complement my black look, I decided to put on a brand new pair of black Injiji toe socks. This to go with the black Zoots calf sleeve, black Zoots tights, black/green Nike t and black/orange Nike Lunarglide. And what did I get? This freaking blister! and 1 bruised toe nail!

Oh and it has to be the socks since I have worn the Nike Lunarglide for a few long runs including the KL Marathon without any problem. Oh well maybe I just go sockless?

Barefoot Running - the Cure?

Some of my friends have converted to barefoot running or at least some sort of minimalist footwear like the Vibram Five Fingers. I am very tempted to follow - I have so far tried a total of 3 barefoot runs  each time all in a stadium on soft track. I haven't got round to buying a VFF or even a Nike Free yet though I am very tempt.

From talking to some of this guys, I am amazed that some of them think that barefoot running is the cure all for all their running injury. One guy who suffers from Plantar Flasciitis, when asked whether he was undergoing treatment said that he just need to run barefoot once or twice a week and it will go away. And this is not an isolated case. Many others swear by this - that running barefoot will eradicate all their injuries. No need to see the doctor. I have heard something like this so often that nowadays whenever I hear somebody with some running problems, I also automatically tell them to try barefoot running and see whether there is any improvement.

But is this a placebo effect thing or is it for real?  Does it really works? Can somebody enlighten?

Can it be the dread ...?

Have been a bit kiasu and decided to lay off running for the past 3 days. Went running last night but barely 1 km into the run, the problem came back. Another 1 km and I decided to call it quit for the rest of the evening.

By now the realisation is slowing hitting me. More research on the web and Dr Tekko have decided that it is the dread ITB Syndrome injury. The signs are all there. Tightness in the joints. More pronounced when going uphill/downhill. Pain slowly increasing in intensity.

Well, Dr Tekko has been wrong in his 'diagnosis' before as when he diagnosed thyroid problem for kidney problem and hopefully he is wrong this time as well and it is just a case of strained muscles. [x-fingers]

Something Weird

Since Tuesday, been experiencing something weird when I run. It wasn't so noticeable on Tuesday. I attributed it to the higher intensive workout that I was doing. I thought it was fatigue and didn't think too much.

Then on Thursday evening, had barely ran 50 metres when the right knee suddenly locked up! It was a strange feeling. I had to resort to running with a limp for a few steps before it unfreezed. But it came back every few steps so much so that in the end after 2 km, I gave up the run and headed back. The weird thing is there was no pain and an examination of the knee later shown no swelling or anything abnormal.

So I approached Saturday's morning with some apprehension. This time the jamming of the knee came much later, almost 2 km later and it became more pronounced whenever there was a change of terrain especially going upslope. Maybe it was strain left over from last week's F1 Nature run?

This evening run was better. The attack came only when I reached the Upp Pierce gate forcing me to a sudden stop. Thereafter, it only came back on the return leg and I had to literally limp up the various slopes.

A search on the net do not reveal anything so what the heck is it?

X-Ray

Finally got to do a x-ray for the shin. The pain is much better now. At least I can run but there is still this niggling pain and because it has been so long - 3 months I am a bit concerned so the good doc finally sent me to do a x-ray.

Didn't expect to see anything from it but surprise - the x-ray came back very clearly - a bump on the bone which the doc said is the fracture site and evidenced that is is healing. The bad new is that it is not the usual type of stress fracture whereby the fracture is across the bone but one that is parallel with the length of the bone and according to her, this type of fracture takes a long time to heal. Good news is that she is of the opinion I can continue running as long as there is no pain but to heed the usual .. 10% increase every 2 weeks; no 'chionging' blah blah blah.

Mileage Game

A friend asked me how much mileage is considered enough to run a full marathon.

I remembered when I did my first FM in 2004, I was doing an average of about 40km per week. I choked miserably in that FM. Later on when I asked the seniors in SGrunners, I was told my mileage should be around 60km per week. So one year later, with 60km weekly mileage and 1 more year of experience, I reckoned I could hit a reasonable target of 4.30 - 4.45. How wrong I was. Not only did I failed to hit the target, I ended up worse off than the previous year!

So it couldn't be the mileage right? But after trawling the net, talking to some more seniors, it was still mileage, mileage and mileage. Some running magazines advocate 100km of running a week which was like crazy. Unless we are our own boss, where do we find the time to do that sort of running? With our studies, work, family most of us will be hard press to even find time to do a 60km week let alone 100km.

So back to the question - how much? Seriously, I wish I have the magic figure but I don't. I suppose one will only really know the answer when he/she completes the FM.

I have a neighbour who runs 7km 3 times a week. His longest run prior to any marathon is the AHM yet without fail he will finish around 4:30 in each FM! Me on the other hand faithfully clocked up some 40km - 60km weekly mileage prior to every FM yet I have never been able to run faster than him. So it does not seem like a mileage game is it? You go figure - is it mileage or something else?

Marathon Training?

Over the course of the past few years since I have been involved with the RL TNR, on and off I met people who have signed up for a full marathon and who do not have any inkling of how to go about training for it. In fact some of these people do not even intend to train for it. When they told me they were just going to run the full marathon and with only a longest run of 10km (1 guy didn't even do up to 5km), my jaw dropped. I have always been a advocate of mileage training for running a marathon and I couldn't see how these people can possibly do it!

Of course, these people did eventually finished the full marathon which they signed up for but with timing ranging from 6 hours to 8 hours. These people - I am sure they felt proud that they have managed to complete a marathon, some even more than 1 - but I wonder - is there any glory in walking 3/4 of the marathon?

Last week, Tigger uploaded a link to the reality show, the Biggest Loser where they featured some contestants who were required to complete a marathon without proper training in 26 days. Again, these people did it with 1 even finishing under less than 5 hours.

So the 42km question? Is it possible to complete a marathon without going through all those hours and hours of pounding on the streets? Answer is yes yes yes. Yes if you are a natural born runner or a supremely fit athlete; yes if you intend to walk half or 3/4 of the way and finish in more than 6 hours; and finally yes if you do not mind walking like this

But for the rest of us who intend to do have fun, do a good run and complete in reasonable time, nothing beats good old fashion hours and hours of pounding. Good luck and enjoy.

Gait Analysis

Went for a gait analysis this morning to find out whether there was anything wrong with my running that is causing so much problems.

Well according to the nice doctor, there is basically nothing wrong. The only minor things she could see were

1) my right leg tend to swing out slightly before swinging back to the front. This cause an imbalance to the hip and may possibly cause the left foot to absorb more of the impact

2) I tend to land a bit too far out on my left foot whereas the right foot is landing almost correctly underneath the body.

Other than these 2, she couldn't see anything else and she therefore ruled out that my problems were caused by my running. So may be the shoes?

Anyway, here are the videos (for those who really bored until got nothing to do)

Without orthotics insole

With orthotics insole

Did the insole made any difference? I been staring at them for the last hour and other than I don't look good (machiam like a sissy) I can't tell anything from it.

Back to the Doc

Finally I get to see a doctor for my foot but the appointment date was so far out by the time it comes around, with the rest that I been getting, the good doc pronounced that since it was healing, to just wait and see. Sigh so was it a waste of money?

But anyway, my intention was to see whether the doctor at the SMC could figure out why all the injuries were on one leg. But after pushing touching and bending the leg, the only things she could say was that it seems to be okay and she couldn't find anything wrong and recommended a gait analysis to see whether it was due to my running gait.

Oh she did said the shin problem was probably stress facture and not shin splint but there was no point in doing an x-ray at this juncture since it appears to be healing.

Okay so I going back to do a gait analysis but only after the ankle has fully heal. And Mr Philip, if you are reading this, remember to make my video 'shwee shwee'. Can add sound effect or not:)

Cursed

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

I don't know whether to laugh or to cry. I think I have been hexed or cursed and I am not meant to do any running for this year or maybe the rest of my life.

Just when the shin splint seems to be on the mend, I went and twisted my ankle again!

There I was walking on the other side of Esplanade Bridge watching the runners flagged off when all of a sudden i stepped on an uneven floor and almost went down. With my hand holding the camera, I wasn't going to go down like that and smash it to pieces so I did a sort of mad dance as I scramble for balance trying desperately not to go down. In the end I succeeded but at a high price to the ankle.

What a *&%O)()&%$%!

Still No Good

From 15/9/09 till 28/6/09 (2 weeks) ran 38.1km
From 29/6/09 to 19/7/09 (3) did 25.5km
20/7/09 until 5/8/09 (2.5) another 22.9km

So in total ran 86.5km over 2 months or to be exact 53 days which makes it an average of 34.6km per month or 1.6km per day which means not enough mileage!

Since the pain level for the shin is down to level 1, the PF is also 1 and the ball of the foot problem almost non-existent decided to do an easy run last night just to see how the legs would hold up. Altogether, did just 7km or so in close to 45 mins.

And of course the &#^)__^#* pain came back strongly this morning. The pain level for both shin and the PF shot back up to level 3. There goes my hope of doing the AHM. At this rate, I think I need to sit out the running until end of the year.

Anyway, finally decided to listen to my own advice and made an appt to see the friendly people from across the road. But haha the appt is on 21st which means .... why not just go and piah the AHM on 16th and see the doc thereafter. After all.... hmmmm should I or shouldn't I?

Too much too soon

Of course as usual I raised my hope too much too soon. May be because the AHM is just a mere 3 weeks away and I haven't put in the desired mileage, got a bit kancheong and after Saturday's run which end sufficiently okay, pushed my luck and went for another run on Sunday evening at Bedok Reservoir.

First round was pretty slow. Took 27+ mins to complete as compared to M who ran it in 24+. Nevermind, it was just a warm up round. Just about 500 metres before the end of the 1st round, a big group of runners ran past me. The feeling wasn't too good. Got pride you know. So decided to pick out the slower runners in the group and use them for target practice. As every runner worth its salt knows, the shiokness of catching up and overtaking runners in front cannot be described. But then again it's probably the male ego but heck whatever, I speed up and overtook 5 of them before one of them overtook me again. But after that he ran out of gas and started walking so I overtook him again. Ha ha. This time round I completed the round in slightly over 23 mins and of course I paid the price.

The shin pain is back. So dragged myself to my Chinatown 跌 打 master today to see whether he can perform any miracle. Unfortunately he got many patients today so got attended to by his Mrs. Surprisingly, she seems quite knowledgeable and at least she was more talkative and willing to explain unlike Master Lee who grunts away most of the time.

Told her about the shin, the ball of the foot and the PF. And she asked to see the knee? Then she explained that the alignment from the knee down to the foot is out which result in the leg being weak which will cause problems. She further pointed out that the problem with the ball of the foot was due to the constant pounding as in running (note that at this point I haven't told her I runs). However, to treat all the problems she has to realign the foot and this she promptly did by twisting the foot from the knee down. Heng ah, this one no pain. After that she pronounced that I should feel that my leg is more flexible. Is it? I really couldn't feel any difference.

Next she proceeded to prod the shin and she said this one cannot anyhow rub. She just did a light rubdown before plastering 5 to 6 pieces of 'ko-yo' on it. After that she rub the ball of the foot and finally the heel where she claimed she can feel the stiffness and you guess it, proceeded to twist and push the foot. Aaaaaarg. So bladdy painful. But after all, what is 跌 打 without pain? After that it's more plasters. So now my leg from the knee down is plastered left right center with ko-yo but except for the strong smell, can feel that the leg feels better. Or is it psychological?