Top-of-the-Foot Pain: TRI to Heal
Wednesday, June 9, 2010 at 8:32PM I am a victim of top-of-the-foot pain. More accurately, I am a victim of myself. There are two reasons for the pain, and one reason that the pain persists. Practicing what I preach in regards to transitioning to minimalist or barefoot running could have eliminated months of discomfort, but I'm afraid that I am somewhat competetive and entirely stubborn.
The first reason for the pain? I transitioned to running exclusively in Vibram FiveFingers far too rapidly. Yes, I had run short distances in my Flows through the Fall and Winter, however, jumping into a Half Marathon training schedule in March near the beginning of my challenge/experiment to wear VFF solely may have been a little ambitious. I went from occasional 3-4 mile runs to over 20 miles per week in just a few weeks. Within that time I was tortured with calf pain. Instead of easing down, I pushed forward. Dull pain across the top of my right foot appeared, but because it didn't effect me while running, I continued on incessantly. I should have listened more closely to my body.
The second reason? Slacklining. Don't get me wrong, the sport is entirely safe unless, of course, you do it with a group of guys that like to keep pushing the envelope. A couple of buddies and I found a great spot to set up our line in an elementary school where a collection of gymnastic equipment happened to be stored. Even though we were still quite novice to the sport, we incorporated the trampoline and mats to slacklining almost immediately. It was during an attempt at a front flip from off the slackline that I overshot my landing and crash mat just enough to have the outside of my right foot smack down on bur-bur covered cement. I noticed that after the impact I could no longer spread my pinky toe from it's neighboring digit, a continuing issue.
The reason for lingering pain? I have never taken the time to let myself heal. I wanted so badly to perform at a particular level at my Half Marathon that I wasn't willing to cut back on my training enough to make a difference. I rationalized by dropping a run each week, but it wasn't enough. After my last couple of races I decided that I don't want to continue torturing myself throughout my training for an Ultra in October. I'd rather be free of the pain, so I came up with a plan...
A triathlon, a chance to give my feet a rest while focusing on swimming and biking. A local, mid-July event will give me 6 weeks to prepare for the 1.5 km swim, 40 km bike, and 10 km run. Not a lot of time to prepare, but my training up to this point has helped build my cardio, so I just need some time to condition my muscles for the other disciplines. Biking poses a fun dilemma for my FiveFingers. Coming up with a pedal option may be an interesting challenge. Swimming is my weak spot, so I'll be spending quite a bit of time in the pool, a great option for a healing foot. Over the 6 week period, I'll plan to keep away from running as much as possible. Continual evaluation of my right foot will determine when and how hard I start running again as I TRI to heal.
Nathan Smith
I'm officially registered for the 'I Swam the Dam' triathlon, and I have some great swimming resources and a pedal option that I am excited to try out and report on in the near future. Stay tuned.
Reader Comments (2)
Barefoot Ted seems to have it figured out...
http://barefootted.com/uploaded_images/IMGP1205-785175.JPG
. Keep us very informative posted on other in formation about Foot Pain. Thanks for sharing this! keep it up.
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