Piriformed

Things were going good, except it's now been a week since the last time I ran.

I had had a good week, with  almost 80 km (one rest included) and some good running (5x1km, and a 17.40 park run with a fourth Km in 3.26). Then, at the end of last Monday's easy (and beautiful) 12km, i felt a bit of a sting in my right glute, which happens very often. Yet, when I went running the next day, the sting was still there, and got awful after about 12minutes of slow running. Since then, I have been pretty much useless, and still cannot even walk straight.

After a while, I began to worry it could be a stress fracture; but a few symptoms did not add up - doesn't hurt when I sit down, even for long time, or if I press on it, and I can move my leg in any way without pain. Doing crazy stretches like pigeon pose does not hurt either. It is only when I put weight on my foot - then, my glute screams. I went to the GP today, who confirmed that it looks like a bad muscle strain, but no cracks in the bones. It's basically a mammoth piriformis syndrome.

To do something in the meantime, I have been a few times at the pool: I tried deep water running, for a change. It is interesting, but (a) you look like an idiot (b) you need to be there when there is no one swimming, or they will hate you (and rightly so) and (c) it is probably the most boring thing after running on a treadmill. I ended up focusing on swimming only. You get a good workout out of it, but I should be running 20km per day, rather than doing half an hour of very poor freestyle. I tried a few "sprints", and I must have looked like a beached whale trying to get back into water...

Tomorrow might be a bike ride, weather permitting. Then, we will see. In the meantime, Aspirin, Voltaren, and meditation.. Needless to say, the morale is low, and the marathon target has suddenly disappeared beyond the horizon of utopia..