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I thought things were on track, I had not felt any pain in my calf for about a week. I had been able to cycle, perform weighted calf raises, squats, dead lifts and more, and not so much as a teeny, tiny, twinge had occurred. I even did a 1km run on the treadmill after my upper body work out on Tuesday lunchtime and everything was feeling great.
So I decided, that night, whilst Lilou was at football training, I would take a gentle run down the Trent and back. About a mile and a half in, I could feel my right calf beginning to tighten, very slightly, so I stopped. I walked over the suspension bridge, stopped for a selfie (see shit picture above), then decided I would try running again. It became apparent, very quickly, I was going to have to stop. Fuming! I walked steadily back to the football training where I stood with some of the other parents and I had bit of a moan to anyone who would listen.
By the time I made it back I couldn’t feel any pain. I thought that maybe I was being over cautious. But then when I was at home later, I felt a sharp pain, not intense, as I began to walk up the stairs, almost like a pin prick, or a small electric shock. Since then, there has been a slight soreness and tightness.
I decided that I needed to see a sports physio about this, so after having some text chat with an old work colleague of mine who lives nearby, and is a keen and very good runner, I got in touch with a guy who is about a 10 minute drive away. He is an ex pro footballer and also a keen runner, signed for Forest at one point, I won’t hold that against him.
We spoke on the phone for about 20 minutes and it sounds like he knows his stuff, so I’m booked in to see him next Thursday. In the meantime he said it was okay to continue cycling and weight training if there is no pain during or after doing the exercise. He also suggested swimming, so I might do a couple of early morning sessions next week, it’s been a few months.
This lunchtime I went to the gym. I did a 1km warm up on the rowing machine. Dead lifts, squats and leg extension, I left the calves alone, then I did 10 minutes on the bike to cool down.
I also spent some time working out how to get the required amount of protein in me without starting to eat meat again. Basing it on 1.8 grams of protein per kg of body weight I need about 173 grams of protein a day. I ordered some of Sevenhills Wholefoods Organic Raw Hemp Protein Powder to help. I should probably lose some weight. Might help with the calf problems as well.
