Well, it finally happened. I hurt my stupid foot. Again. How it happened? I honestly don’t know. The body at the age of 32 can be an achy, fragile thing. One day you’re riding high, running a steady 9:30 pace for 4 miles straight, easing into the Spring running season like a majestic steed on the trails of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. The next day, you take one wrong step into your kitchen and suddenly your left foot is screaming at you like an anti-masker in a Walmart. I wish I knew what I did to it. I was literally getting something out of my fridge. Why couldn’t it have been from doing something cooler, like getting in a bar fight or saving a kitten from a burning building?
Alas, no matter how much the mind may be willing and able, the body always wins, and it’s important to listen to it when it’s crying for help. The last thing you want to do as a runner is to run through an injury and ignore any pain you might be feeling. Now, I’m not talking about “OMG I want this run to be over, these hills are killing me” pain we might experience during a run. I’m talking about that sharp, stabbing, ouch-I-should-probably-sit-down pain. It’ll come at you hard and sudden like a bolt of lightning, and when it hits, it’s your body calling time out. It might be time to sit a few runs out, you know? Actually, it’s more than okay; it’s for the best. Giving your body a rest is one of the best things you can do for yourself and your routine. One week of rest will you do your body wonders. Now, do I listen to my own damn advice? Reader, I do not.
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When I had my first major running injury back in 2017, I felt embarrassed. Up until that point, I had been running more consistently and longer than I ever had. I was CRUSHING those miles, week after week. Putting in those miles week after week made me feel happy. I was getting better, but I wasn’t exactly getting smarter. I got cocky. I should’ve seen I was pushing my body too hard with not much else in terms of cross-training to back it up. I was barreling down hills instead of treating them with respect, and the thing about running is if you don’t respect it, it has a way of bringing you back down to earth.
And that’s exactly what happened. My foot began to yell at me, oh man did it ever! Pretty much out of nowhere, too. It was my own damn fault. I didn’t listen to my body when I should have. I needed to pace myself more. When the pain first arrived, I thought I could run through it. I didn’t want the running to end after all the progress I had made. I thought that if I stopped running, I might never get back out there. I still had a lot to learn. But the pain lingered and grew more severe. I thought I had broken my foot, which clearly wasn’t the case. I could still hobble around on it after all. I guess I don’t know what a broken foot feels like. Still, I went to the doctor to get some x-rays, but they found no cracks or crinkles.
Then I went to a foot doctor (imagine dedicating your life to feet?), who said I just needed some more arch support for my flat feet and I would need to take it easy for a bit. She sent me on my way, but I still didn’t listen. I ran too hard too soon and aggravated my dang foot again, just a mere few weeks later. This time I ended up in physical therapy to build my foot strength up. That’s when I thought “oh God, I’m going to have to learn how to run all over again.” And in a way, you kinda do, but it’s about taking the time to build your strength. At PT, I learned some good strength training routines for parts of my body I didn’t know you could strengthen. I mean, doing glute-bridges is a fun, totally not-awkward activity to do in the middle of a physical therapists office in front of other hobbling strangers. It was my punishment for taking running for granted I guess, something I would never do ever again.
That said, the strength training and attention to detail made me a better runner, a smarter runner, even. I became more patient with myself, and more in-tuned to what my body might be telling me. I would have to work my way back to running 9 minute miles consistently, but that’s okay. I was happy to be out there again. My goal entering physical therapy at the time was to be able to run the Broad Street Run in Philadelphia for the first time, and I did. It felt great! I guess good things can happen when you take care of yourself.
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This sounds like a happy ending, lesson-learned about overcoming minor injuries, right? Well, as I mentioned earlier, a few weeks ago I found myself sidelined once again by a nagging foot, and I went through the same mental gymnastics I did 4 years ago. Gah! I should’ve been smarter. Why does running have to be so hard? Will I ever be able to run again? Should I take up cycling and if so, do I need to wear spandex? It just sucks when something that brings you so much joy and relief gets taken away from you so suddenly. So when I get injured, it feels like my mental health is in jeopardy too.
I guess mentally preparing yourself for injuries also takes some practice. I've always been a glass-half-empty sorta person. It must be the Irish in me. When am I ever going to learn? Sitting out a week from running doesn’t have to be such a nihilistic endeavor. It’s not like I’m going to forget how to run after some time off, but because running can be such an addictive activity, it’s easy to fall into the mind trap where you think you might never be the same if you go without it for a week. At least, it is for me anyway.
I think I know what the problem was. We had just moved into a new house that sits atop a steep hill. It probably wasn’t the best idea to run straight down that hill, proceed on a slightly hilly four mile run, and then run back up that hill at the end of it. My dogs were barkin’ the next day, when they bark, you can either ignore them or give them what they want so they’ll shut up. So, I gave mine some rest, and it totally worked. Despite these thoughts of panic, I tried not to let it get to me. I thought if there’s one thing I can control with something like this, it’s rest. It took a while, but I finally convinced myself that if I just stayed off my foot and iced it consistently for a week, I would be fine. So that’s what I did. I stopped running for a whole week, all the while reminding myself that I wasn’t going to lose any progress I’ve made all these years. I wasn’t going to forget how to run or lose my love for it. All I needed was [Guns N’ Roses voice] a little patience. Maybe I am getting a little wiser, eh? [picks the Toronto Maple Leafs to win the Cup in my playoff pool] okay, maybe not.
The first run back from injury is always interesting, though, right? You don’t want to push yourself too far, but you also want to do enough to feel good about yourself and that you’re making progress. I usually try to do 2.5 miles at an easy pace on a flat route, like a warm up to help me get my legs going and remember to breathe again. Then you work your way up from there. It’s been about five weeks since my minor injury, and (knock on wood) I’m feeling good again. My miles are increasing, and my average pace has become a steady 9:30. I’ve had more of what I call “Forrest Gump runs,” where I initially only plan on running for, say, 3 miles but end up doing 5 because of how good I feel in the middle of it (“I just felt like running!”). Those are the best.
But I’m doing other things too. I’m taking off days to do a bit of strength training for runners (gyms bore me, but there’s some cool stuff you can do at home), and I’m walking a lot more. I still would like to get a good bike, but I guess I’ll save that for another day. For now, I’m just trying to keep my legs moving in different ways. Hopefully by doing more, I’ll have to sit out less. But if/when I do find myself dealing with another minor injury of some sort (and Lord knows I will), it’s good to know that I will still remember how to run after all.
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IT KEEPS YOU RUNNING: Music for Your Miles
Music and running go hand-in-hand. Here’s what you should be putting on your running playlist this week.
Johnny Dynamite and the Bloodsuckers – “Bats in the Woods”
Brooklyn’s John Morisi a.k.a. Johnny Dynamite has been a staple in the greater NYC DIY music scene for more than a few years now, making haunting gothic synth pop that recalls The Cure, Depeche Mode, or MGMT. From what I can tell, he mostly records alone in a small bedroom, but what he produces sounds like something from another era when bands would spend weeks recording in lavish studios in LA. His music belongs in an episode of Miami Vice, draped in neon and under palm trees. I have never seen Stranger Things, but I imagine this is what Stranger Things sounds like. When done right, I think the 80s might be the coolest decade for bands to find inspiration in, and Johnny Dynamite does it right. His new song “Bat in the Woods” from his upcoming album Sleevelesss (out June 25 via Born Losers) is a lush power ballad that recalls Hysteria-era Def Leppard, which is to say it is extremely my shit, and it makes it more than just synth-pop. It kinda reminds me a bit of Merchandise as well, or the Strokes at their most 80s-nostalgic. Just good stuff all around. I mean, along with his band the Bloodsuckers, the guy seems to be a rocker at heart too (just look at that spankin’ denim vest on the album cover). Is he a runner too? I don’t know! But get “Bat in the Woods” on your running playlists this week.
UV-TV – Always Something
It’s a shame that we had such a lousy Memorial Day weekend weather-wise (good running weather though…) because both “Bat in the Woods” and this next album would’ve been perfect for those warm weather cookouts. NYC’s UV-TV just released a fantastic new album Always Something (via PaperCup Music). I know Stereogum already went through this last week rightfully naming Always Something their album of the week, and I know the point of this newsletter was not to highlight the already highlighted, but I’m sorry not sorry, I have to break my rule here. I want more people to know about this record. I mean, how can you not love this music? It’s buzzy and fun. It’s effortlessly crafted power-pop that recalls the Go-Gos or The Pretenders that, as they put it, “walks a fine line between beauty and chaos.” Some of the guitars on here, like on “Back to Nowhere” and “Distant Lullaby,” also remind me a bit of the Cult as well. It’s also the perfect companion for a quick run. Most of all, it’s scratching me right in the spot where Alvvays used to reside, but man, where has that band been? I miss them. It’s one of those albums where the energy never lets up, a la Life’s Rich Pageant. Other highlights like “Wildflower” and “I Don’t Mind,” are sure to be live highlights in the not-so-distant future. Toronto may have Alvvays, but NYC has UV-TV and that’s just fine by me.
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Be sure to follow the Running On Nothing Spotify Playlist here.