Yesterday I went for a 5-miler and it took almost that many miles for my calf muscles to loosen up. I had to shorten my stride and my calves hurt till about 4 miles. I stretched afterward, and I used a tennis ball last night to try to roll the muscles out because they still felt tight.
Today, I wanted to take T Junior for a short 3-miler and I had to stop after one mile. My calves hurt so bad! I even stopped and tried to stretch them out twice!
I ran home, pushing the BOB and crying. Four weeks till the marathon. Please tell me I’m not injured and that it’s not too late to fix this.
They’ve been tight for about two weeks, but have felt okay after a couple miles. I’ve been taking cold baths after my long runs, but I did not do this after Friday’s 14-miler.
I don’t know what to do and I’m freaking out. Mr. T thinks I’m running too much, but last week I only ran 3 on Tuesday, 14 on Friday and 5 on Sunday. I went for an easy stationary bike ride on Wednesday — mostly so I could try to loosen up my calves.
Help!
16 comments
Oh I'm sorry. I have no advice, but I hope those calves get the message that now is NOT the time to freak out!!!
I don't think I have any advice either. Maybe try eating more potassium and magnesium. It helps with cramping.Make sure you are getting enough calcium as well. Take with Vit D in the morning and your Potassium and Mag in the evening before bed.I sure hope you get it figured out!
I'm hoping everything gets better quickly for you! I wish I had some advice!
I know you've tried cold, have you tried heat? They were giving away those 8 hour stick on heat pads at the Vancouver run & I grabbed a couple. You can slap them on & leave them there for 8 hours of heat… they might work for you. Cold shrinks swelling, but I think heat is supposed to increase blood flow, relax muscles & promote healing. ?? I'm no authority so I could be totally wrong. Hope you get it sorted soon.
Get a foam roller and roll on that thing for a good long while. Target has one that comes with an istructional DVD. Find some more extensive stretches to do the day after your long runs. I do a full body stretch the day after my long run and two days before. Helps tremendiously! Hurdler stretch is a great one for calves and also a lunge with the back leg bent pressing the heel towards the floor. Good Luck!
Hang in there! Darn marathon to totally mess us up mentally when stuff like this happens. You can do it. I think the heat pad might work. Try and take it easy.
I'm sorry I am not much help advice wise but feel better soon!
Agh. Ok, breathe. I totally understand where you're at. You'll be ok though. Is it the back where your muscle attached to your leg almost? Mine did that and I became religious about icing it and I started always putting icy hot on it before a run. stretch stretch stretch it too. You'll be ok. Hang in there and don't be too worried. You've got this. Just a little bump.
Thank you guys! I'm going to come up with a “plan” based on all the advice and what I've read online. I'll post it tomorrow.
I don't have any advice, but I'm sending healing vibes your way. Good luck!
I have only been running for a few months myself but I recently tried using BioFreeze Gel on my calves and it helped me a lot on a 6 mile run I did this past Saturday. It smells like a very strong cough drop but hey, whatever works!
Might try a soak in the tub with Epsom Salt or maybe a cold ice bath.
I'm so sorry, I haven't had issues with my calves. I'm sure you are stretching them like crazy already? Can you get in to see a PT?
Good luck! Taking a cold shower/bath afterwards has really helped with my pain/stiffness.
i have had tight, achy calves before but i don't know if it is the same as what you are having. do you have some recovery socks (any brand)? sport those as much as you can. (i think they help and it sure doesn't hurt anyway). keep massaging with tennis ball or foam roller, ice/heat, and maybe try to warm up with a walk to loosen them up before running? stay on flat ground too! 🙁 hope they start feeling better soon!
What lindsay (with the little l) says. Also- how many miles do you have on your shoes? Or have you changed them recently? Shoes are the #1 cause of strange and unusual foot/leg/joint (knees and hips) pain. I know that my shoes are done when start getting pain in places where I normally don't…..