Went for a run for the first time in nearly half a year the other day. The layoff wasn’t due to laziness, but more because, for the past few months, I’ve had a spike permanently lodged in the arch of my left foot.
It began in January when I was playing ball hockey, something I have been doing off and on for the past few years with a regular group of guys. The morning after one of our weekly sessions, I stepped out of bed and was greeted by this stabbing pain in the bottom of my foot as soon as it touched the chilly laminate floor.
The first few steps were irritating, but after I walked the dog, the pain usually subsided and I simply got on with my day. Some days it would flare up, sometimes it felt fine. It remained that way for several weeks, and once I realized it wasn’t going to heal on its own, I decided to take action by booking a physiotherapy appointment.
After analyzing my stride and foot mobility, my physio prescribed some stretches and exercises to loosen up the muscles. She then taped my foot to relieve some of the burden on my arch.
And I was supposed to take it easy with my running, which was a little problematic as I was planning to train for my first marathon, the Royal Victoria in October. I dragged myself through the BMO half marathon in Kelowna last Thanksgiving and was determined to be better prepared this time around. So much for that idea.
But by dutifully following the stretching regime and resting the problem foot, it soon began to feel better. After a week of pain-free mobility, I decided to give ball hockey another go. Big mistake. I didn’t even make it through warm-up before I could feel my foot acting up.
I played anyway and regretted it the next day. Feeling like I was back at square one, I became frustrated, gave up on it and spent the subsequent few months hobbling around it as best I could.
Then something momentous happened – I turned 35.
As our sports editor, Kevin Mitchell, graciously pointed out, I can now officially play oldtimers soccer. Kev’s not far from being eligible to perform one-act plays at the B.C. Seniors Games, so he speaks from considerable experience. But I have photographed the 35+ soccer guys for the paper and know how good (and competitive) some of those players are.
It did get me thinking – I’m still relatively young, but my body is already throwing up some warning signs that I had better start taking care of it, or it might escalate from a minor foot rebellion into a full-blown uprising. So back to physio I went, only this time I added a dose of sports massage to improve my chances of complete recovery.
If you have never had it, sports massage is anything but relaxing. There are no hot rocks or scented candles, and you won’t hear the sound of a babbling brook or other forest sounds in the background sending you into meditative bliss. Even if there was, you wouldn’t notice because I can guarantee your focus will be solely aimed at the intense sensation of muscle being “stripped” from your body.
I joked with Jennifer Bond, owner of Foothills Massage Therapy, that she would make an excellent interrogator for the CIA. As is her trade, she finds the problem areas and attacks them mercilessly with pin-point precision and a talon-like grip.
The results are worth it. I am already starting to feel results from the one-two punch of physio and massage, evidenced by the lack of pain after my most recent run.
My lungs certainly complained after the long layoff, and I have my doubts whether I’ll be ready for a fall marathon, but I think I’m on the right track.
Graeme Corbett is a sports/business reporter for The Morning Star
