ITBS Part Two

This post is an update on my journey with Illio-tibial Band Syndrome (ITBS).
I completed my Trail run with no drama at all. It seems my regime of running, resistance training as well as ice and Voltaren gel have paid off.


7 Things I did to treat my ITBS

1. Gait assessment and changing shoes -  I went for Gait analysis and found that I am a Supinator. As it turned out the running shoes I had been using were more suitable for overpronators.
2. Changing my running surface - I stopped all road running took to training on the rugby field and off road on trails.
3. Single leg resistance exerciss -  single leg squats and lunges. These single leg exercises are a great way to strengthen your leg muscles and especially your core and postural muscles. I also added calf raises and bilateral squats and lunges for good measure with progressively increasing weights off course.
4. More strength training - I also incorporated Stairs which are great for building up endurance and general lower body strengthening whilst burning a ton of fat.
5. Stretches - every evening with a foam roller
6. Ice and Muscle Pain Gel - twice a day everyday for the first week or two after a flare up. This made a world of difference.

I hope I am fully healed and I can get back to my goal of running a full marathon in the months to come.

Maple Syrup Fast

After falling off the wagon with my training, I needed to start afresh on a clean slate with a detox diet.  The Detox diet I chose was the Master Cleanse or Lemonade diet as some people call it.

This starvation diet basically consists of drinking several glasses of a mixture of lemon juice, cayenne pepper and molasses (I am insulin resistant so maple syrup wouldn't do) as well as some laxatives. You are meant to be on the diet for 10 days to 40 days but I think you would be really killing your body and depriving it of nutrients.

I am obsessed with maintaining muscle mass and not getting flu, so I threw in daily multivitamins, 1000mg Vit C, Omega 3s and BCAAs. I only did 30-40 minutes of medium impact cardio rather than the long running sessions.

Day one was quite alright. I was very busy at work so I didn't have time to twiddle my thumbs and think about food. When I did the saltwater flush (an aggressive laxative of sorts) there was no effect. I just felt very ill after drinking so much salty water.

On Day two, I felt the hunger starting to come in, as well as the headaches and a general bad mood. I must have messed up the saltwater concentrations on the first day because when I did the flush results were very explosive!!! A note for anyone who tries to do this - make sure you do not have to leave the house or make sure you have uninterrupted access to a toilet for three hours. My sister tried the master cleanse and her flush effects would last up to 6 hours so everybody is different.
By the end of the second day, I was doing my workout simply to take my mind off the lack of food and the grumbling in my tummy.


Day three was really tough because I had a catered Sports Club meeting to attend. I drank four bottles of mineral water just to keep my mouth occupied. This was extremely difficult for me since I absolutely love samosas!


Day four to seven were much of a muchness. I gave up on the saltwater flush because the cramps were far too painful for me and I didn't want to get rid of all my natural intestinal flora. Each evening I would do Taebo for 45 minutes and then take a long bubble bath while sipping my 'lemonade'. Throughout these days my hunger was minimal - as long as I avoided cooking situations

I gave up on Day 8 because my acne had become really really bad and I had only lost 1kg for 8 days of starvation. A third reason, and probably most important, I simply missed food and flavour. When I succumbed to a glass of OJ, I was not hungry at all. My mind had simply told my body this was as far as it would go.

Doing a fast of this kind is like running a marathon. It is all mind over matter. If you think you can you can, if you think you can't you can't.

I am proud that I managed to survive 8 days on such an extreme diet. I do think the results would have been better if I had followed the instructions to the letter. I may possibly have had some hormonal issues causing water retention too.

Next time I will definitely take a more flexible approach that I can keep up for longer. My skin didn't clear up and I didn't lose any weight but I did manage to re-focus and start to crave healthy food again.

Relationship with Food, Relationship with Money

Ever noticed how poor people are often really big? And when someone starts to lose weight suddenly their finances  and other aspects of their life start to come together?  I have seen this trend with family, friends and especially myself. Can you relate to this too?

 

After some introspection I found that my relationship with money is very similar to my relationship with food. I have had disordered eating for most of my life and a lot of money problems. I suffer from a binge-purge type of disorder. Basically, eating everything in sight and then working out for hours or starving for days to try and undo the damage. This pattern is so strange but I put my body through the extremes of excess and lack.

 

My spending habits seem to follow a similar pattern. Splurging on the latest handbag or shoes, purchasing on credit and then counting my pennies two weeks later when I can't make rent. Oscillating between excess and lack is obviously present in most aspects of my life but most apparent in the my eating and spending habits.

 

The question I have for my psychotherapist is "How do I deal with this?".

I am getting deeper into debt and every year a few pounds heavier.

 

This scary pattern is no isolated incident. Many people I know fall into the same trap. Poor money decisions and poor food decisions seem to go hand in hand.

This trend is not limited to binge-purge eating patterns. Other eating disorders are also mirrored by attitudes to money. How many obese women do you know who are spendthrifts in spite of being very wealthy? On some level they have a fear of lack or famine and therefore hoard food and money.

All this means that when one gets their weight in control other areas of their lives will improve.  The solution to disordered eating/spending lies in personal discipline and self-control. A diet or a budget may be a useful tool, but you really need to get to the bottom of why you eat/spend so much and then work to achieve a balance.

Two Oceans in Cape Town

This Easter saw me in Cape Town at the Two Oceans Marathon. Entries for the half ran out very quickly so I had to settle for the Trail Run. I had heard from several technical runners that the 22km is one of the toughest races so I signed up for the 10km instead.

Unfortunately the 10km Trail Run was literally a walk in the park. It was good for sparing my ITBS-stricken knee but not much of challenge. At least not enough of a challenge to justify two flights, 2000 miles and 4 days off work.

I had been warned that trail running times are usually double the road running times. So you can imagine my surprise when I completed the 10km trail in 1 hour 13 minutes. My usual 10km time is about 50minutes so I was nowhere near double my road running time.Next year I am signing up for the 22km trail which should satisfy the adrenalin-junkie inside me. If that fails then I will have to go cage diving with the sharks or surfing!

My focus now is the Victoria Falls Marathon.

The 10km Two Oceans Trail is a race for beginner runners period - trail or otherwise. It is a beautiful location for a run despite the unpredictable weather. It is worth adding to your running calendar if you are in the southern hemisphere around Easter. If you are still not convinced that it's the Worlds Most Beautiful Marathon here are some happy snaps below

 

View from the Table Mountain Cable way

On the tour bus - near Hout Bay

Camps bay 1

Camps Bay 2

 

ITBS - Illiotibial Band Friction Syndrome (Part One)

Sharp pain on the lateral aspect of my knee and complete inability to bear weight through the limb. This is what I felt the morning after my 21km run last week. It certainly wasn't my strongest run and to make matters worse I have triggered a flare up of Illiotibial Band Syndrome or ITBS.

If you have been off training for a while, ease back into it so you can regain your strength. Otherwise you will get injured if you do too much too soon. I had been off training for about three weeks. When I ran my 21km on Sunday, I didn't do anything differently. Considering I have done half marathons before, I should have finished the race stronger. However after a course of antibiotics and no training for three weeks my body was dying.

The following morning I had a sharp pain running down the side of my knee which was worse whenever I moved the knee or tried to walk. Nothing could bring me relief. Since the injury occurred I have been applying diclofenac gel on my knee and icing it throughout the day and before bed. I have also been incorporating some stretches for the IT Band. The muscles originate from the hip joint so you need to stretch the side of your hip

Two days into it, I am not much better in spite of all the ice. I decide to try and run it off.

This was a bad idea that probably extended my recovery time quite significantly. After my attempt to "run off" the pain I could barely walk. Getting out a of a chair was painful, driving was difficult and sleeping was hard because of the pain. So off to the doctor. He recommended a powerful anti-inflammatory drug called piroxicam.


After taking piroxicam the first time I felt ready to run. I continued to take it for two more days and kept up the stretching, icing and gel even though the pain had significantly subsided. I have now incorporated some strengthening exercises into my training.

From my reading, the muscle imbalance is what caused the injury in the first place so although the pain may be treated it is important to address the root cause. I have now incorporated a workout routine that strengthens all my leg muscles. I am also going to make sure I stretch my IT Band and other leg muscles thoroughly after the run. It is advised to soak in ice after the run so that will be something to add as well.

*** Just a note : If you do take anti-inflammatories remember that they can affect you negatively if you have a sensitive GI tract. Never take them on an empty stomach and look for an alternative if you already have ulcers. Do not take them longer than necessary as they may hamper soft tissue healing. See NSAIDs and Sports Injuries

REST is always going to be the most important aspect for recovery from any running injury. As soon as you are injured take some time off the offending activity to recover. You can always do some other training. If you do not deal with it properly, the injury may recur. This can be a major setback if you are training for an important race. Specifically with regards to ITBS you may also need to look at correcting your stride or getting footwear that compensates for any imbalances.

Discipline...

Lately I've been thinking a lot about what makes a difference between those who get results and those who don't. What makes one person stick to a healthy exercise and nutrition program and another give up by lunchtime. I realise it all comes down to the mindset of the person and their discipline. 

According to Merriam-Webster, discipline is defined as 'training that corrects, molds or perfects the mental faculties or moral character; control gained by enforcing obedience or order; orderly or prescribed conduct or pattern of behaviour; self-control'. 
From this, it is clear that discipline is planned, structured and it involves mind over matter.  

For those of you who are Christian you may be giving up something or committing to something for Lent. Even if you are not spiritual you can still use this lent period as a time to refocus and get back on track. Perhaps you lost momentum after New Year's. Sometimes we just need a mental nudge to help us be focused and disciplined.

People often ask me what it takes to keep trim and fit.  I tell them it is hard work and discipline. Discipline not to have the extra slice of cake, discipline to wake up at 4:30am to get in your long runs, discipline to endure the discomfort of hard workouts to build a lean body. Probably most importantly of all, discipline to put yourself first and know that your goals are more important than anything anyone else can say or do.

The reality is you can lose some weight and get fitter with an average effort. But if you want to get to single digit body fat % or achieve great feats of human performance, you need to practise discipline every minute of everyday of your life. You need to go beyond the ordinary effort levels and push yourself harder. After all, what could be worth more than achieving what you want?  

Alcohol and the diet dilemma

Anyone who has had bronchitis knows that the uncontrollable cough is very hard to shake off. It lingers even after the infection has cleared. Sometimes for as long as 6 weeks.  I had many people suggesting home remedies ranging from ginger, honey and lemon to brandy and honey. Other recipes also suggest  mint leaves, eucalyptus, cinnamon and the list goes on.

The suggestion of brandy got me interested in the subject of alcohol. Much as I wanted to get rid of the cough, I didn't want to sabotage my progress by knocking back three or more shots of Brandy and spoonfuls of honey throughout the day.

Alcohol has many negative effects that stem from the dehydration it causes and its effect on nutrient absorption and metabolism. Alcohol can damage your brain, make you dependent on the buzz and affect your mood. It also makes you more prone to injury, lowers immunity and in chronic cases of alcoholism nutrient deficiencies are common.  A bad drinking habit will make you gain weight and pretty much cancel out the gains made during training.

In terms of calories and health benefits, beer and wine are probably the best choices. Hard liquor is very high in calories and alcohol content and usually requires a mixer that can often be calorie-laden too. High alcohol volume drinks are not the best because the more you drink the harder it is to stop drinking and the more likely it is that you will over-indulge in food and engage in other irresponsible behaviours.

From a cardiovascular health and cancer prevention stand point, wine is often touted to be the best form of alcohol. These benefits are mostly found with red wine. Red wine, though, usually has upwards of 11% alcohol volume. A 140ml serving of wine (small glass) can contain about 80 - 120 calories. This means that a 300ml serving of wine is well over 200 calories.

If you are an active person and already leading a healthy lifestyle, I would expect that your cardiovascular system is already in a pretty good state. It would be better for you to drink light beer.
Not only do you benefit from fewer calories but it may be easier mentally since you can drink a little more.  Beer has also been found to contain antioxidants and vitamins that may provide a health benefit. A 340ml bottle of light beer can come in as low as 55 calories. A 340ml bottle of Castle Lite has 104 calories. Some ciders aren't too bad either. A 340ml bottle of Savannah Light contains 136 calories. The alcohol content in light beer and light ciders is lower, typically 2.8% - 4% volume so you won't be motherless after a few drinks.

Remember that whichever you choose, light beer or wine, alcohol messes up your metabolism. Your body stops burning fat from the food you are eating and prefers to burn off the alcohol first. This is a recipe for fat storage.  Say Hello! to a 'beer belly'

You are chasing your tail if you are going to have more than two drinks everyday. It is very easy to over indulge in alcohol so be wise and put in checks and balances so you don't overdo it.

If you are like me and serious about your fitness and weight loss goals, what is the best alcohol for you to drink? Nothing. Drink water instead. Lots of water and a mix of ginger, honey and lemon once a day got rid of my 'bronchitis cough' in nine days.