Paws

I had cramp in my foot last night and was actually very concerned that it may be my neuritis raising it's ugly head again. To make matters worse, the triple blistered big toe which has been healing very nicely was itchy beyond belief... so bad that I couldn't sleep for it!

I was working in another branch today, so when I got a spare moment I rang the podiatrist who gave a definite flat "No" to the possibility of it being a recurring issue with my foot. I was very relieved and spent the rest of the morning googling "Cramp in feet". One of the things was dehydration and I have to admit that I haven't been drinking my normal amounts (and of course had a red wine binge to top it off too). I immediately started sipping water... just in case.

By the time I got home I was feeling fine and really couldn't decide what to do about a run... do I go or do I have another rest day to make sure. I tossed a coin... heads for "Run", tails for "Rest". Heads it was... I couldn't help but smile and think that if it had been tails I may have had to do a 'best of 3'.

The weather was gorgeous... around 19 degrees and sunny with a gentle breeze. The sun was actually quite hot and my bare shoulders felt quite warm. I used my Oakley glasses again... determined that they were not a waste of money and I COULD get used to them. I have to say they were fine... lovely and comfortable and a Godsend in the bright sunshine.
The run was totally effortless and I found my mind wandering as I had no reason to think about the run as it was seemingly so easy today. I found myself running up hills and inclines that normally have me a little out of breath but today I felt like I was out for an easy walk. It was lovely. I got back and my foot felt fine. I put my feet straight in cold water (just in case) and got a slight cramp afterwards, but it wasn't bad.
I made sure I drank plenty of fluids and massaged some cream into my feet (trying to stop the dog licking it off at the same time). It wasn't until I was sorting my feet out that I noticed a massive bruise on my foot along with a small puncture mark... right where my cramp originates. How could I have missed that! My mind then flicked back to Thursday evening when the dog trampled on me and made me almost cry because he hurt me so much! Could that have been the cause of the cramp all along?

William contacted me about a few questions I had asked about long runs and tapering before Bangalore. Turns out Amsterdam definitely will be my last long run and I'm to do a 3 week taper, but I can train right up to then as normal. I can even go past marathon distance as long as it's a long slow run/walk/amble. I spoke to Graeme about maybe heading off to the Lake District for this and see some beautiful scenery while we're on, and he thinks it's a great idea.
I also mentioned intervals. I have been so hung up on not walking and I believe because of this my running sections are a little slower than I could do. So, I am going to go back to walking recoveries and try and ramp up the speed. I have finally realised it is not a cardinal sin to walk!
And speaking of walking, the next long run I do (which will be in a fortnight) I am to try a 15:5 run/walk. I really like the sound of doing this as the 15:3 was just a bit too tiring and I don't think I could do 75K like that. I'm really looking forward to trying that! :-)