View Full Version : Question for people who have thru-hiked: recovery
I finished my 1800 mile section on the last day of August. Now it's mid-February. Whenever I go for a hike, after the ride home in the car, I can barely get out of the car. I can barely walk. My feet are killing me, my legs and hips are stiff. It's really got me bummed out. I can't hardly do anything without getting sore. I'm certainly not doing the big mile days I used to. Just a 5 mile hike does this to me. Even taking a long walk window shopping downtown has all my foot pain come back, and then once I sit down and try to get back up again, I feel like I'm 100 years old.
Did anybody else have this happen to them? How long until you were back to normal? Anything I ought to be doing?
P.S. I'm 45 years old.
I don't care what good or bad advice you may or may not ultimately receive here, based on just the little you shared here this is not the place to seek professional health care. Based on what you said, it's time to seek expert medical knowledge.
wtmntcaretaker
02-14-2010, 22:14
my feet are still not 100%. I still creek and crack. and my feet are still sore in the mornings. and I am 25! :rolleyes:
Blissful
02-14-2010, 22:58
Sounds like something is wrong. Could also be your footwear throwing you off? If shoes are worn, I ache much more. But I recall aching for quite a while after the trail. Be sure you are in a running program and have good shoes. Andf you need to stretch well before and after any kind of exercise.
So did you go home and put your feet up and continue to eat 6,000 calories a day. did you stop working out completely
Yep not enough info.
44 years old here. I walk 5 miles a day in a couple of metro parks around town. I can do it in just over an hour. not bad for an old man.
When I hike with the scouts 10 or more miles I still hurt. sucks getting old
Spirit Walker
02-14-2010, 23:13
Sounds normal to me - as long as you can still hike, I wouldn't worry about the stiffness afterwards. If you find out otherwise, please let me know.
Snowleopard
02-14-2010, 23:21
I don't care what good or bad advice you may or may not ultimately receive here, based on just the little you shared here this is not the place to seek professional health care. Based on what you said, it's time to seek expert medical knowledge.
Absolutely, see your doctor.
It may not be anything serious, the fix may just be stretches and exercise, prescribed by a doctor. I've had various joint problems that were made 90% to 100% better by physical therapy.
Gladiator
02-14-2010, 23:23
How's your diet when you hike? Maybe some nutrient or electrolyte deficiencies could be catching up with you.
I'm walking to work about 3 miles round trip. I hike on the weekends. I try to jog every other day for about 20 minutes. I'm not a runner, so I'm trying to work my way up. I'm just a beginner right now.
So I'm still trying to get regular exercise. I don't just sit on the couch eating 6000 calories a day. But I do sit around a lot because I went back to work. :(
I just wanted to know if it's normal to feel this way still. If it was, then I wouldn't bother with a doctor. In my experience, doctors have no idea about things like long-distance hiking
Sir-Packs-Alot
02-15-2010, 00:04
I'm 47 and did my hike in 03 - my knees were never quite the same - but I do strengthening exercises and take a liquid glucosamine/chondroitin that's great.
I do multi day backpacks a few times a month.
See a doctor - then see what your workup says. Lot's of folks just aren't eating right and excercising regularly. (Swansons Health Products - online - has great quality dietary supplements.)
Find a doctor that is experienced with distance athletes, preferably a doctor who is also an athlete. Most doctors won't understand.
I have had similar problems after marathons, but not for more than a couple of weeks.
My guess is that you need a lot of rest. No running, no hiking, just some easy walking for at least a month.
But see someone who actually knows what they are talking about. Soon.
Let us know. We do care about you.
You are right about doctors having no clue, especially for 'women of a certain age'. Even so, what you are experiencing is not good even if others here say they have the same problem. When you see your doctor, be sure to ask for a blood test for Lyme disease. In the meantime, you might try some over the counter glucosamine-condroiton products if you haven't already. Yeah, old sucks, but it shouldn't stop you from enjoying hiking.
Old? She is only 45.
As previously suggested; Find the right doctor. While looking get the blood workup and a copy to take with you. Lyme test also. Old shoes can cause problems, I agree even though I do not understand why.
I have an old pair that I need to throw away even though they look and feel OK ish(used thru PA rocks).
Appalachian Tater
02-15-2010, 00:58
I had similar problems to the ones you are having but not six months later. My knees never quite fully recovered but everything else did, including the weight I had lost. :( I do feel tired and my feet hurt after walking eight miles on pavement but that doesn't seem abnormal. I am about the same age you are and unfortunately the effects of aging are starting to show up.
Lyme disease tests are notoriously inaccurate. Check out the symptoms to see if you have or had them, especially a bout of flu-like symptoms during your thru-hike. Not everyone gets a rash so not having had one doesn't mean you're clear on that.
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/lyme-disease/DS00116/DSECTION=symptoms
There are doctors who specialize in sports medicine if you want to go that route or if most of your problems seem to be joint-related you could see a rheumatologist. Are your symptoms improving at all, even slowly? If not, you should see someone.
Your main concern should be the small chance that you do have something like Lyme or an auto-immune disease and don't have it diagnosed and treated because you attribute it to aftereffects of your thru-hike which will improve or not, no matter what you do.
One suggestion I would make is to make sure you stay well-hydrated because it does make a difference in how your body feels.
Also, swimming is a great exercise that limits stress on the joints while promoting flexibility.
Good luck and don't forget to update your status so people don't worry needlessly!
The Will
02-15-2010, 02:02
I had a similar experience.
Two weeks following my thru my knees just shut down completely. What was paradoxical was that I had no joint pain whatsoever during the hike. It was around 6 weeks to two months before I could so much as get out of a car without pain. I was only 23 at the time.
You are right about doctors having no clue, especially for 'women of a certain age'. Even so, what you are experiencing is not good even if others here say they have the same problem. When you see your doctor, be sure to ask for a blood test for Lyme disease. In the meantime, you might try some over the counter glucosamine-condroiton products if you haven't already. Yeah, old sucks, but it shouldn't stop you from enjoying hiking.
Definitely get checked for lyme. I got it and the test confirmed it just before the bullseye rash appeared.
Something is wrong here, and this seems to be a common thread. There seems to be a bit of a mindset that something like a thru-hike should be really hard on the body, that it should be a very tough ordeal, and leave you in rough shape. This is wrong.
The intention of a hiking should be to make yourself mentally, physically, and emotionally STRONGER and FITTER. Rest, recovery, active recovery - these things are important. You don't get fitter from exercise and activity, but from the recovery that takes place immediately after the activity. Because hiking takes most of the day, and a thru-hike takes 100-200 days, or whatever, most of it actually needs to be taking place at a pace which allows active recovery. You also need rest, every day, and more rest on some days, perhaps even total rest on some days. You also need a really good diet, and you need to take really good care of yourself, in terms of injury and illness prevention and treatment.
The value of this thread should be to find out what went wrong.
Maybe things went wrong from the very beginning. The purpose.
Just to clarify that it wasn't my intention to beat up on the OP.
I have never done a thru-hike, and I can easily see myself ending up the same way,
even if I thought I was pacing myself and taking care of myself all along the way.
So other than Lyme disease, are there other possible explanations. It sounds very similar to what can happen without lyme disease, when you go from long periods of a relatively sedentary lifestyle, into say 3-9 months with alots of running and such, followed by more sedentary again, for several months or a few years, and back on again and so forth. I've sort of been there and done that. So what are the lesson here?
How fast can we ease back into an active lifestyle?
How do we maintain a consistently active and healthy lifestyle?
Is there any way of really knowing when something is going to creep up on you?
Another good questions, like sbhikes refered to...
What are good sources of information for self-diagnosis and treatment of minor and major everyday back and hip and knee and shins and ankle and feet pain when we can't rely on our doctors and other health and fitness professionals to be useful or helpful all the time?
I think it is very true that we are all an experiment of one.
Also, people don't like to hear from the roadkill, until they are one.
Some other related questions I have:
1. How do we strengthen our feet/ankles, and protect them at the same time ?
2. How do we select our own daily preventative/recovery exercises/stretches ?
3. Should we be doing this on the trail during our section hikes and thru-hikes ?
I think you should go see a doctor. You are probably correct in assuming most GP's don't know a lot about hiking. But You need to have some basic blood work done to determine that all is good in that area. One thing comes to mind that can cause some of your symtoms is a malfunctioning thyroid. Others have mentioned lyme.
Did you lose a lot of weight? I lost 20 percent of my body weight years ago on 4 month solo sailing trip. I wasn't getting enough sleep, food or exercise. It took me over a year to be back to my normal self. I found out years later that I have an underactive thyroid that I probably have had most of my adult life. The thyroid problem probably contributed to my problems after the trip. Get yourself checked out and good luck.
garlic08
02-15-2010, 09:53
It sounds a little alarming to me, too. I've had that feeling for several months, but usually I'm fine by winter, after lots of rest. Other hiking friends have mentioned the same.
You mention that you're running a little, and raises a minor alarm--maybe that's hurting, not helping. As mentioned above, look for a lower-impact exercise. Are you gaining weight?
And are you eating well? You might be lacking something in your diet. I always crave greens, and I think eating lots of them helps me recover.
I also agree with the statement above that many docs wouldn't have a clue. You might get lucky, though. Don't discount chiropractic, though that's not guaranteed help, either.
Good luck.
We should really strive for hiking as part of an active happy lifestyle change,
not something we should have to recover or recuperate from.
Done right, hiking should mean fewer trips to the doctor, not more.
Not trying to be a Dr. here...but I've found as I get older it is as Important to do a cool down strech as it is to do a warm up strech. It seems to say to the muscles "ok...we can slow down now" On long hikes I take a strech band which has made a world of difference especially with my legs, and sholders. Old man with Pilate band at the shelter...I can hear the purist peanut gallery erupting now...lol. Good luck.:D
That sounds pretty smart. A long hike should be a complete way of living those months. You gotta take proper care of yourself. I would think that is the point of such an exercise, but I can see how people can approach a thru-hike from different angles and sometimes miss the point of making yourself stronger through the process, and certainly not weaker at the end. So a more complete and healthy lifestlye should include proper diet, proper hygiene, and proper care of all your muscles and joints and your feet. It should probably be customized to your specific needs. You might call it yoga, or pilates, or just your own daily routine. There is nothing wrong with mixing it in with spirtuals routines or rituals either. Seems like a natural thing to do. I can see how it all might develop as you move along the trail also. I would imagine younger people can get away without all the extra care or stretching, etc. but everyone should think about what they specific goals and needs are, and what sort of daily routines and rituals might serve them better than others.
I've got an ache in my hip from my indoor track on the weekend, so I am thinking more about such things. It doesn't help that there are a zillion different routines out there, and various drugs and supplements and philosophies and equipment to go with them. I think it makes sense to borrow ideas from different sources, but to develop something that is most suitable to your own personal goals and needs. We shouldn't get too bummed out either, if we discover we have been doing it all wrong and have done ourselves harm. Tomorrow is always a new day. Life is an experiment of one.
sparky2000
02-15-2010, 10:42
My wife was seeing a Dr. on a regular basis for yrs. before she insisted on the Lyme test (we lived close to Lyme, Ct.) and found that to be the source of her multiple problems! She got her Deer tick from cats.
sbhikes,
I developed an intolerance to Lipitor, which resulted in symptoms like those you describe. When I stopped taking the drug, the muscle stiffness disappeared.
My point is that there could be many causes to your pain/discomfort which may, or may not, be related to your hike. See your doctor.
Thanks for the suggestions.
The crazy thing is, I wake up this morning, take two or three painful steps and now I feel just fine.
45 isn't old, but you do start to feel the effects of getting older. I have to carry around annoying reading glasses, for one. I'm in a lot better shape than I was in my 20s, though. I hiked long, hard days. 25 was my minimum goal each day. Often I did 30. I was fine with that (I was on the PCT). I felt great every morning. I took lots of zero days to rest.
I had the knee thing happen to me too. No pain at all during the hike, and then afterward my knees hurt for a few weeks. They don't hurt now.
I'll see if the doc has anything worthwhile to say.
oso loco
02-15-2010, 16:51
Something is wrong here, and this seems to be a common thread. There seems to be a bit of a mindset that something like a thru-hike should be really hard on the body, that it should be a very tough ordeal, and leave you in rough shape. This is wrong.
The intention of a hiking should be to make yourself mentally, physically, and emotionally STRONGER and FITTER. Rest, recovery, active recovery - these things are important. You don't get fitter from exercise and activity, but from the recovery that takes place immediately after the activity. Because hiking takes most of the day, and a thru-hike takes 100-200 days, or whatever, most of it actually needs to be taking place at a pace which allows active recovery. You also need rest, every day, and more rest on some days, perhaps even total rest on some days. You also need a really good diet, and you need to take really good care of yourself, in terms of injury and illness prevention and treatment.
The value of this thread should be to find out what went wrong.
Maybe things went wrong from the very beginning. The purpose.
You need to spend some time on the trail. Very few thruhikers finish physically stronger and fitter. The trail is 4 to 6 months of daily punishment for the body. The nutrition is genereally crap. And the trail itself is conducive to injury - for most, falls are endemic.
Not saying it "should" be like that, but that's what it IS for most hikers.
oso loco
02-15-2010, 16:55
Thanks for the suggestions.
The crazy thing is, I wake up this morning, take two or three painful steps and now I feel just fine.
45 isn't old, but you do start to feel the effects of getting older. I have to carry around annoying reading glasses, for one. I'm in a lot better shape than I was in my 20s, though. I hiked long, hard days. 25 was my minimum goal each day. Often I did 30. I was fine with that (I was on the PCT). I felt great every morning. I took lots of zero days to rest.
I had the knee thing happen to me too. No pain at all during the hike, and then afterward my knees hurt for a few weeks. They don't hurt now.
I'll see if the doc has anything worthwhile to say.
If your GP doesn't cure the problem see a podiatric specialist.
Thanks for the suggestions.
The crazy thing is, I wake up this morning, take two or three painful steps and now I feel just fine.
45 isn't old, but you do start to feel the effects of getting older. I have to carry around annoying reading glasses, for one. I'm in a lot better shape than I was in my 20s, though. I hiked long, hard days. 25 was my minimum goal each day. Often I did 30. I was fine with that (I was on the PCT). I felt great every morning. I took lots of zero days to rest.
I had the knee thing happen to me too. No pain at all during the hike, and then afterward my knees hurt for a few weeks. They don't hurt now.
I'll see if the doc has anything worthwhile to say.
Really, get tested for lyme. You don't want to miss that.
We should really strive for hiking as part of an active happy lifestyle change,
not something we should have to recover or recuperate from.
Done right, hiking should mean fewer trips to the doctor, not more.
This is a really good point. Is a "thru-hike" worth it if it causes major medical problems with back, feet, legs, etc. I think the desire to complete a "thru-hike" sometimes causes people to ignore what their body is telling them.
So would taking nutritional supplements help????
msn and Glucosamine and Chondroitin, Multi vitamin and Amino acids.
So what does the group recommend?
I have had good luck with the Glucosamin/ chondroitin with msn and a good multi vitamin. L caritane helps too.
If it is simply dietary it can be over come fairly easily. You just won't be doin it ultralight
Interested
garlic08
02-15-2010, 17:42
I like the advice I heard about taking supplements that goes like this: Be the type of person who takes supplements, but don't take the supplements (Michael Pollen, "In Defense of Food"). The idea is that people who take supplements are generally healthy and want to stay that way by eating well and exercising. You don't see too many obese folks with backseats full of fast food wrappers spending money in Vitamin Cottage. Supplements are big business, they're expensive, and there's conflicting evidence of their efficacy. Probably can't hurt, mostly, except in the wallet.
If you go to a doctor, I'd strongly recommend seeing someone who does sports medicine. Even regular orthopedists sometimes aren't great with sport-related injuries.
SurferNerd
02-15-2010, 18:01
I gained a wonderful problem in the Marine Corps that has haunted me ever since my 10mile daily runs. It's called Patellofemoral pain syndrome (http://www.wellsphere.com/linkOut.s?link=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.sportsinjuryclinic .net%2Fcybertherapist%2Ffront%2Fknee%2Fpatellofemo ral_pain_syndrome.php). Pain in my rear, and could be the source of any knee pain after a long distance.
http://www.wellsphere.com/running-article/run-well-patellofemoral-pain-syndrome/767683 (http://www.wellsphere.com/running-article/run-well-patellofemoral-pain-syndrome/767683)
modiyooch
02-15-2010, 18:48
I finished my 1800 mile section on the last day of August. Now it's mid-February. Whenever I go for a hike, after the ride home in the car, I can barely get out of the car. I can barely walk. My feet are killing me, my legs and hips are stiff. It's really got me bummed out. I can't hardly do anything without getting sore. I'm certainly not doing the big mile days I used to. Just a 5 mile hike does this to me. Even taking a long walk window shopping downtown has all my foot pain come back, and then once I sit down and try to get back up again, I feel like I'm 100 years old.
Did anybody else have this happen to them? How long until you were back to normal? Anything I ought to be doing?
P.S. I'm 45 years old.I have had some of these symptoms but not together.
The stiffness in my back was from a kidney stone. This was long term and diagnosed as arthritis. I ended up in the ER many months later. My stiffness either passed with the stone, or the heavy duty meds cured it.
I'm currently suffering foot pain 6 months later from capsulitis. The condition was a result of my summer backpacking. I am on round two to reduce the chronic inflammation. I am a runner, and it doesn't interfere with my running; but, barefoot aggravates it (hitting the floor in the am).
I am a 50 yr old woman, and it doesn't sound normal to me. As healthy as you are, I believe you should have recovered from the activity before now.
"I think the desire to complete a "thru-hike" sometimes causes people to ignore what their body is telling them."
My sense on the PCT was that one (certainly not the only one) thing that separated those that finished from those that dropped off along the way was a willingness to keep walking despite various aches and pains. I'm certainly not suggesting that all pains can and should be just ignored (!). In fact, for me, the height of wisdom along the trail is knowing when to listen to my body, and when to tell it to shut the hell up.
But at some point along the way --- certainly by 400 to 500 miles into the trip --- the common algorithm that thru-hikers seemed to use was along the line of: "Can I keep walking?". If yes, keep walking. Pretty simple! :-)
But certainly this can lead to some downstream issues. Mine was in the form of foot surgery 2-1/2 months ago.
Best wishes in getting this figured out, Diane.
This is a really good point. Is a "thru-hike" worth it if it causes major medical problems with back, feet, legs, etc.
Yes, it is worth it.
It might be worth it, but it isn't neccessary.
A thru-hike does not have to be self-destructive.
That would totally defeat the purpose in my opinion.
Thanks for the suggestions.
The crazy thing is, I wake up this morning, take two or three painful steps and now I feel just fine.
45 isn't old, but you do start to feel the effects of getting older. I have to carry around annoying reading glasses, for one. I'm in a lot better shape than I was in my 20s, though. I hiked long, hard days. 25 was my minimum goal each day. Often I did 30. I was fine with that (I was on the PCT). I felt great every morning. I took lots of zero days to rest.
I had the knee thing happen to me too. No pain at all during the hike, and then afterward my knees hurt for a few weeks. They don't hurt now.
I'll see if the doc has anything worthwhile to say.That sounds alot like me. As we get older we have to adapt and get better at listening to our bodies and preventing/recovering from various ailments. I am going to start doing some sort of morning routine. I'm doing most of my running or hiking or cross-country skiing later in the day, but I think I will start doing something first thing in the morning, before I breakfast and shower. Maybe a short 1 mile walk, and some sort of yoga. Maybe do it for Lent, to make it a habit.
Most of my troubles seem to be feet/ankles, and sometimes hip/butt/hamstrings.
I may not have thru-hiked yet, but I've got some over 40 experience.
I can run and hike like I was in my twenties, but I can't do it as carelessly.
Appalachian Tater
02-15-2010, 22:48
30 miles a day on the A.T. is too much for almost everyone. Zero days are very important on a thru but hiking 20 miles a day every day is going to be hard on your body and even one zero day a week doesn't allow enough time for repair. Younger bodies may do better at healing while still under stress.
Also, about stretching: at least some new research is showing that even stretching performed correctly can actually be harmful, that it produces micro-tears and reduces performance. I haven't fully researched it and I don't know how many studies they are nor have I reviewed them but it is something to be aware of.
What is driving me crazy about trying to develop a daily preventative stretching/exercise routine is that there are so many different stretches and exercises it is really hard to figure out what 5-10 exercises should be in your basic repertoire. I'm not so much interested in flexibility so much as in getting good blood circulation in certain regions, early in the morning. Its more of a morning warmup routine than a stretching routine that I am looking for. I need to work on flexibility also, in certain places, but I do that later in the day.
I hiked the PCT, not the AT. 30 miles is doable on the PCT. It's about 13 hours worth.
I was reading something about menopause. Perhaps I am getting old. I had a hysterctomy so it's hard to tell.
The only sport out there that even comes close to being a thru-hiker is ultramarathon running. I guess running ultras affects your endocrine system. Menopause does, too. Perhaps the problem lies there. We'll see what the doctor has to say about it.
Until you do a long distance hike, it's hard to believe that it's worth it. But it is. For 6 months of my life I was truly alive, living to the fullest. I will always have those memories. I would not trade them for better heath. I don't see the point in living so carefully that nothing bad ever happens to you. Nothing good will happen either. A long distance hike is very very good.
Spirit Walker
02-16-2010, 00:14
Until you do a long distance hike, it's hard to believe that it's worth it. But it is. For 6 months of my life I was truly alive, living to the fullest. I will always have those memories. I would not trade them for better heath. I don't see the point in living so carefully that nothing bad ever happens to you. Nothing good will happen either. A long distance hike is very very good.
Agree with every word.
I went to the doctor. I have an injured sesamoid in my left foot and achilles tendonitis in my right foot. I kind of already knew that. He wants me to take blood tests and X-rays for all the soreness. Something called CPK and also my thyroid, among the usual cholesterol and estrogen tests. Not sure if there's a cure if he finds anything, though.
superman
02-18-2010, 20:29
Half the cure is in the correct diagnosis. When I finished the AT in 2000 my heels were sore. No big deal I thought but it didn't go away. I went to the VA. I was given shoe inserts and double talk. I told this story on WB after it had literally gone on for years. It was a mixed bag of advice like what you got. Within the advice was some insightful good stuff...as you got. The important thing for me, as I was advised, was finding a new doctor outside of the VA. When I got to the right doctor he had me symptoms free in 6 to 8 weeks. My feet are fine now and the pain is just a bad memory. Now I can complain about other things.:)
It is an experiment of one. I agree with you that we have to take some risks as we get older, but we also have to hike smarter than when we were younger. We never know how long we will be able to run. When we can no longer run, we can still go on long hikes. When we can no longer go on long hikes, we can do day hikes.
Alot of stuff is repairable if you give it time and learn to take care of things.
Older distance runners are a good souce of information on such matters. 'The Runners Body' is a good book on how the body repairs itself, including bones and joints. Yeah, eventually something will come along that is terminal, as far as running and hiking goes, but most things are treatable. You have to do most of the work yourself though, even with a good doctor on your side.
You could still have 50 years of good hiking left in you. Find a way through this.
We are all a bit different. It is an experiment of one. Best regards.
Isaiah 40:28-31
Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding.
He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.
Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:
But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dHT_nvaTXXk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GPB7r0UpNIE
"The secret of my success over the 400m is that I run the first 200m as fast as I can.
Then, for the second 200m, with God's help I run faster."
- Eric Liddell
;)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcIQ02uOfBE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjkHZyGpdh8
I went to the doctor. I have an injured sesamoid in my left foot and achilles tendonitis in my right foot. I kind of already knew that. He wants me to take blood tests and X-rays for all the soreness. Something called CPK and also my thyroid, among the usual cholesterol and estrogen tests. Not sure if there's a cure if he finds anything, though.
Just following-up to see how things are going. Feeling any better?
I went to the doctor. I have an injured sesamoid in my left foot and achilles tendonitis in my right foot...
The bone will heal with proper care. From personal experience, watch out for that At. If you treat it badly, it can dog you for years. It will heal by itself, but it will take its own time. I have had this for forty-odd years. Injured playing high school footbal, reinjured many times trying to gut through it. Both sides. In the end, the only thing that worked was to lay off it when it complained, and wait for it to clear up. Actually, wait for the scar tissue to reduce, and the injured tendon to get stronger. If there's a lump, it will irritate the surrounding sheath and eventually tighten up and re-injure the tendon. Some docs may recommend surgery. Can't help you with that: none of the docs that tried to treat me were worth much with sports injuries, and I have heard that surgery is iffy. Might help. might not. Ditto injections, ultrasound, etc. They all try to reduce inflamation and expand the space available for the injured tendon to move in, and finally to reduce the scarring. Results may vary. Good luck to you: Hope for a mild case, and do not try to work through the pain.
Chillfactor
02-23-2010, 23:14
sb,
I hiked from Harpers Ferry to Waynesboro in August. No great distance, 140 miles, but I was worry-free. I was far away from it all.
I rested up and ate real food but still felt tired and lacked motivation for months. A friend was certain I had thyroid issues or low iron. I went to the doctor and my tests were okay. I'm convinced the root of my tiredness and blahs were from missing the AT. I had a grand time and it was an empowering experience. I was sad that it ended. I just booked a flight to Atlanta in April and now I can't stop smiling. :D
In addition to your injuries, you might just miss the freedom of the PCT. For some of us, our day-to-day world isn't as kind as the world on the trail.
I had X-rays for osteo-arthritis. The X-ray tech said my joints looked good. I also had a blood test. I haven't heard yet about the results.
The strange thing is I feel great. On Sunday I went for a 15 mile run/hike/walk. Just went out the door running and put in 15 miles. I was in a lot of pain when it was over. But I felt great. I have energy.
The next day I was a little sore. The following day I felt pretty good. Today I feel totally normal. I can heal.
But immediately after? I could barely move.
Maybe that's normal and I just don't realize that's what it feels like to get older.
I'm fortunate that I have maintained some of the freedom of the PCT. I have only gone back to work part-time. I lucked out and found a place that's pretty casual. I don't want to sell away all my time on earth to some company again.
Where does it hurt right after a run? Joints, tendons, muscles, everywhere?