[Phaedrus49er]

From one of my recent Running forum posts:

Houston, we have a problem. It started Tuesday, and I didn't respect it. I didn't run again until two days ago for a four-mile race, and I didn't respect it. Today, I headed out for a light five-miler, got a half-mile into it, and it bitch-slapped me and told me to respect it. A not-so-quick rundown:

--Tuesday morning, 6.5 miles at sunrise, form suffered due to several adult beverages the night before (I know, excuses, excuses). Knee fatigue noticeable in both legs, more so in left leg (quick note: my left leg constantly fatigues more quickly than my right regardless of activity yet is slightly larger than the right leg, perhaps because I've driven a stickshift in traffic for five years?). Quiet clicking in both knees (behind top of patella) lasts for several hours when walking.

--Wednesday night, dancing on a very sticky floor, lots of (attempted) twisting and sliding involved. Knee fatigue returns, and I decide to skip running on Thursday with a race coming up on Saturday. Knee clicking continues when walking.

--Saturday morning, cold four-miler, insufficient warm-up. About a mile into the run, my left tibialis anterior decides to stop contracting, meaning my forefoot doesn't lift as high as it should, further meaning my left iliopsoas (and perhaps pectineus as well) has to compensate by lifting my entire left leg higher than normal for my forefoot to clear the ground if I am to continue heel striking. The TA tightness is probably initially due to either a tight rectus femoris (via iliopsoas/pectineus) attempting to compensate for a lagging patella (remember the clicking? doesn't happen while running, just when walking) and thereby stretching the TA too far to be pliable, or due to a tight and equally compensatory gastrocnemius made to work harder since I am having to alternate with running on a forefoot strike as well. When attempting to run on a heel strike, my left leg lands heavily flat-footed with the TA out of commission, further exacerbating the knee issues (yes, significant knee fatigue after the race, yet oddly no swelling through any of this, which they usually like to do).

--Today, planned five-miler, usual warm-up. Only takes a half-mile for my left TA to shut down. Make it another mile before giving up and walking back home.

I should note that my static stretching is practically non-existent as I usually walk a good ten minutes following a run and throw in some light dynamic stretching. I usually play around on a foam roller once a week for about fifteen minutes (full body), though I'm looking to get a rolling pin-like device for more focused work (I'd be more inclined to use that than roll around on the floor).

As for pain, nothing really hurts, though today my entire left leg was a little achy/crampy on the walk back home, but other than that, just some very minor knee discomfort a couple times the past week and nothing else. It's just that certain muscles aren't working. I haven't had any running-related, lower-body issues to speak of since last fall. I should also mention that TA mobility returns an hour or so after distance running (doesn't seem to be an issue during sprint training).

I mentioned the leg strength/hypertrophy imbalance, which is easily noticeable when I'm doing squats and deads as I just feel like I push/pull with the left side more and supplement with the right, even though I make a conscious effort to reverse that; seems like some unilateral right-side emphasis work might be in order. I will say that, obviously, the bottom squat position forces the TA to be shorter, and I haven't squatted in over a week. Perhaps a clue?

Now, all that being said, time is of the essence, as always. I have a 10K in Charleston on March 31, then a half-marathon here in Charlotte on April 14, not to mention my mileage goals for these running challenges. I don't think I can beg and grovel enough for help on this, but I can try Thanks in advance for any help.