[pct-l] tendonitis (was Getting Back on Trail,

[Tom Holz]

Kylie, I did some bodywork (Rolfing, Active Isolated Stretching,  
yoga), found a physical therapist who ran marathons, read books (Chi  
Running, Born to Run, Walk Yourself Well, Anatomy Trains, The Endless  
Web), did research (barefoot running, gaits), and spent time listening  
to my own body (test walks in shoes and in vibram fivefingers).

The same way hikers geek out over gear and planning and ounces, you  
can get into understanding your body.  In the end it is your body and  
you will have to figure you out, but getting help from the right  
people can make a huge difference.

Bigfoot

PS - one area I stilll want to understand more is how the body reacts  
and adapts to stress, especially the role of inflamation.  I hiked the  
whole AT thanks to ibuprofen, and I'm still using it intermittently on  
the PCT when I get close to injury, but I don't really understand the  
long term impact of supressing inflammtion with NSAIDs.

On Jun 2, 2010, at 11:18 PM, kylie skidmore <kyliepete at gmail.com> wrote:

> thanks dan & tom - this is very helpful. where did you get your info  
> on gait and stride length - did you just figure it out or did  
> someone recommend changes?
>
> On 3 June 2010 06:11, Tom Holz <tom.holz at gmail.com> wrote:
> Ive been loosly following this discussion from the trail, but wanted
> to add that my hike this year was entirely made possible by changing
> my old hiking gait (heel strike, wide stride, shin splints, foot pain)
> to a short relaxed "barefoot" type stride.  I now believe gait and
> form are as or more important that packweight, shoes, or insoles in
> reducing hiking injuries
>
>  From Agua Dulce,
> Bigfoot
>
> On Jun 2, 2010, at 7:31 AM, Dan Ransom <danransom at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > I'm happy to explain my situation...  Though there will probably be
> > people who offer differing opinions.  For a week or more I was  
> calling
> > this "shin splints" for lack of a better understanding.  It is not
> > traditional shin splints, however.  It is (was?) severe tendonitis  
> in
> > the muscle that lifts your toes off the ground, 2 inches above the
> > ankle, right on the outside of the shin bone.
> >
> > My problem was probably three-fold.
> >
> > 1 - I have poor walking form.  I take very long heel-strike strides
> > and walk relatively fast.   The heel strike motion, instead of a  
> more
> > neutral strike, forces the foot to flex with every step, and muscles
> > get strained.  In my shorter walks the last week, I've spent
> > considerable time relearning a shorter stride with less impact.  So
> > far pain free.
> >
> > 2- Footwear was not supportive enough, no torsional rigidity.  The
> > rolling motion induced by sidehilling on snow probably contributed  
> to
> > the muscle fatigue.  These have been changed from new balance trail
> > runners to Salomon XT wings.  Arch support has also been recommended
> > to me, as well as different lacing patterns that allow the foot to
> > swell and expand within the shoe.
> >
> > 3 - The snow on Fuller Ridge I believe caused lots of little
> > micro-slips, and again, I wasn't deliberate enough with foot
> > placement.  Just figured I'd walk through it.  Walk through it I  
> did,
> > but when I got to I-10, it felt like I shot my right leg at point
> > blank with a shotgun, and it was pretty obvious there was  
> significant
> > damage.
> >
> > Pack weight certainly can compound any of the issues here, and at  
> the
> > time I was carrying about 13 pounds base, plus 14-ish pounds in food
> > and water.  Not a really heavy load, but for my return I will be
> > coming back lighter, ridding myself of some of the 3 pound camera  
> kit
> > I was carrying.
> >
> > I've never had an injury in this location before, and I've done a  
> fair
> > share of backpacking previous.  But never such big days so
> > consistently.  I suppose the lesson for me is to go slow, take it
> > easy, and listen to your body, and focus on walking stress  
> free...  I
> > was too confident I could walk through it, and it blew up.   
> Hopefully
> > a very humbling 3 weeks, a ton of ice massage and a course of
> > cortisone will resolve the issue for me.
> >
> > Thanks to some help from this list, I think I'll be back out this
> > weekend...
> >
> > - Dan
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