Another long-overdue update...

As I have been gently reminded, it has been far too long since I updated everyone on what's been happening. So, here we go...

I had originally thought about jumping straight into training for Tasmania's Cadbury Half Marathon in January, however since my knee still isn't terribly happy with me increasing distances, I've had to do the smart thing and scratch that plan. Instead, my physio has me relegated to "technique work".

Why technique work? Because my bad running mechanics is probably what's contributing to my knee issue. How do we know this? I endured the humiliation of seeing myself running on video. My my, wasn't that an experience and a half? And not a terribly pleasant one let me tell you! I can liken the experience to one that most people have probably had, where you look back at old photos and gasp in shame at what you used to wear (I'm sure any ladies that had "80's hair" will know exactly what I'm talking about). And back then you thought it looked good, right? Having yourself videotaped evokes similar feelings.

Not that I ever deluded myself that I actually looked GOOD while I was running. Oh dear no. I've never been one of those enviable "natural runners" that look like they're effortlessly gliding along the ground with the grace of a gazelle. If I had to liken my running style to an animal, it would more likely be something along the lines of a hippopotamus being forced to run on its hind legs. Oh, and one of those hind legs is prosthetic. Ker-THUMP, ker-THUMP... Yes, that fits my mental image nicely. Because, I do actually run somewhat lopsided, as the video showed.

I tend to lead with one side (as one glute is stronger than the other), which puts excess strain on the hip and knee on the other side, plus my hip drops far too much when my foot hits the ground. Because the hip drops when my foot is on the ground, I have to lift the hip on the other side to bring my leg underneath for the next stride. This means my hips are kind of going all over the place when they really should be staying fairly level. Anyway, interesting running mechanics information aside, it means I have to do some serious work on my technique before I can even think about running higher distances again.

So, I run for 30-45 seconds with perfect technique, then walk for 15-30 seconds, and repeat. And repeat. And repeat some more until I can't hold that good technique properly any more (usually about 30-40 minutes). It is hard, it is mentally draining, it is monotonous, and I feel really silly stopping and starting like that when all I want to do is just keep running. But, all whining aside, I'm sure I'll be thankful for it in a couple of months time when I'm back to running properly again. In the meantime, if you're around the Brisbane river and you happen to see me doing my thing, please try your hardest to not laugh out loud? Cheers.