Day 9

Distance Run: 10.67 miles
Total Distance Run for January: 21.72 miles
Other Exercise: None

  I decided fairly early in the day (after emptying half the contents of my head over the sink) that football would not be a good idea. It was doable, but to do the team justice I'd have needed a fully-functioning head and lungs - which I couldn't offer. Having reluctantly withdrawn my services, and coped amiably with the working day, I was increasingly itchy to get the long run I'd intended to do yesterday done after all. At a comfortable pace, which doesn't exert the lungs much, running doesn't need intense concentration (although moronic/ignorant pedestrians continually challenge this view). Having run 9.5 miles on Christmas Day without any ill-effects, I settled on a 10.67 mile effort - taking in the delights of Enfield Town, Bush Hill Park, my old school, the A10/A406 junction (delightful engineering), Silver Street, Edmonton Green, Ponders End and back to home. Extremely flat (ignoring the first and last 1/2 miles - living on a hill can be a pain), and an irregular route that I hadn't run parts of since October. I declined to take an Oyster card with me in case I needed to bail out, so there was no option of turning back.
  The run itself went ok, but wasn't free of problems. I realised a few miles in that my left calf was a little sore - nothing major, but it wasn't 100%. At around 4 miles I had that horrible pain/discomfort in both lower legs, where they ache and tingle. I don't know if that's just blood or lactic acid pooling up, but I know from experience it can be run through and then it sorts itself out fine. The rest of the run was uneventful, and I got a slight "kick" around 6 miles where I suddenly felt like quickening - as if I was an unstoppable machine! Knowing I wasn't meant I reined myself in, but I wanted to finish near to 9 minute mile pace at the end. Probably foolishly, I finished each mile at a slightly quicker pace, bound up the hill to home and clocked it at 1h 37m - precisely 1 minute over 9mpm. I suspect I lost at least that minute at junctions/lights, as well as following pavements around railings etc.
  Unfortunately, I got to spend all of 4 seconds basking in my successful run before I cramped up horrendously upon sitting down. Both calf muscles, but especially the left, were tighter than Ebenezer Scrooge, and some bloody awful muscle in my left foot was even worse. Euthanasia tempted me (and I expect my brother would've obliged), but I managed to get onto the floor and raise my legs up against the door for a few minutes. A painful hobble to retrieve my ice-pack and clamber up two flights of stairs to my bed was followed by a well-earned lie down. The pain subsided, but an hour later I still couldn't walk properly. Not good.

Injuries: Calf muscles, achilles tendons, left foot muscle I didn't know existed
Mood: Frustrated

  With no running or football tomorrow my body has times to recover. Suddenly whatever latest virus I have is insignificant.