REALLY sore lower calf

chickpastor

Barefooters
Apr 19, 2010
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I did a 16 miler today and it was craptastic in many ways, but when I got home I could barely walk up my driveway. My right calf is really crazy sore....I did an ice bath and am icing it as I type, but I'm afraid I can't even drive. Would y'all get it checked out? I don't know what it could be other than super sore after a long run, but maybe I'm missing something.

I ran in Lunas. I have been running in them for a few weeks (VFFs and barefoot before that for a year or so) and did a 14 miler a couple weeks ago with no issues. 10 miles last week that was awesome....not sure what happened this week!



Perhaps I just wanted to whine....hope that's okay!
 
Of course it's okay.  Whine

Of course it's okay. Whine away! I don't think you should run at all for a few days. Let your body tell you when the time is right. As far as seeing a doctor, I don't know what they will do for you, except maybe tell you to take NSAIDs and prescribe pain medication. Good luck, Chick. Keep us posted.

Oh and ice and rest.
 
I agree with TJ.  I believe

I agree with TJ. I believe my stress fracture stemmed from calf pain that caused me to have bad form. I wish I could remember where I read that the two are connected, but it made sense to me. In hindsight, I really wish I would have taken time off to let my calf heal. Then maybe I wouldn't be just starting out at 1 mile again :(
 
 Feeling better tonight after

Feeling better tonight after ice, bengay (which is extreme for me), etc. But I will be careful! I may try a very short run just to get the soreness out if I can, but I won't push it. Was such a terrible run, after so many good ones, i'm a little scarred!
 
Ice, heat, stretch and

Ice, heat, stretch and massage. Thats about all you can do. Weird that a 2 mile increase would do that much to you, was it hurting while you were running?

Also, I hope this doesn't happen to you, but if it doesn't seem like its going away at all, and it still hurts after a few weeks, you probably overworked the stabilizers in your calf. I did that last year, had me limping for two months. Its safe to run on actually, but its nigh on impossible to do so. I don't think this is likely with barefooting though.

It can't hurt to go to a doctor, but they will probably just give you pain meds. Why is it that doctors don't care to actually find out whats wrong with you?
 
When you're running, make

When you're running, make sure you allow your lower legs and feet to actually relax a bit...you don't HAVE to stay up on the balls of your feet. Once I learned to kiss my heels to the ground, my calves stopped hating me so much.
 
 Yeah....my thought was that

Yeah....my thought was that it was weird that a 2 mile increase would do it. It was hurting, actually, while I was running. It hurt in the very beginning and I thought it had something to do with the Luna laces, but it went away a couple miles in, only to return at mile 11 or so. 14 miles was GREAT 2 weeks ago. Hmm. I definitely allow my heels to kiss the ground or whatever; learned that lesson way early!

I did skip a run this week, but only one. I had a thyroid procedure, not surgery, long story. Who knows, maybe it's all connected.

My five year old and I are going for a hike today so that should be decent "recovery." :D

OH and I will go to a doctor, just to the chiropractic variety, next week. He actually does care what is wrong and has an uncanny way of finding it, even if it's a sore calf that really came from my hip!
 
I hope your thyroid problems

I hope your thyroid problems work themselves out and you'll be fine, Chick.
 
I have that kind of chiro,

I have that kind of chiro, too - aren't they amazing? I am having lower calf pain, too. I used to get it before and it was related to running faster which I have been doing. Essentially, I got a cramp in the middle of the night last week and it's been nagging me ever since. Tonight I did 8 miles and it really cramped up right at the end - shooting star kind of pain. I am planning to do what I did before - heat, soleus stretches, and arnica.
 
I'm with Zum.  Since I got my

I'm with Zum. Since I got my form relaxed and started setting my heels down after a mid-foot landing, my calf muscles have been much less tight and sore. I can tell very quickly when I'm not bending my knees, leaning forward slightly from my ankles, and staying up on the balls of my feet; the soreness comes back almost immediately. I hope that might be all that caused this problem for you. You've clearly already got a lot of experience with this, but I know from my own experience that 25 years of heel-striking affects the way I run unless I stay focused on it. Good form is becoming a habit, but it's not solidified for me yet, particularly toward the end of my runs.
 
 Thanks y'all.  I probably do

Thanks y'all. I probably do need to pay more attention to my form, and I haven't been actual barefooting as much since I'm running in the dark most of the time, and I'm sure that has a lot to do with it. My leg and ankle still feel sort of weak if that makes sense, and I still have a giant knot on my calf that I keep trying to work out. Ugh. But I think I will attempt a long run on Friday (my usual day) on a flat course and barefoot most of it if not all. that's the plan anyway....
 
 i agree and would advise you

i agree and would advise you to not go for a long run while you're feeling the things your feeling. those are signs of needing to back off. you might not need to stop but your body is telling you to take it easy. big knots that wont go away, feeling week, tired, and sore are signs of needing to chill a bit. none of those things should make you think you should run through it.
 
I agree with Adam and Jimmy. 

I agree with Adam and Jimmy. A big part of this barefoot adventure has been learning to listen to my body and back off when needed. Whether that be tender feet, sore legs, knees, feet, whatever, it seems that no matter what it is, it just melts away with some rest. That definitely wasn't the case back in the stone age when I wore anchors.
 
 Y'all are smart, and I will

Y'all are smart, and I will listen. I agree, and I haven't been able to make it to the chiro's like I wanted to. So I think I will downgrade tomorrow's planned 12 to maybe 6, depending on how I feel (5 was tough on Tuesday), and get my crack on at the chiro's. Hoping for a better week next week. I need to do 18 to stay on schedule but again do not want to risk a lot of layoff time for one crappy long run!
 
Toss your schedule and go

Toss your schedule and go with your body's! It surely knows best.
 
It's intersting to me that I

It's intersting to me that I have only run twice this week, a total of only about 5 miles and i too have soreness in mostly my right calf. What's interesting is that in all of the shod running I've done previously, I never remember getting sore calf muscles.

In my case, I think it's the dramatic change in running form from heel-to-toe to landing flat footed or slightly on balls of feet.

I'll just have to wait and see, after putting more bfr miles.
 
bfr_dave wrote:What's

bfr_dave said:
What's interesting is that in all of the shod running I've done previously, I never remember getting sore calf muscles.

Yeppers, that was my experience--calves felt great with shod running, but knees/upper legs got more sore. I started BFR on 7/4. My calves were usually sore until just the last week or two; they've finally loosened up. (Thanks to time, and my trusty foam roller.)
 
If you've still got a knot

If you've still got a knot hanging around there was some pretty good advice on another thread "Calf Knot Monster" or something like that. Theres some stuff on there that could help you get rid of the knot if you, especially the trigger point. (I would just explain it to you, but I'm not exactly sure I know how it works, so its best you just find the other thread.)