I injured my leg, thought it was Shin Splints, but it turned out not to be and actually to be something to do with muscles around the shin (which is slightly differeny I’m told) then the leg got better after a lot of rest, then I played badminton and it started hurting again. Bugger.

Since I hurt the leg at Badminton on Thursday night I have been staying off the leg as much as possible and trying to stretch the muscles around the shin out as much as possible. It’s not sore to walk on or anything, it’s only sore now if I put pressure on the particualr point where the muscle is damaged. I was seriously tempted to go for a run anyway, but I kind of know from the last time this happened what happens then (severe pain and weeks off training) so instead, I’ve just stopped and done nothing with a view to giving it a few days to heel, not putting too much load through it and stretching and icing it until it is freed up.

On Monday I’m going to get back into the gym, still not running for another week, but doing some cross training and cycling and weights and MORE stretching of the legs. I need to organise a massage too, because the muscles are all knotted up around the injury and Orla’s mum has offred to do it. That’s not creepy right, it’s only a leg massage!!

So, 3 more days sitting on my hole doing nothing. For those keep score at home, thoes days are starting to really add up!!

My Days Are Off Are Starting To Add Up!!

Spin1038 DJ Ryan Phillips is training for the Dublin City Marathon on 25 October 2010. For the last 3 days however he has been sitting on his bum because of an injured leg! Days 123 – 125 was Friday 26th to Sunday 28th of February 2010

I don’t think people who don’t swim a lot have any concept of what is fast and what is slow though. At one stage there were two lads in the lane bombing it up and down, then two other girls who were going really slow (like, painfully slow backstroke). In the end, we were all going faster than those swimming in the medium lane beside us.

Anyway, I discovered a few things today. Firstly, swimming hurts like hell about 8 hours after you finish if you don’t swim regularly and haven’t swam (swum?) in ages. Lesson learned. Secondly, I can breaststroke until the cows come home, but nearly drown trying on length front crawl. How outrageously tiring is that stroke? Pass thanks. Thirdly, despite 3 months of exercise, I’m still disgustingly unfit. About 5 lenghts in, I was fit to die. I think I may have managed to do between 20 and 30 lenghts, but with a fair amount of stopping peppered throughout. It all counts.

The Pool was quite busy today...

I don’t really see any point in waffling on trying to fill up more space here. I’m injured and very disheartened. I could still be doing exercise that doesn’t involve my legs (like weights and situps and the like for example) but I can’t be arsed. I know that’s terrible, and not the spirit at all, but there you have it, I’m a bad person, bite me!

My diet has also gone to hell, but I’m in a place (where I’m moaning and sulking about my shins) that I can actually enjoy it at the moment. So I’m stuffing myself relvatively guilt free, though of course I know that this is fairly short sighted of me!

If you’re looking for whover ate all the pies, it was me…..or this bloke

When they do a statue of me, it will look like this!!

I got a bit depressed about the whole thing today. It’s a horrible helpless feeling to be sitting on your hole and waiting to be able to start training again, especially when, like me, you’re only at the very start of training to begin with. I mean, the most of run is 4 miles and already I’m out with an injury. The guy in amphibian king did warn me that this was likely to happen at the start if I went at it too hard, but I hardly think that 3 and 4 mile jogs is too hard? Or at least I didn’t think it was, but I’ve a bad case of shin splints that beg to differ.

I’m due to go for another run tomorrow, but I don’t think that’s going to work out. I may try a bit of cross training or cycling depending on how the legs are and what my physio friends say is the best thing to do. If I don’t do that, I’ll still go to the gym to do some weights or something, because I need to do bloody something!

I accidentally cut off the top of my head in the video and I’ve noticed that it’s not in youtube as widescreen so the caption is off the screen, it was a bad day overall

Ryan Phillips training blog for the Dublin City Marathon 2010 – Day 86 – 20 February 2010

It’s not so painful that I can’t walk or anything like that, in fact it feels fine except for if I touch it (it’s very tender) or if I crouch down, like to pick something up, when it is very sore. According to several internet armchair experts, I need to combination of rest, ice, elevated legs and stretches. Lots and lots of stretches. And so that’s what I’m trying to do. I was hoping that I would be back to short jogging on grass by Thursday (it’s now Tuesday) but the way my legs are feeling, I don’t think it’s going to happen.

It also means no squash or badminton and I just found out this morning that I am supposed to have two matches in the next two weeks. That’s pretty bad timing isn’t it?

Hard to write a blog about marathon training when you’re not actually doing any….but I’ll still try!

Ryan Phillips trains for the Dublin City Marathon 2010 – Day 85 – Tuesday 19 January 2010

Today was another day off from Marathon Training. Or, as I should properly call it, a rest day. Having done the 3 mile jog on the threadmill yesterday, my legs are a bit tired, but not injured or feeling too shabby so that’s good news. I’m back in the gym tomorrow for another 3 miles, then again on Sunday for 4 miles.

From next week there’s something every day when I’m not jogging to keep the fitness progressing, so from next week on there should be a lot less “rest days” where I do absolutely nothing, and at the least there should be some situps, or squash or badminton or something ever day…said he with cautious optimism

Tired Legs....not actually mine, but you get the idea

So, that’s the lot, from tomorrow it’ll be all go go go, honest!!

Today's exercise!

After that I did manage a good 30 minutes on the cross trainer to be fair, but it probably wouldn’t have put a dent in the amount of crap that I shoved down my yapper last night. Still, it’s better than the last 2 days and that’s something to be at least mildly thankful for!!

I know how you feel

Blood, sweat and tears

You probably (a) can’t make out what’s in that photo, and (b) once I tell you will wish you hadn’t found out. That is a little baby puddle of sweat. I know this principally because it’s mine and because I was watching it grow as I cycled my now customary 7km cycle on the sitty down bike thingy. Incidentally, that proper name for a sitty down bike thingy is actually a “recumbant exercise bike”.

I know it’s gross, and I know everyone will say (and many will mean) that they REALLY don’t want to see pictures of my sweat, but nonetheless, I present it as evidence to you, dear reader, that despite having bad days where I binge on junkfood (see Marathon Training – Day 28), when I get my act together, I really do work hard in the gym. Today, I needed to work off a fair few extra calories put on yesterday, so I peddled and strode my little socks off and managed to dump 500 odd calories and a few pints of sweat.

Thankfully, I was in the gym on my own, as for the first time in a long time I had to do some weights. The Wyckham Point Gym has some machines and things so I eyed them all up suspiciously and gave many ago, in the process exercising some muscles that have been dormant for quite some time. It’s embarassing how weak my arms are, it really is. I’ve always said I was built like a kangaroo (big feet, powerful legs, weedy little arms), but even by my own standards, I was embarassed. It’s going to be a long old road before I’m attending any Gun Shows, let’s put it that way. That was only 7 hours ago now, and already absolutely everything hurts. I’d imagine the pain tomorrow is going to be un-ruddy-bearable! If I didn’t think it would push my man credentials over the edge of the cliff they are currently hanging on to, I’d seriously consider a long soak in a bubble bath!!

Tomorrow is a swimming a cross training day (hopefully) and then there’s a badminton match on Thursday to look forward to.

Day 29 – Done

Today Orla and I ventured to Marley Park for our first joint exercise (sexercise excluded, obviously) of a job in the park. Last night we ended up staying in for a quiet night watching the X-Factor. 3 and a half bottles of wine later, and we’ve both been in better shape come mid-day on Sunday afternoon. Both threatened to pull out, but we stubbornly went anyway.

If you were in Marley Park today, you might have noticed us. I always think that it really easy to spot someone who’s just out for their first jog. They aren’t really wearing the right things, the look a bit uncomfortable, and they seem very tired for the amount they have done. Today, that was us. We arrived to find that a cross country race was already taking place in the park, and we certainly didn’t want any of that action. So, we found a quite spot and, rather self consciously, busied ourselves with a number of standard issue stretches. One of the things I should point out is how inflexible I am, in fact, I’m going to start a new “mission touch toes” section of the blog, where the goal is to be able to touch my toes. At the moment, I can just about get past my knee caps, and I’m not exaggerating for effect.

Anyway, after the strecthes, came the jogging. Marley Park is quite a big spot when you try to jog around it. I was very concerned that my ankles and knees would give in, so I kept to the grass as much as possible. We jogged for about 10 minutes (it was more 7-8 being honest) and then had to stop for a breather. A bit more jogging followed, then it was all over. In total, I’d say I jogged about about 20 minutes and walked for about 10. The pace, slow. The result, I was shattered. The legs, in agony.

All in all, it was hard to fault the first outing, I was glad we did it, and I look forward to making it a bit further without stopping next time. It has to start somewhere, and after 13 years of no meaningful exercise, a few days on the bike in the gym wasn’t going to turn this into an impressive marathon inspiring effort. Still, baby steps. The Marathon is still 50 weeks away, and hopefully, when that day comes, I’ll read this back and remember the first jog on the road to the 26 mile….. God, I sound like JD from Scrubs wrapping up an episode with some inspiring insight.

I’m surprised it’s taken me 13 days of training to buy some “essential” bit of training kit, but rest assured readers, if there’s some gadget or gizmo that even has a hint of benefit to me in training, then I’ll buy it. Today i acquired a funky drinks container you can hold easily while running, and not 1, not 2, but 3 pairs of tracksuit bottoms in Elverys. Doesn’t that just scream “wow, this guy is serious” to you??

I mean business, check out my fancy water bottle!!