Longest post surgery race/run so far

[RunMartin]

I did my longest race/run since surgery yesterday. It was 23.5 miles with 3000ft of climbing. My heart/breathing felt OK. The only problem was that after about 7 miles of steady running I started getting muscles aches/cramp. This continued until the end. This has also happened several times in training. When I stopped for a drink at each of the check points for about two minutes the legs felt much better when I started again. My breathing and heart felt OK - just the leg muscles. I finished in 4 hrs 23 mins which is about an hour slower than pre surgery (not too bad considering)

Do you know whether the muscle cramps could be down to the Bisoprolol (1.25mg/day)?. Also I do not drink a large amount when running so I was wondering whether it could be that, i.e. I maybe need to flush out the lactic acid more these days? I think that if this is going to happen regularly when doing long runs I will have to quit distance running as it is not a very pleasant experience. I have entered the 3 Peaks Fell Race which is 24 miles with more climbing and strict cut off times at check points.I am now having doubts over doing this. I am not bothered about being a little slower but it would be nice to enjoy the run instead of struggling with muscle pain/cramps.

Swimming is still going well and I am generally feeling better than a few months ago.

Do you know whether I might be able to try different beta blocker to see if they have different side effects (assuming it is the beta blockers that is causing the problem).

 

[tprice54]

GOOD JOB! I would check into any drugs you are on as they could be the culprit on the cramping. Also, I have started using compression socks on long runs due to leg cramps, and they work for me. I know they look funny, but the compression socks up to the knee really keep my muscles from cramping.

 

[Bean Counter]

Nice job on the run...looks like you are coming up on 1 year. Unfortunately I cannot help you out with relationship between cramps/ medication.

 

[Greg a]

Are you on Lipitor or any statin drug as they do cause cramping .............almost unbearable until I started taking CoQ10 (it may affect your INRs)






.

 

[kodi]

Congratulations on the run and finish. I can't say anthing about the meds but I would tend to think the lack of liquids has a lot to do with it, since I have similar problems and defintely don't drink enough. I've been hearing more and more about the compression socks Tom mentioned and they seem to be doing the trick for a few of my friends. Good luck in your next adventure.

 

[RunMartin]

I would need very long compression socks as my quads get sore on the downhill sections and calfs on the uphill
I think they will be worth a try. I need to experiment a bit.

Thanks
Martin

 

[neil]

well done martin..............

 

[tprice54]

Martin, anything that long would be tights! I did some research yesterday and they do make special running tights that are the same compression material, you may want to check them out.

 

[nngbwh]

Congratulations and keep up with the good work.

 

[AgilityDog]

WOW. Just WOW. Good for you. I'm impressed by "normal" people who can run like that, but when I see some "special" people run like that (I have a co-worker with rheumatoid arthritis who runs marathons) I am incredibly impressed.

 

[spartangator]

Congrats on the run. In addition to the prior comments, I'd also point out that you're only about a year out. Your body is still adapting in a lot of ways, and this may be one of them. It took me at least 18 months to feel normal, although I did several distance races before that.

For some research on the topic, check out The Science of Sport blog by a couple of research physiologists. They did a series on cramping a while back (http://www.sportsscientists.com/search/label/muscle cramps) that had some good info.

Hope that helps.