I’m injured. Not badly, but enough to keep me from running not just yesterday, but today as well. On Wednesday I continued my recovery plan from last weekend’s half marathon with a few 2 minute bursts, and some nice restful pace in-between. Thursday morning, shin and knee pain on the left leg.

Went to the physio. Great guy! He’s always entertaining and painfully, but comedically, direct. First time I saw him, a year ago, he told me I ‘run like a chicken’. Later, he corrected himself, and instead told me I ‘run like Phoebe from Friends’. Do I pay for this abuse, or is it extra? Doesn’t really matter, as long as his analysis and advice works.

So this time, he had me hopping around the room on each leg successively, before noting that my left knee rolls on on the hop. Diagnosis: weak calves. Homework: calf strengthening exercises. See me again in a week. The hypothesis is that a weak calf will cause the foot to roll in during plyometric exercise (elastic/explosive strength, as with the Achilles tendons during running). Foot rolling in means that other muscles are working harder than normal – notably the two muscles that control the foot roll and the big toe. Both those muscles go all the way up to the knee, and sit very close to the shin bone. It’s those muscles that, when overworked, can give rise to shin splints. So my weak calves are likely causing both my knee and shin pain.

The wonderful thing about this physio is that each time I’ve seen him about some niggly ache or pain, he has had me do some rehab exercises that have demonstrated an almost immediate beneficial effect. This time, hopping around caused pain in my knee. Five minutes of calf raises of varying types, and then hopping again – and no pain. Like a soothsayer, or maybe a horse whisperer – actually more like an engineer, explaining the machine of the body and how the bits link together, and discussing his hypotheses for what could be happening to cause a pain. Wonderful skill.

I’m still going to run this weekend though.