No-Run February

I know, I know, I keep going on about it. But this dang ankle is getting me down. It's been five months, and still very little improvement. When you like to run as much as I do, having an injury like this is very frustrating.

Just to be clear, I haven't been sitting on my backside idly waiting for it to clear up. I have tried loads of things, including regularly seeing a lovely physio in Edinburgh called Liesel. Her treatment has been great, but while it helped greatly in the beginning, I've seemed to come to a bit of a plateau.

Luckily, my ankle isn't so bad that I can't run AT ALL - just not very far. 5k is my absolute maximum distance. I suppose that is better than nothing at all, but I am really keen to get back up to 100% so I can start thinking about doing longer distances again.

Unfortunately, as my physio puts it, I am a "biomechanical disaster". I think a combination between unlucky genes and 22 years of slouching around has turned my legs into a pair of haphazard drumsticks. Basically, I have flat feet, weak inner thighs and knees that refuse to take their fair share of the impact when my foot hits the ground. That can be a fatal combination - as the last few months has shown.

However,  my physio says that I am actually really lucky. This injury has drawn my attention to all my biomechanical faults and as a result I can work on them, so I will avoid something much more serious cropping up further down the line when it is too late. Every cloud and all that...

I got running again as soon as I could - I think I was out of the game for about 6-8 weeks when I got the go ahead to start going again. My first run was only about 2k, and boy I suffered for it afterward. But I persevered and am now at the stage that I can run about 5k and only suffer minor pain afterwards. It's great, but I'm getting to the stage that even this (in my view) half-assed attempt at a running regime is nearly frustrating as not having one at all.

So I have made a resolution for February: no running. At all. Now that doesn't mean no exercise - far from it. In fact, I have found some amazing yoga, stretch, and pilates programmes online that I intend to do, as well as carrying on with my old faithful swimming and my favourite Jillian Michael's DVD. This month is going to be all about the strength and stretch.

On top of that, I am going to show my ankle some SERIOUS love. I have my various physio bands at the ready, so I am going to do my physio exercises with even more vigour. I'm even experimenting with cod liver oil - I'm a bit of a cynic when it comes to supplements but I'm at the stage where I have absolutely nothing to lose.

So here goes, fingers crossed these measures will heal my ankle once and for all! We will see, though.

Have any of you suffered an ankle injury? I am desperate for hints and tips, so please share them with me in the comments!