saturday
air squats 3:30
full squats 3:15
monday
pilates
tuesday
30min steep hill walk
friday
strength
db squats 3:10 24kg, 3:6 47kg, 3:1 87kg
db full squats 3:6 14kg
really super busy, as predicted. once more week to go. still getting treatment for my foot/calf problem. considering a change of footwear.
did three performances of the last post for ANZAC day yesterday… 
sunday
track
10x30m 60%
5x60m 70%
2x60m efe
weights
snatch 3:6 40kg
deadlift 3:6 60kg, 3:1 100kg
I’ve been wearing my old shoes for the last few days. it could be that, or it could just be the passage of time, but things seem to be settling down. I had a light trot on grass today, and it felt mostly pretty good.
man, I get so impatient when I’m off injured… :mad:
Have you recently changed shoes?
What does the therapist think may have caused it?
I changed shoes shortly after the season ended. I first encountered the problem before that, but I think the footwear has brought the problem back.
origionally, I think it was caused when I was doing quite a lot of drills and plyometrics in january. the extra pounding against the ground strained the arch/calf area, and I was stupid enough not to listen to my body straight away, so I ignored it and kept training. it wasn’t actually all that painful at first and I just assumed it would go away after a while… 
sunday
1k jog (5.5min)
500m walk
500m jog (2.5min)
500m walk
squat 3:10 45kg
just easing back into things after an extremely busy and draining two weeks at work. calves felt fine, thank god, so the change of shoes and massage seem to be doing the trick. didn’t get above a light trot, however. I’ll try to run exclusively on grass for the next month or so and hopefully the problem won’t return…
monday
pilates
tuesday
30x25m 50-65%
weights
db squat 3:10 45kg
leg extension 3:10 40kg
db full squats 3:6 24kg, 3:6 14kg
"Tibialis-posterior tendinitis:
Like its ‘neighbouring injuries’, Achilles tendinitis and plantar fasciitis, tibialis-posterior tendinitis can plague athletes from a variety of different sports (1). The condition is actually an inflammation of the tendon of the important but relatively little-known tibialis-posterior muscle, which originates on the backs of the tibia and fibula in the lower part of the leg and in the membrane which connects these two bones. The tibialis-posterior muscle is a ‘deep’ sinew which lies underneath the calf’s soleus muscle, which itself rests beneath the gastrocnemius, the fleshy portion of the calf. The oft-troubled tendon of the tibialis-posterior muscle passes behind the medial malleolus (the ‘knob’ on the inside of the ankle) and then inserts on the bottom surfaces of eight key bones which lie just in front of the heel area – the navicular bone, the cuboid bone, the three cuneiform bones, and the second, third, and fourth metatarsals. If you form a mental image of this anatomical positioning, you will realise that a concentric (shortening) action of the tibialis-posterior muscle would plantar-flex your ankle and ‘invert’ your foot (rotate it inward, with the pivot axis at the ankle joint). The tibialis-posterior muscle and its tendon also provide support for the arch of the foot.
Symptoms to watch for
Although the tibialis-posterior tendon can rupture as a result of sudden impact forces on the foot and ankle (more on this in a moment), the most common cause of tibialis-posterior-tendon problems is overuse, which is another way of saying that the tendon was simply not strong enough to stand up to an athlete’s chosen frequency, intensity, and volume of training. Symptoms of tibialis-posterior tendinitis include soreness, pain, and swelling along the inside of the ankle, as well as aching and discomfort along the bottom of the foot. The foot troubled by tibialis-posterior tendinitis is often ‘flatter’ than the other, problem-free foot (ie, the arch is less concave), and an athlete with tibialis-posterior tendinitis may have a fair amount of difficulty carrying out single-leg heel raises on the affected leg.
Definitive diagnosis of tibialis-posterior tendinitis can be accomplished with an MRI exam (2), by means of ultrasound (3), and even with scintigraphy (4). A high-quality scintigraph will usually reveal elongated, increased uptake of the radioisotope along the anatomical course of the tibialis-posterior tendon in the malleolus region, as well as in the malleolus itself and in the navicular bone.
Unfortunately, a rupture of the tibialis-posterior tendon is a diagnosis which is often missed by regular and sports-medicine doctors, as well as by athletic trainers (5). A rupture should be strongly suspected in athletes who have a pronounced history of ankle-twisting injuries, especially when these injuries have been associated with high-impact loading (landing on the floor after a volleyball spike, hitting the basketball court after a dunk, striking the turf after a leap for the soccer ball, etc.). The tibialis-posterior tendon is especially likely to rupture if such landings are associated with ankle eversion (clockwise motion of the right ankle upon landing or counter-clockwise action at the left ankle joint in conjunction with impact). Ruptures are also linked with more-or-less chronic and generalised pain and swelling along the inside of the ankle. A very flat foot will often be present, and the athlete will have unusual difficulty rattling off a series of one-leg heel raises on the foot with the ruptured tendon."
http://www.sportsinjurybulletin.com/archive/tibialis-tendinitis.html
thursday
30x25m 60-75%
weights
deadkift
1:10 20kg
1:8 30kg
1:6 50kg
1:4 60kg
1:2 70kg
2:2 75kg
leg extension 3:10 40kg, 3:6 60kg
db full squat 3:10 14kg
gradually gaining confidence in my calves. picked up the speed a fraction. having read the link in the previous post I have a greater understanding of what’s going on. tonight I found that if I sort of “locked” my ankles overall stability improved and the muscles didn’t seem to stretch as much.
picked it up a fraction in the weights room with some pyramid deadlifts and hefty leg extensions (I know they aren’t popular around here, but I seem to get much faster and stronger when I use them).
below is a bit of a sample…
sunday
warm up
400m walk
2x400m jog (60-70%)
tempo
4x100m (19s, 19s, 18s, 16s)
1x150m (23s)
pretty slow, but starting to feel better around the ankles. track was damp and slow, which partially accounts for the extremely slow times. still, it’s amazing how much fitness I have lost over the last month… :o
monday
pilates and foot/calf exercises
tuesday
warm up
400m walk
2x400m jog (1.50, 1.40)
tempo
2x100m (16s, 16s)
1x150m (23s)
1x200m (31s)
ran really well today, despite still being quite tired from my crazy weekend of wild parties! 
it’s interesting to note that I am currently running 200m times that were, a year ago, my 150m times. http://www.charliefrancis.com/community/showpost.php?p=158597&postcount=18
on the downside (why does there always seem to be one?:rolleyes: ), my tibialis posterior was a bit sore again afterwards.
thursday
weights
deadlift 1:10 30kg, 1:10 50kg, 1:6 60kg, 3:6 70kg
friday
pilates
sunday
warm up
10x30m
3x60m
speed
1x flying 20 (75%)
3x flying 20 (90%)
3x30m (4.86, 4.78, 4.93)
1x60m (8.07s)
pretty pleased with how the session went today. I felt pretty slow out of the blocks, but I haven’t done any explosive work for a fair while. the times were half decent, anyway. plus, I had another party last night. :rolleyes:
I got a pair of shoes with greater arch support for my weights session on thursday. I think that doing weights barefoot might have been contributing to my problems. the trouble is, I only felt the result when I ran, so I associated it with that. whatever, I had minimal discomfort today and I was doing speed work on a covered track.
things are looking up… 
indeed.
monday
strength
body weight full squat 3:10
db full squat 3:10 14kg
deadlift 3:10 30kg
db fs 3:10 14kg
tuesday
tempo
800m warm up
3x150m (25, 24, 27)
wednesday
pilates
thursday
tempo
800m warm up
3x200m (38, 37, 36)
the fitness has really dropped over the last month or so, but I am pretty confident of getting it all back quite quickly. I’m really going to make it a bit of a focus of mine to increase my tolerance of lactic acid, which has always been really low. if I finish a track session feeling sick in the stomach then I have succeeded, in my opinion. so as well as running harder with shorter rests I’ve gone back to my 800m warm up for tempo…
friday
strength
bw full squats 3:10
db full squats 3:10 14kg
deadlift 3:10 30kg
leg extension 3:10 40kg
db full squats 3:10 14kg
sunday
speed
10x30m warm up (50-70%)
2x60m 60%
3x flying 20
5x10m block starts
I’m taking a much more measured approach to the weight training now, and I’m liking it. also, I’ve started using a heel lift to take some of the strain off that tendon that has been bothering me.
had my flying 20’s videoed and they revealed a few things. after the first one I was amazed to see how low my hands were coming up. I seem to have improved that in subsequent runs, though.
//youtu.be/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-QADj-YatI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-QADj-YatI
//youtu.be/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXpYZLDShA0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXpYZLDShA0
//youtu.be/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GD-bo_Ps6c
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GD-bo_Ps6c
my technique from the blocks is far from settled, but I’m working on it. I find that I get out of the blocks much better once I start using cleans…
good front mechanics. You look quite tense though, possibly trying to run too fast rather than letting it happen, I’d take it though 
tuesday
2.5k jog
thursday
morning
15min jog
evening
250m warm up
10x90m, slight incline, 60-80%
I’ve just got back from yet another band camp. this particular venue have 4 storeys and my room at the top, so I had to trudge up 55 steps if I wanted to get anything from my room, or even go to the toilet.
went to the track on tuesday with the intention of running a few 200’s. instead I met up with a friend of mine and I couldn’t shut him up for hours! boooring! :rolleyes: 
just did a bit of a jog instead.
there wasn’t much around where I was staying, but I managed to track down a 90m footy field at the local school. bunted out a few run through’s at altitude.
I’m sad to say that my tendon problem has flared up again. I suspect that it might have been all the walking down the stairs that did it. man, this is really getting me down…
bugger!
friday
speed
5x20m
weights
db full squat 3:10 14kg
deadlift 3:10 30kg
leg extension 3:10 40kg
cleans 3:10 30kg
db fs 3:10 14kg
pilates
sunday
800m warm up
2x150m (24, 25)
1x150m (22)
sled runs 3x40m
as I have received a brutal monstering in the press lately, I’ve decided to do something about my “horrible” hip height :o . I’ve added some cleans to my weights routine and have started doing sled work earlier than I had planned, to try and get that hip strength and explosiveness going. I’m also trying to emphasize the vertical force that I exert, especially when I am up and running and maintaining speed.
I am also considering dropping the full squats from my routine to see if my ankles improve. as much as I love the effect they have on my glutes, etc., I suspect that they are the prime source of the problem. if this is the case then I’ll either have to find a way to replace them or further alter my technique to alleviate the problem.
all in all, I felt good today, despite staying up till 4am partying and watching buddy-fest . it’s amazing what a little berocca can do…
I did think some of the comments weren’t the most positive and although had some validity weren’t put across constructively.
What makes you think squats are th cause of your ankle? 
I asked for feedback, and I got it!
it seems to be after doing full squats that the problem flares up, and there does seem to be some tension in the area when I get down low. I’ll drop them out for a bit and see if things improve.
in the meantime, I’ll do more reverse hypers and butt exercises to see if I can get the same effect…
what are you doing to loosen your calves? That sounds like the issue. IMHO dropping squats doesn’t fix the problem it just avoids it.