During my recent spat of muscle strains and pulls before Ironman Louisville, my acupuncturist recommended that I try the herb arnica montana. She recommended it as a topical gel applied to the problem muscles. I was in a bad way and just days out from the race...
At that point, if she had recommended that I soak my muscles in a vat of boiling toad urine for an hour, read Gone With the Wind backwards and click my heels three times after every page I would have tried it!
So, I ran down to Whole Foods and picked up a tube of Arnica gel and I must say for me, this time, it worked!!! No Bengay smell and no fake burning sensation to mask pain. Supposedly, it reduces inflammation and acts as an analgesic. If you don't mind a little marketing bluster, here is a good site to learn more about using arnica. Click Here To Learn About Arnica I would give it two hamstrings up! I now have a tube at home, at work and in my gym bag!
If you have read this blog since the start, you know that my lovely wife Christine and I converted to a vegetarian diet in January. There is a great article in this month's Mens Journal on how many high performance athletes (BTW... I am not to be confused with a high performance athlete!) are converting to a vegan/vegetarian diet. They claim it is improving their ability to recover after workouts, maintain weight for higher performance and just generally feel better. I would vouch for it. Check out the article...it may help you run that next marathon a few minutes faster!
Thanks again for your interest in my blog and upcoming adventure. There have been lots of developments the last week or so. The good folks at Freedom is Not Free have been great in shooting me an idea or two to help generate awareness.
Ramping up my workouts after the ten days off...this week I will be near 80 miles. Shooting for 100 next week.
E
You crack me up. I'm with you when in pain, I'll believe and try just about anything before a race. Most recently the podiatrist had me under his spell. He told me my self-diagnosed plantar fasciitis was actually neuromas. After ultra sounds on both feet he injected me in 6 spots with a b-12, alcohol, something else concoction. He said I would be up and running that night.
ReplyDeleteAfter the painful shots, I could barely stand. I ran the next morning just because he said I could, but my feet hurt like hell. It's been two weeks today, and while I've been running since the day after the shots, I must admit, I'm in more pain from the shots than I was from my "PF."
He said he could cure me for life. I'm still waiting.
On a more positive note, I took the bike out for a 25 mile ride on Sunday. I went with some folks who "know what they are doing." It was a humbling, ass kicking experience. At least I got them in the pool on Tuesday.
Carolyn