First Injury of Marathon Training: Strained Hip Flexor

I ran a 13 mile long run last Sunday and felt great. Then came Monday evening and I started to feel a little pain on my upper thigh while walking. Considering I've ran through knee pain and shin splints before, I just thought this pain would go away after a couple days. Yep, I was wrong. I continued on my training plan, which called for five miles Tuesday, three on Wednesday, and five Thursday. I cut Thursday's short at 4.5. I took Thursday night and Friday to rest and attempted the three miles I had to do for Saturday. Ouch! I must've looked like such a newbie on the treadmill because I kept stopping after literally two steps of running.

I decided to skip my 10 mile long run on Sunday morning and thought I would return to it later that day after visiting my nephews. Well, as we all know, four year-olds have a lot of energy! We did a little racing on the front sidewalk. He really did win each race because I had to hobble along. Sunday night was the worst of the pain so far. Finally, this morning I called a physical therapy clinic for a free injury screening.

After a few exercises, my PT confirmed what I had guessed- strained hip flexor. The cause of my particular strain? Weak hips and glutes. I thought I had a strong butt! She prescribed some stretches and exercises that will help manage the pain and strengthen my glutes. She also said no running for one to two weeks, rest and heat.

No running for two weeks?! I haven't taken that long off from running since my first half marathon ten months ago. We'll see how restless I get just after a couple days off.