My Body is a Cage

My body it is a falling apart.

After the marathon last Sunday I didn't run or work out for three days. On Thursday I took a yoga class and rode the stationary bike for a half hour. Friday I ran for the first time thinking that I was mostly recovered, but within the first mile my right calf was stiffening up. I forged ahead for three miles and stretched the calf out after. It was stiff for the rest of the day.

On Friday night I started feeling a pain on the joint of my middle toe on the right foot. It would radiate to the smaller two toes when I walked, and when I woke up on Saturday morning it was a bit painful to walk. It got better as I walked on it more but not by much. This foot problem has been an intermittent issue I've had to deal with. The last time I can remember it was just before last year's L.A. Marathon. The day before that marathon I was sure I'd have to pull out of the race. Miraculously, the next morning, I woke up and the pain was gone. I'm glad this foot pain didn't come again just before this year's marathon.

I have a feeling I may have strained my foot as a result of compensating for the stiff calf on Friday. I went for a walk with the Team on Saturday morning, barely broke a sweat, but my foot was uncomfortable. All weekend long I had to deal with the pain.

This morning something else popped up. I woke up and my knee--the inner top corner of my knee cap--was hurting. I probably hurt it because I've been walking funny because of the foot and messed it up that way. Otherwise I have no idea how I hurt it. I'm hoping this will all go away soon and I can go back to running. It also may be my body's way of making sure I take it easy post-marathon.

In other news: I saw 300 on IMAX late Saturday. For all the blood spilled onscreen the film itself is drained of blood. It's hard to care about the Spartans when you can barely distinguish any of them and they all seem like inhuman killing machines. There are speeches that are meant to be rousing, but the film is no Henry V. It's just silly and surprisingly dull when there's no bloodletting going on. The bodies are nice to look at (apparently there are no fat Spartans and everyone has an AbCruncher at home), but the cutting is so frenetic that you can't linger on the buffed out abs. The IMAX added little to the experience. I can easily just sit closer to the screen of a regular theater and get the same experience for almost half the price.

But what do I know? The film grossed $70 million and those who have read the graphic novel love the film. I guess it's just not for me.