Sara and I went out for a run today. We ran only 3,7 kilometers. The plan was to do a little recovery run, but not such a short one. The reason we did; my left knee is not happy.
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If I’m totally honest, I’ve been feeling my left knee for a couple of weeks now. It was just a nagging feeling. Two and a half weeks ago, at the Brabantse Kluis Trail, for the first time it was seriously painful. Yet, the days after I didn’t really feel it. Only when I was running. But with every run I did, it became less.
Burning pain
Just before Christmas I ran almost 37 kilometers and my left knee played up again. Only this time it was seriously painful. It’s a combination of burning pain and the feeling as if somebody is stabbing something sharp in my leg.
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The pain is on the inside of my knee. There were the Sartorius muscle attaches on the Tibia. If I follow my Sartorius muscle up my leg, I can feel a lot of knots in my muscle. I think these trigger points are causing the pain. At least, that would be my diagnosis as a massage therapist.
Lotus pose
I did some research to freshen up my mind a little. What causes trigger points in the Sartorius is, among other things, sitting crossed legged, sitting in lotus, sitting with your legs up. How do I sit behind my desk? Often in easy cross or half lotus. How do I write these blogs? Mostly with my legs up on the table.
What is more stressful for the Sartorius muscle? Yoga poses like butterfly pose, and Fire log pose. And what are my favorite poses to stretch out after a run? Baddha Konasana B, an extended variation of Butterfly pose and Fire log pose.
Slipping and sliding
What about trail running? Well, slipping and sliding isn’t good. Neither are fast turns, quick acceleration, and extended strides. Well, last summer I was running a trail run in Scotland that was 19 kilometers slipping and sliding. At the end of October I ran the Duinen Trail, 17 kilometers through the sand, with a lot of uncontrolled movements. Beginning November I ran the Alfa Bear trail, with 560 meters of altitude. Not only up, also down. Running downhill is running with extended strides.
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Altogether I can’t say I have been nice for my Sartorius muscle. No wonder it needs a little bit of tender loving care (TLC). Luckily I’m a massage therapist. It’s an easy muscle to reach so I can give it all the TLC it needs.
Photo: doing Fire log pose, a pose that can irritate the Sartorius muscle
