A few days ago I made the mistake of running on some trails that had just gotten a 2-3 inch coating of snow the day after my first long run for a few months. I should have just called it immediately upon feeling the snow get deeper as I moved further into the trail system, but I didn't. I actually didn't really feel too much going on during the run itself, but later that day I had a little niggling irritation in my right knee. I didn't think too much of it and it wasn't noticeable for my next few runs. But yesterday I did a few hill repeats and was feeling good so the run ended up being more Z2-Z3 than a super easy Z1 effort. Then in the evening while walking my dog, the knee irritation was far more pronounced than it had been so far.

What makes this mistake all the more annoying, is that I've had this same thing happen two years in a row. Running on snow with tired legs equals (for me at least) almost guaranteed patello-femoral inflammation. This isn't something I am worried about long term and the benefit of having (stupidly) made the same mistake now for a few years running, is that I've got a pretty solid protocol for how to deal with it. I'm looking at 4 days off from running, just walking for a couple of them and then introducing an easy strength session on day three and then a day of some kind of non-running cardio like back country skiing on day 4 followed by a few easy runs to get back to normal volume. It is exactly what I did last year at almost this exact same time of year. So while the mistake is certainly irritating, it's not something that I am currently spiraling over.
This is a marked shift from a couple years ago, when the patello-femoral inflammation temporarily derailed my training for Cocodona. In 2023 when this happened, I dramatically texted a friend something like "I might just be done with this stupid sport." Even last year, in 2024, I was more than a little depressed at the thought of 4 days off. One specific driver of these previously maladaptive and negative reactions to what amounts to a really minor irritation, was comparing myself to other runners. In the ultra community, we are surrounded by people pushing their physical limits and it is all to easy to get into the mindset where it seems rational to question "why can they do that, but I can't." That in this instance could be anything, speed, volume, intensity, vertical gain, etc. But the old cliche, "comparison is the thief of joy" sounds old and wise for a reason. It's just pointless to think like that.
In past years I've certainly gone down the thought rabbit-hole spinning like a dark Alice down into the self-hating thought cave wondering why it is that I am just barely starting training and these other people are running 100 mile week after 100 mile week and I am the one who is getting hurt. It's easy to let those types of thoughts really worm into your mind and make you feel bad. But not only is this whole thought spiral just immensely unhelpful, it doesn't even shed light onto anything true about oneself. Everyone's physical demands and limitations are different and while I might just not be able to go run on snow with tired legs, somebody else can do it for hundreds of miles and be just fine. This isn't a statement or an assessment of value in any way, it's just something that's different person to person.
As a coach, I see my role as helping athletes improvise around a plan. Once people learn how to train, it really isn't all that difficult to set up and attempt to execute a plan assuming everything goes well. But the part about training that is truly complex and does require a level of expertise, is adapting to unforeseen circumstances. Sometimes the unforeseen circumstances is working an extra 10 hours in a week or having to travel or getting sick. Other times it's a little mistake like I made last week that requires a touch of caution to navigate. The first time I experienced the patello-femoral inflammation I just barreled through the pain for a week or two, KT taping and doing all that I could to manage it. For the most part, it's the kind of pain that goes away once your legs are warmed up so it is actually pretty easy to train through. That is, until it isn't. I ended up limping out of a planned long run on trails and back to the car in some significant distress. Lo and behold, 4 days off later, and I was running pain free once again and back up to my normal volume in a little over a week.
Small injuries like this are always frustrating but this time around I'm just approaching it with an eye roll and a few moments of thinking, "what a freaking dummy I am for running tired on the snow again!" But I am taking the advice that I would give to someone I'm coaching and just taking it easy for a few days time. It's common for motivated athletes to look at any time off as a huge negative and a hurdle to overcome. And while this can be true mentally, minor issues are just your body's way of saying "hey, that was a little too much, too fast." It's important for our longevity and health to listen to these signals and take them seriously. When an athlete tells me about a nagging sensation that lasts more than a couple days, it's one of the times I feel useful as a coach, being able to tell them that it's almost certainly not a big deal and just to take a few days off. Now, am I always greeted with a positive response? Definitely not! But I understand, I've been in the situation myself and I am always annoyed by these types of challenges.
Anyway, if you find yourself saddled with some unpleasant sensations while running and it lasts more than a few days, just consider taking 3 or 4 days off to let things calm down. I think ultra runners tend to catastrophize about any period of time off, even one shorter than a single week. "I'm going to lose fitness." "I'm weaker than these other 10 people who are able to put in huge amounts of volume." "Why does this always happen to me?" We will all have these thoughts but, honestly, they're just noise.
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