Help on marathon muscle pain

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buzby123 Mar 2014 12:29pm, 14 Mar 2014 327 posts	0 buzby123 I have done 5 maarathons now, all very different in themselves, on my first one last year I had only what I can describe as the muscle popping out above the knee (vastus medialis I believe is the muscle). Whenever I mention it to a physio they look at me blankly like they have never come across it before. After the first marathon which was an offroad and hilly I put it down to the terrain and the hills. The second marathon I did was Manchester, tarmac and flat, sub 4hr and no problem with it. Third marathon was 6 months later , Yorkshire, undulating and tarmac, same problem again which left me walking until it went back from mile 22 and on about 4 occasions to the end. I then did Malta marathon in Feb this year, ran it with a friend to her pace, we ran a 4:36, no such pain. Just done the offroad hilly marathon again same as last year and I suffered again from about mile 22, straight after a very big hill which reduces you to walking, got on the flat at the top and had to walk for 5 mins until the muscle eased itself back. I have London in 4 weeks and tempted to do Manchester so I can just go enjoy London with my friend at a more relaxed pace, however, I am a bit worried that this will happen again. If it only did it on the hilly ones I would be able to say for sure what was causing it but with it happening at York last year too I'm a bit confused. Does anyone know what I mean when I say muscle popping out and have any suggestions. I ran with Nuuns in my hydration pack this time and thought I was well fed and watered throughout.
DeeGee Mar 2014 12:31pm, 14 Mar 2014 15,564 posts	0 DeeGee lurks
buzby123 Mar 2014 12:33pm, 14 Mar 2014 328 posts	0 buzby123 do you get this DeeGee?
DeeGee Mar 2014 1:08pm, 14 Mar 2014 15,566 posts	0 DeeGee Not exactly as you describe. I've had a pain in the shin, the onset of which feels as you describe, takes a couple of days to subside, then I can run on it. However, last marathon I did was a hilly one, I ran 20-odd miles pain free, then speeding up down a steep hill, it returned. I've rested it fully for a fortnight, I'll then try again running gently over 26 flat miles and see what the outcome is.
JohnnyO Mar 2014 1:12pm, 14 Mar 2014 17,307 posts	0 JohnnyO runnersworld.com
buzby123 Mar 2014 2:44pm, 14 Mar 2014 329 posts	0 buzby123 Thank you JohnnyO, this sounds just like it, I guess when you describe it as muscular hernia the description makes perfect sense. Not sure I'm liking what I read but going to keep googling on this to see if theres some kind of imbalance in the leg muscles which I can build up to help with this.