I have struggled from time to time in my adult life with brief periods of iron deficiency. Only once before can I remember it really being a problem. In the summer of 2009 for a while I was bruising like an over-ripe peach, the palms of my hands hurt all the time, and my muscles felt weak. With some focus on my diet, it passed.
Iron deficiency during pregnancy is common, particularly in the second and third trimesters (I'm currently second trimester). You can read all about it here if you're curious. I didn't realize until I traveled how closely I was walking the line on keeping my nutrition in check.
Two days ago while in Florida I noticed an odd bruise on my leg. Then Saturday I saw a similar one on my left arm. Suspicious. Then yesterday my legs felt like they had no strength in them at all. With a few other symptoms happening too, I'm pretty sure the signs add up to borderline iron deficiency. The second night I was in FL I woke up in the night with foot & leg cramps (low on potassium?). It only took 2 days of being away from bananas and iron-rich breakfast cereals for this to happen. Crazy.
The plan was to do about 6 miles yesterday. But I knew almost as soon as I woke up that I needed to take a break. So, I'm taking a break. RW says that all runners, regardless of consistent running volume, need to take a break every now and then. So, this is mine. This past week was very low mileage, and I'll continue to take it easy until I can bring my diet and symptoms into balance. I'm mainlining spinach, Mini-Wheats and bananas to get back in check. Wish me luck!
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4 comments:
Good for you listening to your body and resting when you needed! I hope you can get your iron & potassium levels back inline!
You are so wise to understand what is better for you. Take care.
I agree, the rest is as important as the training.
Good luck and enjoy your runs.
Good luck! I hope you get it under control soon!
Take care of yourself and just eat like there's no tomorrow!
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