I dont think i've completely solved my calf 'heart attack' issues properly, but i managed a full year of racing without them this year. After cramping and crawling every race in 2012, its progress.

Main things that worked for me (in no particular order):

1. Lots of slow, slow running before doing anything resembling fast.
2. Slowly increasing my frequency of running while keeping weekly mileage roughly the same (substituting long runs with lots of short runs, etc)
3. Foam rolling 2-4 times a week, max 2-3 mins at a time on each leg.
4. Running with my hips. This made the biggest difference to me. Turns out my hips had a lot of tightness and over 2 years of chronic tightness, I began "pushing off" my feet during my stride, overloading my calves every single time I tried to run hard. I had to consciously shorten my stride a bit and visualize the change....took about 3 months for my muscles to adapt. This helped even more during hill repeats as I lifted my knees more than I used to.
5. Hot water baths with epsom salt (2x per week).
6. Massages (~2x per month for 3 months).
7. Trigger point poking (every time I remembered the achiness was still there during my day at work)

The deep soleus pain eventually subsided, but never went away fully. Usually its still a very sore spot after a run, but nothing more.

My advice is to pay attention to little things, and make those little things a habit. Its free, so take it what it's worth! :D

Good luck!

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Duathlete by choice?

TriCat,
I too have had calf issues over the last 2 years. With my insurance premium paid up I went to the ortho Dr. He sent me to PT for my achilles/calf. started doing some aggressive stretching 3 times a day holding for a min of 30 sec. Followed by eccentric loading of the calf (calf raise with slow lowering over 8-10sec for 15 reps) and a new treatment called ASTYM. very similar to graston technique. So far so good, BUT I haven't really pushed it. Hope this is of help.

Fighting it myself at the moment, this strategy is helping.

http://www.runnersworld.com/...-attacks?page=single

I've struggled with this my first two years of running. It seems that for me most of it is fitness related. When I have a layoff and I start running again, it seems to happen. I have to toe the line of not aggravating it while remaining active. It's very frustrating because it always slows my training down. For me the key has been to slowly work thru it and really alway remain active thereafter. It seems that once I have gotten thru a 'spell' of the cramping I can slowly increase my mileage and haven't had further problems.

What has been your comeback runs like? How much rest or recovery are you giving your legs?

You went from zero running to ...

What kind of effort are you doing in these runs? Are you changing the paces throughout the different runs?

What kind of shoes are you using?

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@brooksdoughtie
USAT-L2,Y&J; USAC-L2
http://www.aomultisport.com

Try Hokas for now, find the biomechanical cause (may take time), but start with your hamstrings. I have a tight soleus on the right, which plays up if I don't stretch the medial hamstring on that leg, but it comes from a broken shoulder years before. I always recommend Feldenkrais for these chronic problems. Hope that helps as a bad calf makes for a terrible season. -k

I went to a PT who did Graston Technique http://www.lthaw.com/...ton-technique--.html, it worked

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res, non verba

Hi same issue this ST article helped me http://www.slowtwitch.com/...alf_disease_926.html

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"Be your best cheerleader , not your worst critic.”

Thanks, I bought some epsome salts, just had a good massage and I have been rollering trigger points

Thanks I'll have a look at ASTYM

Yeah I saw this article a few years ago, it works for some, I still have problems, have tried so many ways to get back to running, I am sure it works, I might have just been unlucky

I also think I need to get some consistency, but ATM I can not jog more that 5 mins without pain.

Hi
I have tried everything over the years
From walk a minute jog a minute for 20 mins
Follow ten percent rule
Run alt days only or no more than 3 times a week.
Once I ran once a week in the bush, for ages, seemed to work for a while
This time I just jogged 20 mins on grass flat 4 - 5 times a week for 8 weeks, no increase in distance or speed ( also swim and cycle and have been fairly fit)
However I do it I get the same result eventually
Sjes have changed over the years
ATM I use Brookes Infinti with orthotics
Ash

You're right It's been ten years since I was able to train for a race
Hokas .. MM interesting, never heard of them, will have to import a pair
my hammys are tight, always have been and my left soleus always seems a little tight cf right, but physio says I have equal dorsiflexion left and right

Great article and comments section thanks

Don't think there is a practitioner near me in NZ?
I'll check it out

Graston. Prolo therapy. Platelet therapy.

I ditto this remark and would add that fast running in cold weather is contraindicated. I cannot run in weather below 40 degrees or so without starting out really slowly, wearing compression socks and a long pair of pants. The cold weather seems to make the tendons and ligaments more brittle.

-Robert

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"How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world." ~Anne Frank

Seriously? prolotherapy? Platelet therapy? Did it work for you?
Did you have MRI? If so what did they find?
Ash

I don't have something as bad, but can see that my issue is similar. I get a pain where my achillies turns into my calf. I generally get it when getting back to running, or like you, running hills. I found that a lot of the problem went away (along with chronic shit splints) when I started wearing orthotics. I don't know if you wear them or if they'd fix your problem, but certainly give them a tri. Search around for a good running specialist orthopodist or podiatrist and get looked at.

Like I said, I really only get the problem when I get back to running after a layoff. I find that RICE after a run helps get me through, as does self massage and of course voltaren gel a couple of times a day for the first few weeks of running. Once I get run fit again, I can slowly build up to longer runs, even with some hills. I even managed for finally crack a 4 hour marathon a couple of years ago, and finished with no pain whatsoever.

You could also see about doing most of your run training in the pool. A friend did that for about 80% of her marathon training and won the Rotorua marathon a few years ago. Boring as batshit, but it works.

Try everything and see what works for you. Best of luck

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TriDork

"Happiness is a myth. All you can hope for is to get laid once in a while, drunk once in a while and to eat chocolate every day"

hi tridork
Yep have orthotics, but think Ill get em reassessed
Ash

I have suffered a similar frustration with my calf. Mine was my right leg but in the same sort of position that you describe.

I've probably suffered on and off for the last 15 years! Crazy !!!

However, I think I've solved my problem ... it might be very specific to me but then again if I have this problem then there may be others

I had an eye check last year and the optician asked me if I knew that I tilted my head when talking to her. I didn't. It turned out there was an imbalance in the muscles of my eyes and my brain compensated for this by tilting my head slightly to the right to 'level my world'. Turns out that this had the effect of me running at a slight angle and stressing my right calf. That's the theory anyway. It was corrected by a prism in one lens of my glasses. Running, and even riding, with them is very different.

This was a year ago and I haven't had the problem since. I've managed to train and complete events up to Olympic distance with only slight niggles ... nothing like the calf heart attacks I used to suffer all the time.
Next up is a Half Ironman in January. If I survive that I am calling it a 'cure' .

Really! Now that's something different...... I'll look into that! Good luck, What did you try for 15 years that didn't work??? I'll make sure I don't bother!

Unfortunately I have tried calf sleaves and also mostly I try running again in the heat of summer (funny that!) , so I think I can rule out the cold as a cause, thanks for the reply!