Forums >Health and Nutrition>Getting slower and weaker - iron??
I'm trying to decide how much I should worry about my current running problem and would appreciate any advice. I've been getting slower and slower, feeling weaker and weaker while running. My easy pace is now over a minute per I'm slower than before and my legs get that tired, burning fatigue feeling after just half an hour of this jogging.
wtf is going on? This has been getting progressively worse for the last six weeks or so. At first i thought it was just sluggishness due to the heat and humidity. Then I thought, well, maybe just a bit of tiredness as I ran a bit more in August than in June and July (238km in August, 215 in June and July, 150-200/month from jan-may.). So I took it easy for a week, just jogged a few times, but it was even worse after that week.
So, did I really overdo it in August? I don't really think so, though I might be in denial of course. It's not like I'm unmotivated to run; up til last week I was convinced it was just a sluggish phase that would be over soon and every day I would think, today is the day for a good run. And every day it gets worse!
I'm definitely eating enough, so it's not a case of underfueling.
The only explanation I can think of is that I have low iron. But I just had blood drawn in August for an unrelated issue, and while they didn't test for iron specifically, my hemoglobin was at 13.7 which isn't especially low. I've had low iron before and always had other symptoms like hair loss, dry cracked skin at the corners of my mouth, and way more general fatigue than I feel now (and lower hemoglobin).
Does any of this sound familiar to anyone else?? any ideas or suggestions? I don't particularly want to go to the doctor about this, but it's starting to seem like i probably should. If it were just a case of being a bit sluggish I would just wait and see, but the pain worries me, as does the fact that it's getting worse. Ugh.
King of PhotoShop
I just have a couple of questions, as I went through this already and my guess is I am way older than you. (I run in miles, not k's so I suspect you are not U.S.)
Please fill me in. How old are you? How many miles do you run a week? Do you take a statin for cholesterol or any blood pressure medication? Have you been put on any kind of new medication within the last six months?
And what is the reason for your reluctance to speak to your dr. about this? Sorry, that's a lot of questions, but it would help others in their replies. You are a pretty good runner by the way. Spareribs
Hi spareribs! Thanks for your reply and the follow up questions. I'm 39, been running forever. This year I've been noodling along not training for anything specific, doing 30ish miles per week most weeks (less in winter, more in summer) with one long run and one day of either fartlek or hills. A typical running week might be a long run of 9 miles, 2 runs of 7.5 miles of which one fartlek or hills, and 3 or 4 shorter easy runs of 30-45 min. Sometimes I do a tempo run.
just to be clear, I normally don't care about my "easy pace," it is what it is...but a slowdown of up to 1:30 per kilometer is drastic. Plus the quad and hamstring pain.
I do not take any medications. The only supplement I take right now is vitamin d.
why I don't want to go to the doctor? Idk, I think I'm afraid of not being taken seriously. Also, denial! Most things get better on their own, right? But this one doesn't seem to be heading in that direction.
thanks again spareribs. Oh, btw, I live in Germany, hence the kilometers
I am having similar symptoms & performance issues as you described. The doctor had my blood drawn for liver function & Lyme tests, and I am still waiting for the results. I have been also getting headaches & flu-like symptoms since June although I haven't had these in a couple of weeks. I started running 3 years ago at the age of 50, & despite nagging injuries have been making significant improvements in performance to where I am winning in my age group at various distances. And so, I am perplexed by the degradation & I started to attribute it to being a year older.
runktrun
I definitely think you should see a doctor and try to frame your concerns as it pertains to your quality of life and everyday activities...even if you are getting through they work day just fine, emphasis the weakness and exhaustion without focusing too much on your running performances. It's not really lying, but it's presenting information in a way that your doc might take more seriously and not just brush you off and say "run less, sleep more." I agree, it does not seem like you overtrained, though don't completely rule that out.
Rather than help diagnose you, here are some things I suggest you bring up at your doctor's visit:
complete blood panel
Hypothyroid (TSH and maybe free t4 test)
Vitamin B12 deficiency (nb: normal range is 200-900pg, but symptoms of low B12 have been well documented in the medical community for values under 400! So if you test lower than 400 and nothing else obvious if wrong, don't let your doc brush that off, especially since you are active)
Lyme (request western blot rather than lyme titer, titer has higher rate of false negatives)
Also consider your sleep, diet and stress level to see if anything in your life changed that could have thrown your body off. And keep asking questions. You need to advocate for yourself if you feel like something is truly wrong and you're not getting satisfactory responses from doctors. Good luck!
Not running for my health, but in spite of it.
I've been having similar issues, so I understand the frustration. Unfortunately, there are a lot of medical issues that can cause low energy, from low thyroid to a tick or mosquito borne illness to low iron or D or B vitamins, etc. Seeing a doctor is a good place to start, but there is no guarantee they'll be able to figure it out. At best they can rule out some of the more obvious answers. BTDT
Thank you everyone for your thoughts! I womaned up and went to the doctor yesterday. had some blood drawn to look at the iron levels.
ynnam - good luck. I would not take this as the result of being a year older, though I must admit the same thought occurred to me. I just don't buy it though. Have you gotten the blood test results yet?
kilkee - thanks for the ideas. I knew I was going to get side eye if I emphasized running, so I mentioned it as a peripheral issue. Judging by the blank stare she gave me when I mentioned it, I'm guessing the doctor is not a runner
GinnyinPA - yeah, fatigue is such a vague symptom. did you get any explanation for your issues?
geez, my original post is tl;dr. I was getting pretty anxious.
Got the blood test results, haven't spoken with the doctor yet but I'm pretty sure she'll tell me I have nothing to worry about. Everything is in the normal range (and also normal for me, as far as can tell). The only iron related number I see besides the red blood cell stuff is ferritin, which is 36 ng/dl. My hemoglobin is actually higher than it was a month ago. Yay me?
I'm thinking the best course of action is probably to take a little break from running or just run minimally until it starts to be fun again, and if it doesn't get better in 3-4 weeks I'll go back to the doctor.
Was Vit D or B12 in the panel? or TSH?
Nope.
If you don't start feeling better with rest in a couple days, I think you should really push your doc to test for those values as well. Even low end of normal B12 can have a negative effect. And untreated hypothyroidism is basically like digging yourself into an ever deepening metabolic hole, no amount of rest will restore you. Hope you feel better soon!
I'm trying to decide how much I should worry about my current running problem and would appreciate any advice. I've been getting slower and slower, feeling weaker and weaker while running. My easy pace is now over a minute per I'm slower than before and my legs get that tired, burning fatigue feeling after just half an hour of this jogging. wtf is going on? This has been getting progressively worse for the last six weeks or so. At first i thought it was just sluggishness due to the heat and humidity. Then I thought, well, maybe just a bit of tiredness as I ran a bit more in August than in June and July (238km in August, 215 in June and July, 150-200/month from jan-may.). So I took it easy for a week, just jogged a few times, but it was even worse after that week. So, did I really overdo it in August? I don't really think so, though I might be in denial of course. It's not like I'm unmotivated to run; up til last week I was convinced it was just a sluggish phase that would be over soon and every day I would think, today is the day for a good run. And every day it gets worse! I'm definitely eating enough, so it's not a case of underfueling. The only explanation I can think of is that I have low iron. But I just had blood drawn in August for an unrelated issue, and while they didn't test for iron specifically, my hemoglobin was at 13.7 which isn't especially low. I've had low iron before and always had other symptoms like hair loss, dry cracked skin at the corners of my mouth, and way more general fatigue than I feel now (and lower hemoglobin). Does any of this sound familiar to anyone else?? any ideas or suggestions? I don't particularly want to go to the doctor about this, but it's starting to seem like i probably should. If it were just a case of being a bit sluggish I would just wait and see, but the pain worries me, as does the fact that it's getting worse. Ugh.
There are a lot of questions to be asked to address your problem, too many for me, so I'll just throw out a couple things...
When you go running are you overly concerned about your time or some other type of measurement to gauge your running? Sometimes we just need to forget all that and go out for an easy run (or maybe a tough run, if all you been doing are easy runs). In other words, mix it up.
What you're now experiencing, I went thru a few years ago; I just didn't have the energy and was dragging ass every time I went out. Then I participated in a charity run and I was like a new runner, everything changed in that one day.
Looking back on that I think what happened is that I probably over-trained and wore myself out and all the runs I did were basically recovery runs, but during that time I eventually recovered physically, but somehow got into a mental slump, which kept my performance in the dumps well past my physical recuperation. And the charity event snapped me out of it.
So maybe you really need to change things up. This brings up the issue of crosstraining. Do you crosstrain? Maybe take some time off running and do that for a while; I know when I take off some time it doesn't take too much time for my passion to return.
I'll leave with this one recommendation. Weight Training. Here's one good article on that: http://www.nwrunner.com/why-runners-should-life-3-myths-that-need-busting/
Nothing to add. You got some great ideas from others here. Glad you went to see the doc. Good luck. Spareribs
#artbydmcbride
I want to second kilkee, get your thyroid levels checked.
Runners run
and my legs get that tired, burning fatigue feeling after just half an hour of this jogging.
Curious, is this both legs? Generalized or any specific area?