Tight calves and massage guns

I've always had tight calves—for the last 10 years at least.

It gets "angry" when I walk more than usual, let alone run.

And by "angry" I mean there's this pain deep inside the muscle, and massaging it feels painful and good.

The pain never really goes away either... it hurts when my calf muscles are squeezed (even with mild to moderate pressure).

Now that I've started running, the calf tightness have become a mainstay.

But that won't do. I've started to actively avoid any kind of elevation to keep my calves happy. I've been running on flat or downhill areas. Which is not good. I want my training to be well-rounded, and hill training is a non-negotiable.

So I got these massage guns from physical therapists, Bob and Brad (if you know them I'm pretty sure their theme song is already playing in your head) — with the hopes that it can help untangle the knots in my calves.

I massaged my calf muscles with the massage gun on Wednesday (5/24) like there's no tomorrow... so hard that I was afraid I injured myself. My calves felt more sore and tender than when I started. Oh, it was also a run day (goof moment). Buuuut I was still able to go on a run and gave myself a nice, quick, and gentle post-run recovery massage. After that, I left my calves alone.

When I woke up the next morning, my calves were pain free.

Even when squeezed.

Both were pain free. As if it's always been that way. It's amazing. So glad that it worked!

The plan is to use the gun regularly for pre- and post-workout. For pre-workout I'll keep it light and quick. For post-workout I'll spend more time on each muscle group, but in a methodical way.

Here's the method I use:

Took yesterday and today as rest days.

Tomorrow, I start Week 4 of None to Run. I'm super stoked. Fresh legs and all.

Thanks for reading and I hope you stretch before and after your runs.