Is the female deadlier than the male?

I guess you could say I got caught out by my own chauvanism.

Following world champion physical therapist Mark Plaatjes into the room of pain, er.. sorry, treatment room...for my third dose of deep tissue ("no Mark, that's the table, you've gone straight through the muscle") treatment, I was delighted to be introduced to his new intern.

But of course I should have realised that Mark P would not have picked a woman intern if she lacked the fundamental prerequisite for the work: hands of steel. Never mind the PhD that's on the way. So I soon regretted asking Heather if she would treat me instead of Mark. That'll teach me to be clever.

The funniest part about this treatment was that with Heather doing the gruesome business while Mark supervises, it leaves the former world marathon champion free to answer questions. Recently I've been having shoe problems. It feels like my gait has changed. Unfortunately Mark started discussing various options just as I found it necessary to begin screaming and biting the table. "I'll write this down for you", he said with a grin.

My "Achilles" problem is actually a plantaris problem. Stuck behind the knee, where it helps with stabilisation, it is a small muscle with a VERY long tendon. That's if you're an evolutionary throwback, like me; Some people, Mark says, don't have it any more. But it IS an advantage if you're a runner, so that's the good news. The bad news is that a long plantaris tendon is a source of great delight for physical therapists; well, perhaps they don't get out much. So while I'm lying there reminding myself that I'm a Man, and a Brit, and we don't show emotion, let alone sob like babies, Heather and Mark were exploring the precise location, thickness and integrity of a tendon that, given the right touch, bears a startling resemblance to a raw nerve.

"There's got to be a better way", I grimaced.

"If there is, and you find it, tell us", said Mark. "Do you think we like doing this?"

No, I didn't answer. I want to be able to go back.

Meanwhile, while this is being sorted out, how am I running?

Easy, long and Garmin-less. I'm planning on six months of steady base building, letting the speed arrive when it feels like it. No coach, no schedule. Reasons why I'll go into in another post. But for now it's working. I am starting already to feel very strong and I'm enjoying my running even more.

Of course it helps that now, after three sessions with Mark (and Heather) I am, getting out of bed in the morning without that familiar stiffness and soreness at the back of my left ankle. Sometimes, this deadly form of treatment IS the only answer.