Hi All,

I was following the beginners 10K training program for a race that I ran on March 25th. In February I think I strained my left calf, for 3 to 4 weeks during and after runs that calf would ache, sometimes accompanied with shin aches, and I would spend a lot of time stretching and warming it up so that I could continue to train. The pain was never strong enough to force me to stop, and eventually it went away on its own, no breaks in running needed.

During week 11 of the 12 week 10K training I strained what I believe is my right hip flexor muscle while doing some mild speedwork (picking up the pace to 10K race pace for half mile, then resting). The pain is up high inside my hip, I feel it mostly when I walk when I lift my right leg to step. I also feel it when my right foot strikes the ground in a run, but after about a mile I'm warmed up and it becomes more tolerable. The pain of walking after I've fully cooled down, or the next day, sometimes brings me to tears. I also ended up with a nasty head cold during week 11, so I cut out 5 training runs, finished the race I was training for, then took a full week and a half off from running.

I ran 3.5 miles yesterday, felt a bit out of shape and slightly achy but otherwise ok. When I woke up this morning I could barely walk. Now that I've been walking around and I"m warmed up a few hours later the pain is still slightly there, but not as noticable, it feels like a "sore" muscle as opposed to an "injured" muscle.

My question is: Am I pushing it? I'd like to run another 10K in 6 weeks. How do you know when you've rested an injury enough?