Hurting Calves

I've been walking about 3 months now and I'm still having trouble with hurting calves. I gave up this morning after 3 laps. When I was in Colorado (higher altitude) I walked with NO pain. Come back to Texas and its back to hurting calves everytime I walk. Some days are worse than others but it's always there. I take magnisium, do the stretching before and after the walk. I'm trying to drink more water but if not thirsty I forget, I just don't think about it. Have to figure out how to remember to do it. If I can't fix this then I'm looking at something to do besides walking and I don't want to do that. I've gotten great results from it. Can anyone suggest anything? Thanks

You know I don't know what your issue is, as I'm not a doctor. What I do know is you do one exercise a lot and over time, like months, you can outpace your body's ability to recover. Maybe try cutting out on the purely exercise walks for a week, and see if things settle down. If they do, maybe think a bit about how cutting your milage way back then only go up about 10% a week. I'm giving you advice that has worked to keep my knee pain in check, so it's not directly applicable, but it seems hard to imagine I can go wrong suggesting a spot of rest.

Rest, ice, elevation - is usually reasonable advice when you are hurt.

With knees, I know the tendency is to feel better after a couple days and go right back to the level one was at before and re injure them pretty quickly. So really a week or two not a couple days and if that works cut way back and work forward. I know I repeated myself, but...

A massage will do wonders for you. If that isn't an option, you should look into purchasing a "foam roller". You can google it and there are exercises on You Tube to show you how to use it. My daughter is extremely athletic and started having trouble with her knees after a recent growth spurt. A big part if the problem were her quads and hamstrings were so tight that it was creating stress on her knee. We brought her for massages 2-3x a week until she healed and we incorporated the use of a foam roller. It really helps loosen the muscles. Our chiropractor and massage therapist recommended it. It isn't expensive and is very effective.

A number of years ago, I went through something very similar. It started with my calves, but I also ended up with plantar faciatis (sp?). Getting orthotics, Physio and massage is what helped. Because my calf muscles were so tight, they were pulling everything down into my feet. Combine that with arches falling after pregnancy and it was a lethal combination. I feel your pain. It was horrible going through it and very discouraging - particularly when you are trying to exercise and lose weight. I could have punched the woman who said my feet would get better with weight loss. Yes....thanks for that. The worst thing I did was try and just tough it out. To quote the physiotherapist that I went to...."You started out with an injury and waited until it was a condition before you came for help, so don't expect a quick fix."

I used to have a lot of calf pain when I walked. I found the only way to get over it was to work through it. I slowed my pace to a crawl, did less distance when I did walk and built speed and distance over time. It was tedious. When I started, I could barely walk a quarter mile before my calves were burning, but now, after several months, I routinely walk a mile at a time and I am pain free.

I'm not trying to contradict the advice of the person who posted before me. If there is some other medical condition besides simply being out of shape, you definitely want to address that. Even after that, pain is your body telling you to stop. If you decide working through it is a good option for you, go slow. If that means a slower pace and less distance and even fewer workouts per week until you are stronger, then that's what you have to do. No one gets out of shape overnight and no one gets fit overnight either.

How old are your shoes and are they offering you enough support?