Interesting news. I think I found the root cause of my on again/off again left Achilles problem. This week I visited a physical therapist to diagnose and treat a lower back spasm. This I also deal with 1 to 3 times a year, and this spasm also always begins on my left side. After feeling around my hips and butt bones, she declared that the problem was in the way my left butt bone fits over my left hip bone. It connects a little looser on the left than the right. To compensate, my left muscles have to work harder. Over time and over miles, that extra work can cause strain in my lower back and also down the leg into my calf. So it's not really a problem of literal overtraining... my body can handle the miles... but a problem in my joints that can be corrected. We start deep tissue massage on Tuesday and I am to do some specific exercises that should correct the problem over time.

My leg is almost completely better. I am considering trying a small run on Monday to test her out. Then, of course, on Tuesday - after physical therapy - I have my jaw surgery... and I have no clue if I'll just be down for the day or down for a week.