This Trail Run Brought to You By CBD Oil

When it comes to aches and pains, runners do a fair amount of self-diagnosis. Crucial to that is what I like to call the “water stop consultation.” That’s when you say to your workout buddies, “Hey, any of you ever had . . . .”

So here’s how some CBD oil and a little help from my friends fixed my problematic knee.

Part I: It Started with a Fall

November 2018, hubby and I were in Dallas for a dear friend’s wedding. Before the evening ceremony, we decided to spend the afternoon visiting the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza. The exhibit was truly amazing–so many goosebumps, especially as I’d recently read Steven King’s 11/22/63, which is about a man who travels through time to stop President John F. Kennedy’s assassination.

Afterward, aglow in the experience and talking as we walked through Dealey Plaza, I animatedly gestured while looking at my husband. Not paying attention, I caught my toe on an uneven segment of sidewalk. The rest seemed to happen in Super Slo-Mo; I flew full Superman into the air before landing hard on my right kneecap.

You know how stars explode around the cartoon character’s head after a big hit? Oh, I saw stars.

James helped me to a bench, where I breathed and rocked through the pain and tears. What I dismissed as dirt was later revealed to be blood seeping through my jeans. By the time we hobbled back to the hotel, my knee was swollen. Icing, elevating, and ibuprofen helped and I made it to the wedding, which was beautiful and wonderful.

The next weekend, I missed Longhorn Alumni Band because, despite all my best efforts at RICE (rest, ice, compression, elevation), walking was still painful–forget marching all day! My visiting anesthesiologist friend did a quick exam before convincing me to get professional evaluation; she was afraid my kneecap was broken. So I made an appointment with my trusty athletic-injury doc, who took X-rays and pronounced “you banged the shit out of that.”

Not broken but it would take a while to heal.

Part II: My Knee Felt Crunchy

Fast forward. Over the next few months, the swelling subsided, garish colors faded, and pain receded. Winter aqua jogging in Barton Springs was a cold tonic. Come spring, I joined a new gym to take advantage of elliptical machines for low-impact exercise.

And yet, despite all my care and easy exercise, something wasn’t quite right. My knee didn’t hurt but there was a “crunchiness” to movement. As though things didn’t fit quite right. Sometimes, I could run a bit on the road but other times, footfalls felt as though the pounding was harmful. Was this arthritis, I wondered? Did I need to visit my doctor again?

Father’s Day weekend, my super fit sister in law was visiting. Lori runs and teaches Jazzercise, and one of my favorite things is chatting with her over coffee in the morning. Our conversations go every which way, because she’s always got something new and interesting to share.

She asked if I’d ever used CBD (cannabidiol) oil for aches and pains. No, I hadn’t; I didn’t know anything about it. A friend with physical therapy background had hipped her to a good brand, and Lori whipped out her roll-on tube. “Do you have a sore spot? Try it out,” she said.

Why not? I rolled some oil onto the painful spot–just below my right knee, to the inside of my leg–and rubbed it in. Holy crap–20 minutes later, I was freely bending that knee like nobody’s business. Yeah, my husband immediately ordered some for me: Lord Jones, 1 fluid ounce, at $65. (James ordered it because he knew I’d balk at the price. Now that’s love.)

Part III: Getting a Friendly Diagnosis

Once I began regularly applying CBD oil, the improvement was miraculous. By the next week, I attempted a timed mile on the track with friends. Cautiously, I ran, consciously monitoring every footstep (how’d that feel?)–and completed all four laps without limping or walking! The next test: mile repeats at Zilker Park. I fartleked my way through a couple, more problem-free running than I’d done in months.

Oh, I was elated, enthusiastically bubbling about this miracle to any of my friends who’d listen. As we cooled down in Barton Springs, I was clarifying: “Well, it wasn’t exactly my knee. And it didn’t exactly hurt. It was here . . . ”

My friend Julie joined in. “It wasn’t the bone and it wasn’t muscle, but your knee felt out of whack, sore, like the parts didn’t fit and rubbed together wrong,” she said. I looked up, amazed; she’d described my “crunchy knee” exactly.

“You’ve got an inflamed bursa,” Julie explained. “I had one one time. Google it when you get home.”

A quick search revealed, without doubt, that I’d been suffering from knee bursitis. Those bursa “reduce friction and cushion pressure points between your bones and the tendons, muscles, and skin near your joints.”*

One of the common causes of inflammation? A sharp blow to the knee. And what does CBD oil do? Reduce inflammation. Aha!

Part IV: Racing the Sunset

Last night, I laced up my favorite trail shoes, filled a water bottle, and headed out to Wild Basin Wilderness Preserve. By the time I parked my car, it was 6:50 p.m. In July, sunset happens around 8:30 p.m., and the park gates automatically close at dark. Mindful of the time, I hiked with purpose through the biggest loop, breaking into an easy run on clear bits. Sweat dripped in the 100 degree heat. No wonder I had the trails all to myself.

Big loop done, I checked my watch; how much more trail could I cover before sunset? I set off again, trying combinations of different segments, one eye on the clock. As I focused more on time and route, my pace gradually increased. The light turned softer; shadows grew longer; and there I was, bounding down limestone ledges without a thought to that problematic knee.

They say you know you’re healed when your injury is forgotten. I recalled a trail run years ago when I rolled that previously broken ankle, the one full of screws and wires. There was no thought of that newly-healed fracture, just “damn it, I rolled my ankle.” And then I hopped off the pain with a giant shit-eating grin on my face because I hadn’t remembered to be worried.

Last night, somewhere on the trail, I forgot about that knee.

I think I’m back.

Links to All That Stuff I Mentioned

The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza

11/22/63 by Steven King

I’m a band geek! “Transforming a Life Through Two Loves”

RICE, your first aid friend

All about CBD (cannabiodiol), from Harvard Medical School

you want some Lord Jones CBD oil, don’t you?

Mayo Clinic explains knee bursitis

Look for an upcoming review of the Wild Basin Wilderness Preserve.