Okay, I'm in a bit of a delima.
I registered for a marathon last week, and then two days later I twisted by right knee just before a scheduled hard run and went ahead and ran the 13 miles, starting out 30 seconds slower than goal marathon pace and finshing 30 seconds faster than goal marathon pace.
It was a tough, hard run — my last one before the marathon. But the next day me knee was swollen and it hurt just to bend it. Running on it was definitely out of the qestion, since it hurt just to walk.
So I took five days completely off, zero running, and went out for a 20-minute jog this morning, nine days before the marathon. It didn't hurt as bad as a few days ago, I can walk on it pretty much pain free, but it still bothers me when I run. I think it's something I can run through, since I've had this injury before. And since I already paid for the marathon, I want to at least attempt it.
The question is: should I run without a brace on my knee, or wear a brace? How much will a brace effect my running, and what kind of brace should I wear during a race? Has anyone on here raced a marathon with a brace on their knee?
I was thinking about just putting a sleeve over it and seeing if that helps. I don't want to wear a big, bulky knee brace, that's for sure.
Any advice (besides don't run that is)?