Ouch

So today i had my first PT session.  It overall wasn't too bad, mostly a lot of information-gathering on the therapist's part with some exercises thrown in for good measure.  The worst part was when "massaged" my left calf using a treatment called Astym.

That treatment is borderline horrendous - at least for me.  It essentially consists of mashing plastic implements deep enough into your skin to hit whatever's underneath, and then pushing said plastic implements along the direction of the muscle fibers.  As explained to me, the underlying principle is to stimulate the body's inflammatory response, hopefully promoting healing of the deeper tissues.

As far as stimulating an inflammatory response, i can attest to it somewhat because at times it truly felt like my leg was on fire.  I half-expected to find my calf skinned, raw, and bleeding at the end of the session.  Surprisingly, my Achilles was fine - it was every other nerve ending that was screaming out in pain.

Hopefully it gets better and i don't feel like i'm getting flayed the next time.  And even if i do - i'm willing to tough it out if the end justifies the means.  My therapist seems optimistic though, and thinks he can get me to finish a turkey trot next month.  We'll see.