March the 8th 7 mile hike to St Fillans village and Loch Earn
As I live in the real world, I'll be straight to the point. After Wednesday’s 10-mile easy hike—and the next day's bout of hellish diarrhoea, which caused more issues than you could ever imagine—today’s 7-mile hike was meant to be an easy, flat route to help clear some of those issues. While some did improve, others persisted, giving me a better understanding of them.
Some of the fine views along the disused railway line about 1.5 miles heading towards St Fillans
Diarrhoea and What It caused
Shock horror—the English forbidden word diarrhoea has just made an appearance. But there’s no point in beating around the bush here.
I suffer from an unknown food issue; eating the wrong foods will send my blood sugar crashing. I follow a low-carb diet, which isn’t ideal for hiking and running, so I sometimes have to eat wholemeal carbs.
On Wednesday night, I carbo-loaded—my legs felt great, no pain anywhere. I dived into bed but felt odd, then started farting so badly it kept me awake. By Thursday morning, I felt okay but was badly bloated. Suddenly, my guts dropped. I dived for the loo and was hit with diarrhoea from hell—so severe that my lower back gave way, instantly becoming sore, with pain spreading toward my hips and down my legs. Both knees gave out while I was on the toilet, and within three seconds, my feet were numb.
From feeling okay to completely out of it in just three seconds. After about three hours of diarrhoea—bright orange, no less—my legs worsened, with tingling, numb feet, and unreal pain shooting through my quad muscles.
Finally the indication I have been looking for for 30 years showed up
For the past 30 years, I’ve experienced low blood sugar and lower back pain leading to issues with my legs. What happened with the diarrhoea makes it 100% clear that something is causing my lower back to give way, triggering pain that shoots across and down my legs.
For the past few weeks, I’ve been hiking and running without pain, feeling flexible in both my legs and back. But today’s hike was far from that—my back and knees were sore, refusing to fully flex. The key issue, however, was my inability to bend forward or sideways.
With the trees still in winter mode, you can see Loch Earn from the old railway line above. Today's weather cast a lovely warm hue over the air, and the low cloud added to the moody atmosphere.
One of the main causes of quad muscle activation and shutdown is trauma to the knees or legs, as well as hypoglycemia.
This could get complex, so I’ll break it down into bullet points to make it easier to follow. I’ll outline each stage of what happens and how my body ultimately gives in.
Morning Leg Test
Upon waking, I test my legs for connection using a simple exercise:
I lie on the floor, one leg flat, the other bent.
I bring my toes forward and press the flat leg into the ground, causing the muscle to tense up.
I check for:
How much feeling I have.
How far the pressure travels up my leg.
Any vibration (nerve stuttering or burning).
By doing 10 sets of 5-second holds, the pressure should travel up my legs. If this happens, it usually means I’m properly connecting with different muscle groups and can walk with power.
When Things Go Wrong
If the test doesn’t go well:
The vibration remains or worsens, leading to burning and extremely jumpy quad muscles.
Sharp pain appears in my knees, and I lose all feeling in the quads.
I also experience a loss of temperature, with only a 1-inch patch above my knees having any sensation. The sides of the quads remain normal at this stage.
My lower back becomes sore and stiff, severely limiting my flexibility.
What Happens If I Try to Walk?
The first sign of trouble is a lack of forward movement—my quads feel useless, flopping around without function.
Going uphill is even worse—no pressure, no strength, just pain or burning.
My lower legs take on the strain of failing quads, leading to rapid knee pain.
Within a mile, tingling starts, followed by numbness, loss of temperature, goosebumps, and freezing quads—eventually leading to complete leg failure.
And Then It Gets Worse...
If you think that sounds bad, it only goes downhill from here. After my legs fail, the real pain begins:
It feels like Freddy Krueger is ripping through my quads—3-inch patches of excruciating shock-like pain can hit anywhere in my legs.
This pain is so intense that I end up face-first on the ground.
At this point, I’m completely incapacitated. And yet, I’ve been miles deep into hikes when this happens—sometimes taking 4+ hours just to cover 2 miles.
Conclusion
After Thursday’s diarrhoea fiasco and how it wiped out my lower back and legs, causing a major power and sensation drop in today’s hike, I now know 100% what’s happening.
I have three compressed vertebrae. When something stresses them—like severe bloating that makes my back hurt—it hits the exact nerve the doctor already identified as affected by spinal stenosis. And you don’t need to be a doctor to figure out that even a small amount of pressure can cause major nerve issues in my legs.
So What’s Being Done About It?
Nothing. It’s the NHS. I have no chance.
This is exactly why I push myself so hard—I need to live while I can, because you’re a long time dead.
One of the many stone bridges along the railway, just outside St Fillans village. I really love this bridge—the setting it stands in is absolutely beautiful.
This bridge is about 150 yards from the one above. It’s much smaller and has another bridge beneath the main bridge—a very cute section here.
People used to do things before social media came about. Now, I hardly see anyone, and when I do, they’re either just sitting or drinking. Has the modern world lost its ability to truly live?
Heading back now, and the tunnel just on the edge of St Fillans village has some interesting history. Built in 1901, it was constructed on-site using explosives to blast away the rock—I bet that was fun for the locals!
Video explaining my issues.
This last video is the full 45 minute hike from today, including all the other videos seen in this blog.
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