Returning To Running After Injury

As a runner, doesn’t it seem like we’re almost always suffering from one injury or another? It could be as minor as a brush burn or cut suffered from an accidental fall like local running blogger, John, recently experienced. Maybe it’s shin splints like local running tweeter, Scott, has been dealing with. Or it could be a recurring knee issue such as local running tweeter, Ryan, has been trying to keep under control. (I bet you guys had no idea you were fodder for my articles, did you?)

The reason I started thinking about this is because I met up with some runners the other evening at a local diner and one of the women mentioned she was currently suffering through Achilles tendinitis. I have dealt with this a couple times in my life and it’s definitely not fun. Let’s be honest, no injury is fun and I’ve had my fair share: shin splints, ITBS, stress fracture, tendinitis and SI joint issues.

As my friend discussed her current bout with Achilles tendinitis I started thinking about my own current running injures. The thing is, I don’t have any right now. I have been injury free for almost a year now. Then I tried to figure out why I have been injury free. What is my secret?

I have no real secret to unveil other than this; when I feel pain I immediately back off and take care of it. This was a promise I made to myself during the stress fracture recovery process. I did not want to be on the sidelines again. Since then I have dealt with little issues and thankfully, I have listened to myself. The problems came mostly in the form of shin splints in the months directly after the stress fracture. I told myself that it was okay to take an extra day or two off from running now. In fact, it was much better to do so now instead of being forced to take off two weeks or more a couple months down the road.

These are the rules I have learned to live by:

• Remember the term RICE, Rest-Ice-Compression-Elevation.
• Give yourself permission to take a day or two off from running. In the bigger picture, the totality of your training cycle, a handful of miles that you did not run will not matter as much as you think it will come race day.
• Icing, compression and elevation do a great job at alleviating many runner’s problems. Ice 10-15 minutes at a time, several times throughout the day.
• Ramp up mileage slowly. There is a 10% rule, a lot of you out there have heard it before. The rule says that you should not increase your weekly mileage from week to week by more than 10%. This is what most people and experts consider a safe practice for avoiding injuries.
• Another rule which coincides with the previous rule is to follow either a 2/1 or 3/1 pattern with your weekly mileage. What this means is either two or three weeks of building mileage followed by a cutback week.
• Stretch before and after running. Not everyone does this and it’s a continual debate. A year ago I stretched both before and after all of my runs. I became very limber and life was good. Then I grew bored of all the stretching or perhaps I just didn’t have the time, so I started stretching only after my runs. I didn’t notice any change in my running per se, nor did the lack of pre-run stretching cause me any injury. I was curious about the non-stretching side of the debate so I did that for a while, too. The only thing that did was make my sore muscles last longer. So, back to the post-run stretching for me. Ahh, it feels so good to stretch the muscles out. They certainly deserve some TLC after the workouts I put them through.
• Wear appropriate shoes by finding a good running shoe that works best for you and stick with it. Rotate between two pair of shoes (or more) at any given time. This will allow for the cushioning in the shoe to bounce back and last longer. As your running shoes put on the miles the cushioning eventually breaks down. What I like to do is have an older pair that I use for my recovery and easy runs and a newer pair for my long runs and speed workouts.
• Avoid running on the same side of road. Have you ever noticed how the road is higher in the middle and then slopes off to the sides? That’s called camber and when you run exclusively on the left side of the road your right leg continually lands higher than your left leg. This throws off your entire center of balance which will eventually cause some muscular issues. If you’re running in and around neighborhoods or on streets that don’t see much traffic run on the other side of the road for a mile or two to give those muscles that are working harder a break.
• Run on soft surfaces. A couple times a week I like to hit the trails in Lehigh Parkway which are much flatter than the streets and much softer, too. This does a lot more for your muscles, bones and tendons than you think. I also like to run on the grass when I’m running along the roads.
• Change things up by cross training. Personally, my favorite cross training activity is biking but really you can do anything other than running to work opposing muscle groups, get in a good cardio session, strengthen muscles and bones and give your running muscles a break.
• Finally, I have come to realize that strengthening our core muscles is a very important, and sometimes forgotten, element of running. Core muscles help hold you upright, especially in the latter stages of those long runs. The stronger they are, the easier it is for you to continue on with your run. Have you heard of the hundred pushups training program? If not, check it out. There is also the two hundred sit-ups training plan and twenty five pullups training plan for those of you who are interested.