Starting over
Step One: Check your body
Last week’s post about starting over elicited a few thoughtful comments from our paid subscribers. While each individual situation differed, the gist of their messages was simple. They’re ready to start over, but they’re tired of getting stuck in the same old cycle of injury malaise and lost momentum.
So, this one’s for you guys. It’s also for all of our free subscribers as we head into the holiday season. This is my gift to you, a free preview throughout the month of December of the kind of pieces I churn out each and every week at Running, Probably.
Also, if you upgrade to a paid subscription before Dec. 25, you can get the whole year for 20 percent off the regular price. You can also gift the runner in your life an RP subscription at the same terms. Pretty sweet deal.
Quick story. I ran my first marathon in the fall of 2014. My goal was to set a qualifying time for Boston. I missed by eight minutes. Not only was that not bad for a first attempt, it was actually quite good. In fact, 3:23 is still the fastest I’ve ever run a marathon.
Yet, in my mind, my performance was a failure. Instead of becoming a ‘real runner,’ by getting a BQ, I was an obvious fraud who had no business trying to run like this in the first place.
Just reading that sentence makes me cringe. Rather than acknowledge the accomplishment – I ran sub 3:30 in my first marathon! – I dwelled on the negative side of the result without taking time to focus on several training areas that needed improvement.
Among them: a less than ideal nutrition plan, a lack of dedicated speed work, and an inability to even consider the possibility that maybe I needed to learn how to run at different speeds. In other words, all I was missing from my running program was the basic framework of a successful marathon plan.
Instead of scrutinizing my routines with an objective eye, I opted to make excuses and blame myself for not being tough enough. To be fair, I wasn’t. Not yet anyway.
How could I have been when I was short changing myself with insufficient nutrition and training habits? I also had no clue about concepts like base fitness or the need for recovery. Stretching? That’s for other people. Forget about strength training. Who has the time?
After taking a few days off following the marathon, I went back on the grind thinking I could get back to where I was in no time. That’s when I started getting hurt. For the next year and a half, I struggled with injuries, motivation, and ultimately, depression.
All of which is to say, we all fall down. We all get off track and have trouble finding our way back. That’s life. It’s what happens after all that stuff comes tumbling down on us that matters.
As I’m writing this piece, I’m realizing it isn’t a quick story at all. This is basically the last seven years of my life. So let’s break it up and add to this tale over the next few weeks. We’ll do body, mind, and what I’ll call ‘running environment’ in that order.
Check Your Body
Here’s the problem with running: Everybody gets hurt. You can have superb bio mechanics, efficient economy, plus an impeccable leg turnover and you’re still likely to wind up on the disabled list eventually. Since none of us actually have all of those things dialed in perfectly, it’s a guarantee that we’re going to get injured.
A short list of running-related injuries I’ve sustained over the years: strained glute, calf, hamstring, adductor, and quad. For the feet, we’ve had a smorgasbord of sprained ankles, stressed tendons, and something I really can’t diagnose but it hurts like hell first thing in the morning. I’ve also banged up my wrists, ribs, and shoulders landing on various rocks.
Even when I’m “healthy,” at any given moment one or more body parts are feeling fatigued, sore, and/or downright cranky. This is the price we pay for sticking with this sport into our 40s and beyond. As Dirk Nowitzki once said, “I used to spend all day playing basketball. Now I spend all day getting ready to play basketball.”
(Sidebar: That was one of my favorite NBA player conversations ever. It was Dirk’s last year in the league and he was taking his sweet time chatting with anyone who wanted to talk after a morning shootaround. Turned out to be my last year too, but we’ll get into that in a future installment.)
At some point we go from trying to not get injured, to learning how to manage our aches and pains. Before getting into specifics, understand there is no magic program that will keep you pain-free. You have to try some of this stuff out for yourself and see what works for your body and your running.
Commit to a strength training program: Want a reality check? Go find some space and knock out a set of 10 pushups, 20 squats, and a 60-second plank. You might be surprised at how weak your muscles can get if you’ve been neglecting them. That’s how my injuries began. My body wasn’t strong enough to handle the pounding, so it started breaking down.
Strength training doesn’t have to be super involved. You can do bodyweight exercises in your living room just as easily as you can do them in a fancy gym. Focus on the core and the lower body, particularly hamstrings, quads, calves, and hips. Take the aforementioned squats, planks, and push ups while throwing in some glute bridges, lunges, and clamshells. You’ve got a full body circuit you can knock out in 20-30 minutes.
Increasing baseline functional strength is only the beginning. After a few months, you’ll need to switch things up and add more exercises to keep from stagnating. I track my progress in a notebook and keep an eye out for moves and variations to add to my routine.
You’re also going to make time for things like ankle work. Say hello to your new best friends, the wobble board and the resistance band. Need to build strength in your feet? (You do, trust me.) Grab an old dish towel and knock out some toe scrunches. The simple exercise will save you a lot of pain and trouble in the future.
Eventually you may find your way to the weight room. Deadlifts are awesome. So are split squats and renegade rows. There’s so much cool stuff you can do with weights, but this is where you might need some expert assistance. It’s easy to tweak and strain your muscles if you don’t execute proper form. At the very least, watch some videos and always start with less weight than you think you can handle.
Before you ask – Who has time for all that? – the answer is that you’ll make time if it's important to you. You can’t get full time results with part-time effort. We’re talking 2-3 hours a week at most. Another thing to consider: Maybe take 1-2 running days off the calendar and give yourself a dedicated strength training workout instead.
At least think about stretching: Stretching doesn’t have to be mandatory. It’s not a punishment or an obligation. It’s an activity that allows you to connect with your body. Whenever I’m feeling sore, I like to see if I can pinpoint the source of my pain with a light stretch. Once I feel more resistance than normal, it’s a pretty good bet that something’s acting up.
While I love a good mind-body connection, stretching doesn’t have to involve yoga to be effective. It should, however, be a little more evolved than the old grab-and-hold static stretching our gym teachers used to make us do. (Thanks for nothing, guys.) Instead, think about dynamic or active isolated stretching techniques both before and after runs.
You might want to make some time for foam rolling, as well. Foam rolling is another thing that’s easy to do poorly, so take some time to figure out what you’re trying to accomplish (myofascial release), and how you’re going to get there (slowly.)
Foam rolling works particularly well for bigger muscle groups like hamstrings and quads. There are also dozens of balls and doohickeys you can buy to help get into those hard-to-reach places. For me, a Stick, a softball, and a lacrosse ball are enough to take care of those needs.
And finally, if you enjoy the sensation of a fairly powerful machine manipulating your muscles – and honestly, who doesn’t? – you might want to investigate using a Theragun. Just try not to hit any bones.
Find someone to work with your body: This is a big one. If you have recurring injuries, you need someone who can help you break the cycle. It can be a physical therapist, a massage therapist, a strength training coach, or anyone who understands running mechanics in general and your body’s needs in particular.
I’m emphasizing that last part because I have seen plenty of PTs and massage therapists who did not understand runner’s bodies, let alone mine. It always felt like a waste of time and money. You might need to try a few people out before you find the right fit.
Get recs from friends or running groups. If someone’s good, word will get around. My guy is Ammon Embry-Pelrine. If you live in the greater Boston area, I highly recommend booking some time with him.
When I first started seeing Ammon, I’d simply ask him to fix me. Now I come in with a detailed checklist of whatever’s bothering me: tight hips, calf tension, various ligament strains, etc. It’s like taking the car in for a tuneup. You don’t want to hand the keys to a mechanic and ask them to figure it out for themselves. You’ve got to do some of the work yourself.
Next week we’ll get into unlocking the mental piece.
A lot of this resonates with me, the good and the bad. I started running when I was 17 or 18, at this point I can't remember. I spent the better part of the next 3 years injured and blaming it on myself, my shoes, and everything else, including what time of day I ran. I eventually realized that maybe I should be thinking about this another way and possibly learn how to run better and not just more. And to not run through injuries! The classic, work smarter not harder line. While I've had my fair share of running related injuries since, including a broken shoulder from a bad fall, most of them have been preventable if I brought myself back to that line.
Thankfully, as I've gotten older I've gathered the resources to help me stay healthy (for the most part). My physical therapist, my chirorpractor (who focuses on a lot of myofascial release and flexibility, also reinforcing my PTs suggestions), courses on form, etc etc but also this newsletter. I learn a lot here and often get reminders that I need. Thanks, Paul.
This was good - thanks Paul. Bookmarking this :-)