After writing yesterday’s post about my 2015 goals, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about what my next steps will be. Should I sign up for a half marathon? A full marathon? Wait a bit longer and continue on as I’ve been doing for a little while? How will I make sure that I can take what I have learned over the past 6 months and use it to my advantage in my future training? I’m trying to make sure that I learn from the past with my running to improve moving forward.
Why I Should Learn From The Past
If you were to ask me what led to my injury earlier this year, I wouldn’t quite know how to respond. I don’t even have an easy way to explain what my injury actually was! (A mild left hip flexor and adductor strain and a tight right piriformis with some SI joint issues mixed in there?) Over the past few months I think I have figured out what happened, and how to prevent it from happening again. But there’s no way to really know for sure.
I’ve been in this situation before. I recovered from an injury and swore that I would never let it happen again. I thought I was doing everything right the next time, yet something else would eventually come up. How will I do things differently this time, learn from the past, and not continue the cycle?
Know my own weaknesses and what I need to do to address them
I can easily point out the areas of my body that are the most likely to get tight. These are the areas I need to really focus on my with foam rolling and such, and have my chiro check in on those spots when I go in for tune-ups. I also know that I need to keep up with my strength training, specifically my postural muscles, glutes, and core.
The tight spots/weak spots are very much connected. When my stability is off, I use the wrong muscles. Those muscles get tight, pull things out of alignment, and its a recipe for disaster.
Here’s the tricky part- when my right piriformis get’s tight it reduces my glute function on that side, which makes my left hip flexor work harder. So it become a vicious cycle! It’s so important to be your own injury detective!
Learn from the past and don’t overdo the recovery
You may be wondering what the heck I am talking about with this, but let me explain. In the past when my pirformis got tight I would stretch it all the time and foam roll it like crazy. That was what I was told to do by my PT (who was very knowledgeable and meant well, but my situation was really confusing).
When I was evaluated by a different PT in the same clinic he suspected that the tight muscles on my left side were pulling my SI joint out of alignment, and that was causing my right piriformis to tighten up in an effort to balance things out. When I kept stretching it I was just pulling myself more out of alignment. Now, when I notice any signs that those things are happening again I focus on relaxing my left hip muscles, and do some light foam rolling for the right side. This usually gets things to balance out on their own pretty quickly.
One thing I’ve learned from the past is that too much of anything is rarely a good thing.
Also, this is a good read about foam rolling.
Take things one day at a time, but keep the big picture in mind
It’s so tempting to find or create a training plan, and want to follow it EXACTLY how it’s written. I always feel a huge sense of accomplishment when I can check all prescribed workouts off my list. I have found that lately I am still doing workouts and alternating hard and easy days and keeping up with a solid plan. However, it’s not something I write down in the beginning of the week. I come up with an idea of what days I will probably run, but nothing is carved in stone. I move things around based on weather, traveling, how I am feeling etc.
The tricky part will be doing this while actually training for a race. But the more I think about it the more I know it can be done. I just need to be patient and remember that I can still train sufficiently even when I don’t get in all the workouts I planned.
Don’t worry about what other people think, and be willing to make changes
When people learn that I am training for a marathon, or any race, they often ask questions about my training and how much I am running. There are a few coworkers who every day would ask how many miles I ran that morning. I may even talk about having a 20 miler coming up that weekend, and then they ask about how it went the following Monday. It’s great to have that kind of support, but there is also a feeling of letting people down if I don’t do what I say I’m going to do. This can even be said for blogging. We don’t want to let our blog friends/readers down if we don’t do the workout we planned.
This may mean that I will be more vague about my training and plans (both in real life and on the blog). Which will also be due to not having a definite plan anyway! It will also mean being willing to change race plans if necessary. Flexibility is not my strong suit, but it is a key piece to this puzzle.
Be willing to give up miles for some other stuff
Now that I no longer have a gym membership, my cross-training options will be extremely limited. However, I don’t think I benefited all that much from biking or using the elliptical. I think if I opt for an extra rest day if I need it, or use that time to strength train or do yoga, I will be even better off. Those things will be important in staying healthy. If my body is telling me it needs some downward dog time, then that will be more beneficial than doing a few extra miles.
How Will I use What I learned from the past?
I’m not sure if I mentioned this yet, but Rob is already signed up for the Williams Route 66 Marathon in Tulsa on November 22nd. We are planning to coordinate it with a trip to see his sister’s family in Arkansas. So the question for me is, will I do the half or the full (or neither)? Well, as of right now I am going to give myself some more time to decide about that. I hope to decide by early August so I will have enough time to train.
Also, I am planning to sign up for the Baltimore half-marathon on October 17th. I won’t follow a specific plan for this race. I think if I keep doing what I am doing and build my mileage a bit more I will be ready for this.
Prior to that, I have 2 other races already on the calendar: The Dreaded Druid Hills 10k at the end of August and the Charles St 12 at the beginning of September. Again, I don’t think I necessarily need to “train” for these races. I’ll continue with what I am doing and build up my long run so I can comfortably complete 12 miles. (There may also be another 5k next weekend but we are still deciding if we are up for suffering through the heat like last time.)
Recent Training
Lately, my weeks have involved 1 rest day, 1-2 strength days, 1 longer run, 1 harder run, and 2-3 easy runs. Also a few sessions of core work and a yoga class every 1-2 weeks. I think I will be able to take that plan and modify it each week based on my goals and how I am feeling. Ever since I moved I have also been running a lot more hills. I think that is helping my strength quite a bit too, so I will be keeping that up.
How do you learn from the past with your running and training?
Have you found yourself making the same mistakes over and over?
I wish I could figure out when my next race is! I am still sitting here trying to do so and then a part of me says whatever, just keep running and if you run a race, you run a race — as if it’s maybe not that important for me to run one. I don’t know. Ugh!
I’m sure when the time is right you will know! No need to force yourself to do a a race if your not 100% into it.
I’m guilty of making the same mistakes at least twice, so this stuff really is good to think about and something I’ve been avoiding a little while thinking about NYC training. I don’t want to feel like I must stick to an exact plan to run well, and I want to avoid significant pain toward the end of the training cycle like I had with my knee for philly. Even though it worked out, it wasn’t a great way to go into that race at all! Less miles and smarter training might be the answer, also being more flexible! We’ll see 🙂
I remember having similar thoughts going into Philly training, but I think I have learned even more since then. I guess we are constantly learning about what works best for us and our training!
Very interesting! My right piriformis is the one that tends to hurt & my right knee is the one that tends to hurt, also. Forme, so far, when the piriformis starts hurting (like last week), I take it as a sign that I’ve either pushed my pace too fast & ramped up my mileage too much.
So I took it a little easier last week & yes, now it’s not bothering me. A weird shoulder thing going on & I’ve no idea where that came from, hopefully the chiro can help with that next week.
I used to have to follow my plan to a T. I’ve gotten better at listening to my body.
Here’s to remaining injury free!
I definitely feel like seeing a chiropractor has helped a ton with all my issues. Good luck and hopefully we will both have lots of healthy running!
I always think that there are mistakes and there are flukes. Sometimes, you just get hurt due to a conflagration of unrelated but unfortunate events. And then there are those times when, well, damn, you messed up. I think the most important part of it all is to take the time for self examination, to learn what you can, and to then move the f on. You can’t sit there and dwell. You just learn as best you can! And it seems like you are doing a great job of that!
You are definitely right. I don’t think that its so much that I am making “mistakes”, but that I don’t necessarily know what I should be doing differently. I follow all the recommended injury prevention guidelines but it’s always seemed like there is something else going on. I think one of the key pieces is learning what you can about yourself and what works for you and then doing your best to follow that path.
We runners do tend to overdo everything, don’t we? Including recovery! My motto is everything in moderation. Including foam rolling…
Absolutely! Too much of anything is usually not good.
You are so wise to give this so much thought and to take your time deciding what to do and how. I’ve definitely learned from my injuries and thankfully (knock wood) haven’t made the same mistake twice.
That is always the goal! No one wants to keep making the same mistakes over and over.
Great post!! You have so many awesome things ahead. I am dealing with the lack of gym membership too–just have to be more creative when it comes to cross training! Have a great weekend 🙂
I am actually enjoying doing some more at-home workouts! Its definitely important to be creative and not get bored!
Injuries are the worst! It seems like just when you figure something out, another one happens 🙁 Lots of luck with this one! Just don’t push toooo hard 🙂 It’s not worth it!
Thanks! Its so important to come back carefully from an injury and really learn what may have caused it to begin with.
All points I’m trying to follow too. I’m going to stick with 5k’s for now to see how I’m doing, then see if I can push the distance.
Sounds like a great plan!
It’s so smart and prudent that you’ve taken the time to figure all this out about your injury. It’s also amazing to me how connected all our muscles and joints are and that one little thing can affect other parts so much. I’m a total type A most of the time when it comes to following a training plan. I honestly think that with your healthy mindset and holistic approach to running, you’re going to do great at your upcoming races!
Thanks! I definitely hope so. Its really amazing how much everything is connected.
I’ve dealt with the same injury (nerve thing, maybe similar to your issue?) many times over and it’s almost always my fault because I go too long between adjustments. This summer I’m being religious about chiro tune-ups every other week and it’s been better, but I haven’t pushed the mileage or the pace much either. My issues definitely stem from inflexibility and using the wrong muscles. I NEED to do more strength workouts & yoga! Have you ever read Anatomy for Runners? It’s really eye-opening.
Sounds like we are dealing with similar issues and I have been going to the chiropractor and it definitely helps! I read Anatomy for Runners a few years ago and I actually go back to it all the time! Such a great resource.
Confession: the first time I used a foam roller I totally overdid it and ended up bruising my quads like crazy. I looked like I had been run over by a truck. Then a few months ago my left shin was a bit sore and I massaged it too intensely and ended up bruising THAT as well. I don’t bruise easily, I’m just too intense sometimes. I think more is better, when it’s obviously not. Duh.
Oh no! Definitely be careful with that foam roller, especially when you’re just starting out using it!
I think you’re being really smart with your body right now. And as far as signing up for a full- you’ll know when it’s the right time! By not pushing yourself too hard, you are keeping yourself injury free and having fun with running!
I keep telling myself that I will know when I am ready to train for a full! I think I need to get back into the double digits before I can realistically start thinking about it:)
“Don’t worry about what other people think, and be willing to make changes” <————— THISSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It's especially easy in the blog world to compare training plans with other people but the thing is each body is different and what works for one might not work for another.
Exactly! I can be way too rigid; its definitely something to work on. Bloggers only share a small portion of their lives- no need to compare because we all have a million different factors that affect our training!
It’s always so hard trying to decide what races to do (or not to do!). I love what you wrote about being willing to skip miles in favor of doing something that might be easier on your body. It’s so hard mentally to be okay letting your mileage fall for a week, even if it’s better for you in the long run. Good luck figuring out your next step! Looking forward to hearing what you decide!
Thanks! I think it can be so easy to fall into the trap of wanting to constantly run more and more miles, when that may not always be the best thing!
Great foam rolling article – I needed that, as well as this perspective!
Glad you enjoyed it!
I am right there with you! I think you’ve been really smart dealing with your injuries and all of those steps are paying off. It’s exciting to think about what the next goal or race will be! There are awesome things ahead 🙂
Thank you! Its definitely nice to know that being patient is worth it! And its fun to start planning out some races:)
Hope it’s okay we gave you a shout out today!
Of course! Thanks so much!:)
Lisa, this is such a thoughtful post and thanks for sharing the foam rolling link. I usually have the same problems come up over and over again because I don’t stick with all of my PT exercises and then BOOM! I’m having another issue or the same one; they are all related. I think I’ve finally learned my lesson and I’m trying to be very diligent with my extra pre- and post-run exercises as well as other strength training efforts. It seems like a lot to me, at times, and I get tired of doing it but I know I have to stick with it. You’re doing great!!! I hope you’re having a great day and thanks for the encouragement!
Thanks Tara! I can definitely relate to how you are feeling. There is SO much involved in staying healthy (well, it seems like some of us need to worry about it more than others, I guess). We just need to remember how important that stuff is and its worth taking the time to do it if it means we will stay healthy!
I think you’re doing an amazing job of being patient and really listening to your body this time and I admire you so much for that!! And for remaining so positive through it all – you’re amazing! I try to learn from my past mistakes too. Last year racing in the heat totally threw my confidence off for awhile (and I really didn’t enjoy it). I love running though and want to keep loving it so I’m learning ffrom last year and being a bit more spontaneous about my racing this summer 😀
That is awesome! Running is always a work in progress I think. As long as we keep learning, we can keep improving!
I’m doing the Charles 12 and maybe Druided. I’m sad Charles is later this year-it’s throwing a wrench into my marathon training schedule. Way to keep on doing. Sometimes it’s nice to not have a set plan and go by feel. I need more corework in my life!
Have you ever done the Druid Hills before? Rob did it last year and it sounds pretty rough. Im definitely not planning on it being a PR but hopefully it will be fun! Maybe you can just add on some miles before or after the Charles St 12 if you need to do a longer run that weekend. I am hoping with it being a month later that we will have a better chance of good weather!
I did Druid Hills 3 years ago I think. I don’t think they had it the year before? I mean I remember it as hot and the hills are rough-lots of people walk up them. Definitely a fun kind of challenge race-not a PR for me lol
I love this post, it’s like you’re reading my mind haha. And i give a BIG thumbs up to strength training over a wussy elliptical. You’ll benefit much more with strength training.
I agree that there are more benefits to strength training than elliptical! If I was just working on getting more cardio time in, elliptical would be fine, but I think I can manage enough miles for that and the strength will be more beneficial in so many different ways.