Re: Advice for a New Start


"Andrew Reeves" <AndrewSshi@xxxxxxxxx> wrote

> I did not do much weight
> training for my legs at this time (okay, I basically did none).

Most runners I know (including some national class guys), don't do weight
training. And they train quite hard.

> In 2001, I got a
> stress fracture in my right thigh which kept me off of my feet for the
> better part of six months. Had that been the end of it, I would have
> been fine, but it wasn't. In the summer of 2003, I got an adductor
> strain in the right leg that took close to two months to heal. Then, in
> October of that year I badly strained my right quad, which had me off
> of my feet for another six weeks. The last and worst, though, came in
> April of 2004, when I got a strain in the same adductor, a strain that
> took from then until now to heal.

How did these injuries came about? Running, football, snowboarding, weight
lifting, ???

> All of which is to say that I am starting back at the beginning when it
> comes to running. After the first full pain free week (about a week or
> so hence), I am going to start again, but with several realizations.
> Most importantly, that the last injuries were all to muscle tissue
> tells me that I must integrate a program of weight training in with my
> runs.

That is anything but obvious to me, with the information you've given us.

I've pulled a couple of hamstrings, and had Achilles problems, and they
healed up just fine without any lifting. My experience is that tightness
coupled with bad luck (stepping on a moving rock, slipping in mud, etc), too
much too soon, or improper usage (e.g., sprinting full bore up stairs
without properly warming up) is the usual cause of a muscle injury.

I'd want to explore the cause of your injuries before deciding on a course
of action. (Please note that my only medical experience is as a patient!)

> Only slightly less important is that orthotics and motion control shoes
> are essential. I also need to put more meat, eggs, and cheese in my
> diet.

Do you limit your diet in any way?

> All of which is to say that I am rather at a loss for what sort of
> routine I should do. The ideal end point for my running will be to be
> going something like 20-30 ish miles a week, with at least one 7-12
> mile run and a few other 4-6 mile runs. To get there, though, I also
> need to fit in a schedule of weight training that also gives the
> muscles sufficient time to heal.

In general the best way to start out is very slowly, mixing up walking and
jogging, over several weeks. Some people can get up to your goal in a
couple weeks, for some it takes a few months. Because you've been in
pretty good shape before, you might be tempted to start out too fast.
Resist the temptation.

If you go too fast, too soon, and do silly things like throw fast sprints in
before you're seasoned, you're asking for trouble.

> Here, then, is where I am coming to this community for advice. What is
> the best way to integrate weight training for legs and a week that will
> start at around 4-6 miles and eventually reach 20-30 (with a weekly
> increase of about 10%)?

There are a lot of muscles to work in the legs. Do you intend to exercise
all of them (glutes, adductors, TFL, piriformis, sartorious, quads, hams,
soleus, just to name a few?). The few I know who do leg weight work (in
prep for a 50 mile mountain race, for example) say that their legs are
pretty dead the day after a quad session.

If lifting won't make you any less vulnerable to injury, would you still do
it? Do you know that muscle weakness is the cause of your injury history?

-- Dan


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