Re: Advice for a New Start

Dan Stumpus wrote:
> "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.
>
<snip>
> How did these injuries came about? Running, football, snowboarding, weight
> lifting, ???
>
Just running. Well, that, and having flat feet and thus overpronating.

> > 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.
>
Well, I've read here and there (I don't have a cite handy) that weight
training is generally fairly useful for preventing injuries. That, and
I've noticed in upper body strenght training that making sure that all
supporting muscles are trained along with the main groups keeps
injuries from occuring.

> 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!)

Just flat feet, and not waiting for long enough for a mild injury to
heal.

>
> > 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?

Nope. I generally keep to 2300-ish calories a day.
>
> > 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.
>

Yep. The kind of trouble that makes a mild strain that should heal in
about six weeks into a strain that sticks around for a year.

> > 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?
>
Well, I think that I would do it in general because it's just helpful
for strengthening the legs. Though honestly the only thing that I
really care about doing is running.

> -- Dan

.

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