Running injuries are the worst.
This post originally appeared onStrength Running.
Once I learned that injuries can be a blessing in disguise, my running flourished.
I learned how to do a lot of things differently.
It made me strongerboth in the gym and in my ability to run higher mileage.
This led to a new wave of confidence in my abilities.
Soon, I crushed my marathon personal best and ran 2:39:32 at thePhiladelphia Marathon.
Without that IT band injury, I dont think I would have improved as much or as quickly.
Making the best of my injury forced me to reevaluate how I trained.
And those changes led to Strength Runningmany of my guiding principles and overall philosophy are geared toward prevention.
Because if you could stay healthy, you could run more.
you’re free to be more consistent with your mileage, workouts, and long runs.
Soon, youll be a lot faster.
These principles are the foundation for SRsfree injury prevention lessons.
Injury Identification: What Went Wrong?
The first step is to determine what injury you have and why you got hurt in the first place.
Too often I hear from a runner who says my leg hurts.
Thats unfortunate, but detail is critical if you want to make progress.
Its worse on downhills and can hurt when walking down stairs.
Theyre more common for beginners.
But understanding your body, its signals to you, and becoming proficient at self-care is important.
If you ran to the doctor for every niggle, youd soon be broke.
Now, figuring outwhyyou got injured can be tricky.
Is your weekly mileage inconsistent with peaks and valleys?
Do you run more than about 20% of your weekly mileage at a hard effort?
Do you consistently skipstrength work?
Is all of your running in the same shoes, at the same pace, on the same terrain?
There are virtually countless reasons why you could be injured.
Now you might modify your running to ensure it doesnt happen again.
After all, making the same mistakes and simplyhopingto stay healthy isnt too smart!
Look at the reasons I mentioned above that may have caused your injury.
If you suspect one of them caused your injury, do the opposite in your training.
Here are a few other examples:
If you never do strength workouts, start now.
If your running lacks variety, repetitive stress injurieswill be common.
This is where a training log comes in handy so you remember your previous injuries.
Always seem to get foot injuries?
Its time tostrengthen your feet.
Always get hurt if you run over a certain weekly mileage?
Slow down and get stronger before increasing your miles.
Strength Runningsinjury prevention materialis a good place to start (and its free).
How Do the Best Runners Learn from Injuries?
I always love looking at how the best runners in the world tackletheirinjuries.
Do they know of some strategy that works to prevent injuries that us normal runners dont?
What mindset shifts allow them to come back strong?
Alan Webbis another great example.
Hes the American record holder in the mile (3:46.91) but has had a long history of injuries.
Here are his thoughts on injuries:
Take it slow on the way back [from an injury].
There is no need to rush things.
It is hard and having a coach that you trust is a big part of this.
Running is a contact sport with every step a force of 3-5 times your body weight.
I could quote elite runners all day.
Without prioritizing prevention, youre destined to suffer far more injuries.
Injuries Are the Ideal Learning Experience
Your body is not a machine.
It can get stronger, but only with the right level of stress and recovery.
If youre injured, then something happened that did not respect this stress and recovery process.
But we learn through trial and error.
So channel your frustration and anger intocross-trainingto maintain your fitness.
Embrace flexibility and realize that training plans are just examples of ideal training.
Theyre fluid so remember to listen to your body and reschedule workouts if youre not ready.
Learn more about injuries (and why they happen) so youll stay healthier for longer.
Photo byDavid Marcuvia Unsplash.
