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How to Ease Back Into Running? (Read 300 times)

emmbee


queen of headlamps

    I've been battling an overuse injury in my upper thigh for a month.  Not sure what I did to set it off, but my leg's been a mess of knotty muscles and deep hip/groin pain for a few weeks.  I tried elliptical for a bit and that only aggravated it, and a few miles here and there didn't help.  So I've taken the last week and a half off from running entirely; been spending the rest of my time on yoga, pilates, and hip stability exercises.

     

    I think the problem resulted from running in the cold while recovering from the flu while also not sleeping well due to the baby also having the flu; my poor body just had enough and just shut me down.

     

    In any case, I'm feeling a lot better -- a little sore after cycling at the gym yesterday, but ordinary muscle soreness, not injury soreness.  I seem to be able to do everything except push off strongly for running, but I feel like I've turned a corner and I want to start running again next week.

     

    I'm not sure how to get back into running.  I'm new, and the only other time I restarted running was after a year and a half off, so I of course started with a couch to 5K program.   I wasn't able to do a lot of cardio in the past month, so I'm sure I've deconditioned some, but I'm more worried about musculoskeletal conditioning (for obvious reasons.)

     

    What would you do?


    an amazing likeness

      Just head out the door. That's it.  Aim for a time goal -- be it 10 minutes, 20 minutes, 30, 60..whatever. Run some, walk some, jog some...it doesn't matter.  It's simply a matter of building back time on your feet. No structure needed.

       

      Should this seem too easy, grab a plan like Couch-2-5K and use that structure.

      Acceptable at a dance, invaluable in a shipwreck.

      emmbee


      queen of headlamps

        That's helpful, really.  I'm worried about screwing things up by coming back too soon; lost a lot of confidence in my body after I had the kid and it seemed that every thing hurt for a year.

          I'll bet "everything"hurt for awhile after the kid. You're squeezin' something the size of a bowling ball through something the size of a lemon.

          Trent


          Good Bad & The Monkey

            Ease back in?

             

            Do not go gentle into that good night,
            Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
            Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

            Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
            Because their words had forked no lightning they
            Do not go gentle into that good night.

            Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
            Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
            Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

            Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
            And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
            Do not go gentle into that good night.

            Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
            Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
            Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

            And you, my father, there on the sad height,
            Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
            Do not go gentle into that good night.
            Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

            emmbee


            queen of headlamps

              The trouble is that raging at my body got me into this mess! Big grin

              Megan29


                Have you thought about following a training plan? I follow The Perkins Great Eastern Run training guide and it has helped me a lot. Just do what you can manage and don't over do it.

                Christirei


                  Similar story to you but I went to dr's that set me in the wrong direction, told me I had a stress fracture for a while and then even a hamstring strain or tear....turns out I am probably also just suffering from overuse and PT thinks it is likely high hamstring tendonitis. I have been riding a stationary bike for cardio and have taken just about 6 weeks off from running. Lots of PT that is focusing on glutes, low back, hips, and just now starting some hamstring work and stretching. Pain is finally gone for me and PT rec a one mile run, every other day for a week, if I can do that with no pain I am "allowed" to start very slowly building back up. Previous to taking this time off I had been running close to 50 mile weeks, so this is going to be SLOW.   Just don't rush it, you don't want it to get more serious instead of better

                  emmbee


                  queen of headlamps

                    This is from quite a while back!   What I did was sort of rush it more than I needed to, slowed down a lot, wound up overtrained, got ill, and now I'm putting myself back together, being less dumb, and taking iron supplements for anemia.