I need to explain my situation, so this will be long. (Sorry) I suffered a herniated disk back in late June that hit the nerve going down my left leg. It was very painful and the leg became weak, tight and unable to support any weight. I was on crutches for a month followed by a cane. After several months of PT plus 2 epidural shots I can now walk unassisted. At first I would get tired from walking even short distances and that's why I used the cane, but eventually that went away and now I walk pretty normal. I've even walked as far as 3 miles with my dog with now problem. However, running is another story.
I first tried running back in the fall. My plan was to simply run 0.5 miles, once a week. That's it. I did this for 5 weeks (5 runs). Each time it was the same result: I would start out feeling pretty good and then get to about 0.25 miles and the leg would tighten up and get crampy. The last half or the run I would be a limpy mess. So I decided I was not ready and stopped. Then back in Feb I decided to try again. I'm motivated by 2 things: #1 - I've gained some weight since I stopped running and #2 - there is going to be a 5k right in my neighborhood on May 17 and I REALLY want to run it.
Because of my past experience, I came up with a strategy of run 0.15 m/walk 1 min for 1.25 miles. I do this every other day and ride the stationary bike on the off days. So far this has worked fairly well and my leg isn't quite as bad as it was months ago, although it still gets tight. Since I started I've extended the run segments to 0.25 miles and kept the 1 minute walk breaks. I also have lengthened the overall distance to 2 miles. I think it is time to ramp things up a bit more. My question is this: Is it better to keep the same run/walk strategy and continue to extend the distance? Or would it make more sense to stay at the 2 mile distance and work on lengthening the run segments in hopes of eventually getting rid of the walk breaks altogether and then work on distance?
Again, sorry it took so long to get to the actual question!
Becky
I would continue with the run/walk segments increasing them until you're sure the leg no longer tightens. Once you've reached that milestone, I think the leg will be ready to run in full. You can still do the 5K if you run/walk it, no?
Good luck!
Damaris
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That post was not long at all!
My problem when coming back from injury (something I have a lot of experience in unfortunately ) is that I am afraid of setbacks, so if the diagnosis suggests I take two weeks off then I will take four. I have done this each time I have had a major issue and it has served me well.
So I guess in my opinion I would not let a goal race be the deciding factor under any circumstances, but rather the circumstances themselves. For instance if you think you might be ready to take a chance and race in May, *I* would wait until June or July to better the odds.
You might also consider taking three or four days off consecutively every three weeks or so during this baby walk stage to allow the body time to adapt and recover from the light stress you are giving it.
As far as the actual question, I do not know enough about disk problems to offer an educated opinion. I will wish you well though!
Scottydog suffered from herniated disks and he still runs a lot of 5Ks and 10Ks a year. Paging Scotty!
Hip Redux
I manage to herniate a disc like once every 18 months, so I can speak from experience here. lol
The first thing I would do is make sure that you are not compensating for the injury while running. Take a video of yourself running if you don't have someone that could watch you run and make an assessment. Are you striding evenly? Are your hips swaying to one side, forcing an unbalanced movement?
Another thing that happens with this sort of injury is that the nerves can become trapped or shortened (I'm sure there's a technical term for this, but I can't remember). Regular massages may help, as well as finding a PT who can do some nerve gliding with you.
Both of these things can contribute to cramping and the like.
I would keep the overall distance the same until you can run a mile in one stint. From there you can certainly implement a run/walk strategy to get to higher miles, there's no real reason why you need to move off of a run/walk approach with a back issue. But if you can't get to a mile running without issue, I would remain cautious about increasing anything just yet.
My suggestion would be don't ramp up all your run times during the week at once - start by increasing the run time in one 2 mile run for the week, leaving the others as is and see how that goes.
Thanks all! Great advice! I will definitely be very careful and continue to take it slow. Yes, I have the shortened nerve thing (contracture?) and this does affect my stride. My heel strike does not match. It's a mid-foot strike on my right leg and more up on my toe on the left. I am very concious of this and try to even it out as much as possible. This has improved greatly since I started. As for the 5k, I have no intention of racing it. I just want to participate with the goal of just finishing. Now that I can cover 2 miles, I feel like this is possible. But I still have plenty of time to see how things go.
As for the 5k, I have no intention of racing it. I just want to participate with the goal of just finishing. Now that I can cover 2 miles, I feel like this is possible. But I still have plenty of time to see how things go.
Excellent!