Hope To Run Again Before End Of The Year

Scott,

I wanted to mention to you since you are rehabbing from another injury that this is a phase I found myself going through for a couple years after I ran St. George in 2004. I would run for a few months, get injured, have to lay off the running, start running again and get injured again. The one constant in those two years was that I tried to start up again too fast, and my body could not handle it. Last February when Sasha visited us, he gave me some advice to force myself to run slow, and to start out with only about 20 miles/week, then increase no more than a couple miles/week, keeping my runs slow (for me, I had to stay around 8:45/mile). This was hard for me to do, but has really paid off for me. I am now going on a year without major injury, and am looking forward to setting some PR's this coming year. I think the key was that no matter where my aerobic fitness was (and your aerobic base is probably pretty good from your siwmming), I had to allow my musculoskeletal and nervous systems to catch up. I guess what I am trying to say is that I have been following your blog as you recovered from your stress fracture, and see you potentially making the same mistakes I made for several years with making your runs too hard. When you start up running again in January, my recommendation from my own personal experience would be to take it nice and easy for at least a month - only run 3-4 miles/day, slow pace (slower than you think you can run). After that, start to slowly increase the mileage. This was hard for me as well, I wanted to do more, and do it now. I hope this is not too long-winded, and I also hope you gain some benefit from my experience. If Sasha or one of the other elites has different advice, I will defer to them.

You basically described the last year of my life. Before the stress fracture it was a slight calf tear. Then felt good and went at it at full force again. During that extended layoff with the stress fracture I worked out as much as I ever had. I felt so good and fit I went back to running I could not believe it. In only a couple months I was running more mileage than I ever had. But I was rarely going under 7:45 pace because I was trying to keep it slow. I got some good comments from Josse that I am going to try. This time I will run like you and her said, but continue the swimming and biking along with it.

Its a shame though this has to keep happening. I have been so excited about running the last few months.

I hope to break this terrible cycle of run, hurt, run, etc. this year. Thanks for the advice. And I hope my blog has not been boring you to tears.

James,

By the way I remember reading you had family in Raleigh. I have a cousin who lives there as well. Also I live in the middle between Raleigh and Richmond,VA. Since I live in a rural area we often will go to Raleigh to do shopping at the malls. Heck even our local tv stations are all from Raleigh.

That is why I recommeded continueing the crosstraining it forces you not to over do it and you are all ready condtioned to it. Then gradually start to add in more running and decrease on the crosstraining. But I fully agree with James, we tend to try to jump back into running right where we left off. We have to slow it down and build back up.

I agree with James W. and Josse. When I have come off an injury with success it has been by taking it slow. Last year when I started running again I started with 10 miles in a week and increased 5 miles per week. Paul Petersen started with 1 mile a day and increased 10% a week. We thought Paul might never run again, with the injuries he had, and now he is about as elite of a runner as you get without being pro. Take it easy, it won't take as long as you think it might.