3. Preventing Overtraining
or.....5 Steps to INJURY
or... YOU CAN'T RUN WHILE ON THE BENCH!
If you've read some of my other blogs, you'll know I continually harp on two overwhelming mental problems that affect race day performance of almost every single athlete, including yours truly.
One is overtraining, the other is going out too fast.
Lets talk overtraining.
My previous post in this series talks of periodization. Read it again, if you need to. Merely by adhering to a written macro schedule, whereby you incorporate the principles of periodization, you win a tremendous mental advantage in your quest to become a better runner. Mediocre runners become solid journeymen, capable of perhaps even winning a medal or two on occasion. How exciting to move up the ladder without an increase in training load, by just working out smarter! A virtual freebie!!!
Here's the rub for most of you. You can't do it. You can't overcome the desire to continually work out harder and harder. Faster and more miles without regard to my 5 steps to an injury whereby you snap the weakest link in the chain and end up sidelined.
But overtraining is solvable. Continually work out harder and harder, but separate blocks of it with REST. That's called PERIODIZATION!
WHAT A CONCEPT.... I GET FASTER BY RESTING!!!!
Let's review the 5 steps to injuries...
You increase your 1. aerobic and 2. muscular capacities to their maximal capacity to ensure you will eventually injure: 3. bone (usually stress fractures)4. ligaments and/or 5. tendons.
It's as predictable as the sun rising. It's common to watch runners, especially newbie OC's, go right off the cliff. Happens all the time. I usually call it beforehand, and even notify them of the impending disaster, to no avail. Like in Rebel Without A Cause, Natalie drops the handkerchief, and it's pedal to the medal. What cliff? I 'll know when to bail. Oopsie, that first step is a killer!
Such is human nature.
So what expresses itself as a PHYSICAL problem, is in reality, a mental issue.
Suggestions/ Comments from the wizened one:
1. Rest makes you faster and safer. Periodization in a written program tells you when and where.
2. It takes only weeks to improve your aerobic/ muscular components. It takes months or years to improve bone density, ligaments and tendons. Outrun the last three, get a seat on the bench. A guaranteed "I told you so".
So interposed periods of BASE TRAINING, incorporating rest, are a must!
3. Once injured, the rule is this... It takes, at a minimum, TWICE as long in recovery to regain where you were relative to how long you were out. For instance, you go OC.
You injure on January 1. Stress fracture. 4 weeks no running, maybe 6. Then you enter another HIGH RISK recovery zone where you get to try and show how stubborn and clueless to your body you really are. The forces that drove you to the stress fracture now drives you to a too early recovery. You start running Feb 1 , and by mid Feb. you are feeling great, run hard and ooopsie! Back on the bench for another 4 weeks with same or new injury. You comment on your "bad luck" and on and on .
In reality, you should have crosstrained, then VERY SLOWLY recovered all of February , then slowly regained miles and speed well into late March, IF YOU ARE LUCKY. So, you just went from January 1 to March 31st, WITH NO GAIN IN PERFORMANCE, AND HIGHER RISK THE WHOLE TIME. Just because you got frisky. Best scenario!! And your base is compromised which still leaves you in a higher risk zone! Oye Vey!!!
4. Big Races leave Big Shadows. After your first marathon, the risk shadow may go out 3 months or even longer. The first 6 weeks are incredibly dangerous. For the more experienced, those numbers are 2 months, with high risk for 3 to 4 weeks. It happens so many times... they tell me they feel great and going to run another race at x pace, or they need to quickly return to hard training so they don't lose the edge. I advise caution, then bite my lip days or weeks later when they tell me "bad luck" has visited upon them, poor folks.
5. Become an ADULT. Learn to defer gratification. All comes to he who waits. You'll be so smug when you reach your goal, just take a little extra time to do it.
Really, what's the hurry, it's a journey!
or.....5 Steps to INJURY
or... YOU CAN'T RUN WHILE ON THE BENCH!
If you've read some of my other blogs, you'll know I continually harp on two overwhelming mental problems that affect race day performance of almost every single athlete, including yours truly.
One is overtraining, the other is going out too fast.
Lets talk overtraining.
My previous post in this series talks of periodization. Read it again, if you need to. Merely by adhering to a written macro schedule, whereby you incorporate the principles of periodization, you win a tremendous mental advantage in your quest to become a better runner. Mediocre runners become solid journeymen, capable of perhaps even winning a medal or two on occasion. How exciting to move up the ladder without an increase in training load, by just working out smarter! A virtual freebie!!!
Here's the rub for most of you. You can't do it. You can't overcome the desire to continually work out harder and harder. Faster and more miles without regard to my 5 steps to an injury whereby you snap the weakest link in the chain and end up sidelined.
But overtraining is solvable. Continually work out harder and harder, but separate blocks of it with REST. That's called PERIODIZATION!
WHAT A CONCEPT.... I GET FASTER BY RESTING!!!!
Let's review the 5 steps to injuries...
You increase your 1. aerobic and 2. muscular capacities to their maximal capacity to ensure you will eventually injure: 3. bone (usually stress fractures)4. ligaments and/or 5. tendons.
It's as predictable as the sun rising. It's common to watch runners, especially newbie OC's, go right off the cliff. Happens all the time. I usually call it beforehand, and even notify them of the impending disaster, to no avail. Like in Rebel Without A Cause, Natalie drops the handkerchief, and it's pedal to the medal. What cliff? I 'll know when to bail. Oopsie, that first step is a killer!
Such is human nature.
So what expresses itself as a PHYSICAL problem, is in reality, a mental issue.
Suggestions/ Comments from the wizened one:
1. Rest makes you faster and safer. Periodization in a written program tells you when and where.
2. It takes only weeks to improve your aerobic/ muscular components. It takes months or years to improve bone density, ligaments and tendons. Outrun the last three, get a seat on the bench. A guaranteed "I told you so".
So interposed periods of BASE TRAINING, incorporating rest, are a must!
3. Once injured, the rule is this... It takes, at a minimum, TWICE as long in recovery to regain where you were relative to how long you were out. For instance, you go OC.
You injure on January 1. Stress fracture. 4 weeks no running, maybe 6. Then you enter another HIGH RISK recovery zone where you get to try and show how stubborn and clueless to your body you really are. The forces that drove you to the stress fracture now drives you to a too early recovery. You start running Feb 1 , and by mid Feb. you are feeling great, run hard and ooopsie! Back on the bench for another 4 weeks with same or new injury. You comment on your "bad luck" and on and on .
In reality, you should have crosstrained, then VERY SLOWLY recovered all of February , then slowly regained miles and speed well into late March, IF YOU ARE LUCKY. So, you just went from January 1 to March 31st, WITH NO GAIN IN PERFORMANCE, AND HIGHER RISK THE WHOLE TIME. Just because you got frisky. Best scenario!! And your base is compromised which still leaves you in a higher risk zone! Oye Vey!!!
4. Big Races leave Big Shadows. After your first marathon, the risk shadow may go out 3 months or even longer. The first 6 weeks are incredibly dangerous. For the more experienced, those numbers are 2 months, with high risk for 3 to 4 weeks. It happens so many times... they tell me they feel great and going to run another race at x pace, or they need to quickly return to hard training so they don't lose the edge. I advise caution, then bite my lip days or weeks later when they tell me "bad luck" has visited upon them, poor folks.
5. Become an ADULT. Learn to defer gratification. All comes to he who waits. You'll be so smug when you reach your goal, just take a little extra time to do it.
Really, what's the hurry, it's a journey!
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