Five things to do to prepare for running
Over the past seven years, working with competitive and non-competitive runners, I’ve noticed that most runners strive for the endorphin buzz they get from a good run. They can’t wait to get outside or on the track, to rack up weekly miles. While I commend them for having such a passion, I note they often forget key steps they must take to reduce pain and injury. Here are five practices I feel every runner must adopt to optimize their performance:
1. Get on that foam roll!
Every runner should own a foam roll. As we put stress on our muscles and fascia tissue build up adhesions or knots. This can be the main cause of pain and muscle dysfunction. Using a foam roller or other massage techniques will help restore the body back to an optimal level of function and performance by resetting the soft tissue proprioceptive mechanisms.
2. Open up those hips
Lack of hip mobility is a very common problem in runners and non-runners as well. About 90 percent of my clientele struggle to increase hip mobility. I feel that the lack of hip mobility is the main cause of lower back pain, knee pain, and can drastically affect your running stride. Not only do you need to static stretch your hip flexors and hamstrings to alleviate this problem, but you must also perform some simple mobility exercises in three different planes of motion. I use two different types of movements with all my clients, tri-planar squats and tri-planar lunges. I always start with squats and then advance to lunges as a mobility warm-up. Split squats, lateral squats, and rotational squats are the three exercise that I use.
3. Eat more protein and healthy fat, and less carbohydrates
The human body only needs so many carbohydrates before they will spill over and turn into body fat. Protein is the body’s nutrient for rebuilding the muscles that are broken down after a long run, and healthy fats are the bodies healing nutrients and help reduce inflammation. Make sure you are taking a fish oil supplement, and eating healthy proteins and fats at each meal and snack. The majority of your carbohydrates should come from fruits and veggies, and just a little bit from whole grains such as oatmeal and sprouted bread.
4. Power up and strength train those legs!
Another common thing I hear is that runners don’t need to do any strength training with their legs because they already run ample amounts each week. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Runners need to focus on increasing strength and power in their legs to reduce injury and improve performance more than most athletes. You don’t have to perform a ton of leg exercises that will make you sore and hinder your next running performance. I have a lot of my runner’s only perform about 10-15 minutes of strength and power training for their legs two to three times a week.
5. Make sure to work on your form
This could be your best defense against injury and helping improving your running times. Many people think that running is just something you can just pick up and do and get great results, but that is not the case. I feel that people need to take the time to understand the proper mechanics of running in order to reap the great benefits of running. Posture, walking and running gate, stride length, and proper footwear are just a few thingsrunner’s need to consider.
by Justin Grinnell
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Great tips! Having just run my first marathon in January with hip and IT band issues among a host of other training injuries, this article could have saved me a whole lot of pain! I didn’t use a foam roller, my hips were too tight, I didn’t eat enough healthy fats, I didn’t think I needed to strength train my legs and my shoes were the wrong type. Please…if you’re eyeing your first big race or you’re just getting back into it, abide by each of these 5 rules and find a coach! Luckily I’m not totally demoralized with my first result and will have a “do over” in May at the Rock ‘n’ Roll San Diego Marathon.
This article are very useful especially for me as a new bie runner.