Top Five Training Errors That Lead to Injury in Runners

Two months into 2020 and many runners are deep into training for Spring and Summer races while others are running to get in shape, to decrease stress or even just for the fun of it. Regardless of goals and experience runners can fall victim to injury. Running injuries are usually the result of several issues combining to create the perfect storm. Frequently a part of that storm includes training mistakes. Today we summarize the top five training errors that can lead to injury. Are you making any of these mistakes?

“Getting to the bottom of a runner’s injury is like solving a puzzle; the four corners are strength, mobility, biomechanics and training.”

— Coach Amy

Here are the top five training errors that Coach Amy finds lead to injuries:

1. Increasing total weekly mileage and long run mileage too quickly.

2. Lack of recovery between training runs within the building phase, after races and between seasons.

3. Not enough, too much or the wrong kind of cross training.

4. Lack of varying intensity of hard and easy runs.

5. Changing running form, surface, or shoe type without a slow, gradual introduction and without professional guidance.

Personalized coaching can help create a individual training plan just for you to prevent these errors. If injury does occur, physical therapy with a therapist that specializes in running can speed up and improve success with recovery.

Is Your Sports Bra Giving You a Headache?

“I’m a long distance runner and often get headaches when I wear a sports bra. Is this a thing?”

— - Runner Gal

Tension headaches are caused by a variety of issues including poor posture, stress, jaw disorders and weak neck muscles but one of the culprits may be lurking in your dresser: the dreaded sports bra.

Sports bras are a necessary evil for women participating in athletic activities especially high impact sports that involve running and jumping. Sports bras provide support against gravity and are important for breast health. However, ill fitting or poorly designed bras may compress muscles and nerves around the upper shoulder and neck. When these structures are compressed for a lengthy period of time, blood flow is diminished causing injury and pain. 

Symptoms often present as a headache that extends up the back of the skull over the ear around the temple to just behind the eye. It can even cause pain that radiates down into the shoulder blade upper back. In severe cases, it can cause numbness and tingling in the arm and hands which is a sign of nerve damage. 

Finding the right sports bra is tricky. It must provide support and prevent compression of vessels, muscles and nerves. The best sports bra is one that is stronger, not tighter, and provides support through a larger surface area. This will minimize the forces that occur at the straps. Think coverage. It should feel like a bandeau hugging around you as opposed to digging.

Below are some tips on choosing a sports bra that provides support without compression that can lead to headaches. 

• Wear it in the store for about 20 min. while shopping and see how it feels. Is it causing a headache? Is it digging into your upper traps and leaving a mark?

• Jump up and down in it! 

• Choose a bra with wider straps to dissipate forces on the shoulder muscle. 

• Avoid straps that sit at the edge of the neck (see photo). 

• Choose a bra that covers the area above the breasts (e.g. no cleavage) and extends all the way to mid torso (between bottom of breast line and belly button) as opposed to just below the breast line. 

These straps are slim and sit too close to the edge of the neck. They could contribute to a tension headache.

Keep your great questions coming. We love to answer them! email us.

Running on Tired Legs

“Folks on message boards are debating about the Tired Run workout programmed into the Coach Amy Garmin Coach routine. Specifically what is meant by ‘best effort on tired legs’...what are the risks and rewards...and what speeds and effort levels are optimal for injury avoidance?”

— K.S., a Coach Amy Garmin Coach runner.

Most long distance runners find that they “hit a wall” in their race. It is a point in the race when an athlete feels like they are running through concrete. That invisible obstacle IS surmountable with proper training. The Tired Run workout is one way that Coach Amy trains runners physically and mentally to break through “the wall.” Strategically scheduled the day after a long run, the Tired Run workout simulates the later stages of a long distance race. 

The Tired Run workout trains the body to efficiently harness energy during an endurance race. In the later stages of a race, the body begins to burn fat for energy. The better trained our body is for that process, the more efficient it will do so on race day. The day after a long run is an ideal time to teach the body to adapt because the body’s energy stores are depleted from the previous day’s long run. The purpose of practicing running with fatigue is not just physical; it gives us the mental confidence to break through “the wall” because we've successfully practiced it throughout the training cycle. 

The day after a long run, our legs are typically sore like after a hard strength workout. What is unique post long run, is that the legs are not only sore, but feel heavy. Additionally, the mind may be cranky and full of negative thoughts. Both heavy legs and crankiness are directly proportional to low energy stores. This is the perfect time for a run! 

Tips for the Tired Run: 

• Avoid looking at your watch! You may wear it for tracking stats, but don’t look at it during the run. This is not a pace driven workout. 

• Expect this effort to feel hard even though it is technically an “easy” run without pace goals. 

• Maintain normal running form. Take a short walk break if gait becomes atypical (e.g. shuffling) and resume when you can run normally.

• Follow the distance plan provided by your coach. It varies depending upon running experience, personal goals, period of training and injury history. 

• STOP if experiencing pain. The purpose of this run is not to learn how to run in pain. 

The Tired Run is not the only workout that trains the body to hurdle “the wall”. A training plan with varied workouts that includes intervals, supersets, tempo runs, hill repeats and long runs are key for maximum success. 

For more running tips on how to push through the wall and other hot topics, Subscribe to the RRKC blog!

Psst...Want to Know the Secrets to Sport Performance Enhancement?

One of the secrets to sport performance enhancement is reducing inflammation from the microtrauma of training in a non-pharmacological way. Recall from our article, The Magic of Rest Day in Training:

“The microtrauma created through training causes a low level of inflammation that is typically not seen or felt. There is no observable swelling, redness or pain.”

The faster an athlete heals from microtrauma, the less time they need in recovery. Less recovery time means more time for quality training, which in turn improves performance. For example, the athlete that recovers faster can tolerate adding more volume and intensity to the plan with less risk of injury. Non-pharmacological methods for treating inflammation have far fewer risks and side effects and can be used long term.

The field of physical therapy originally arose to rehabilitate polio survivors and injured soldiers after WWI. Over the years, it has evolved to include injury prevention, and in the past decade or so, it plays a role in sports through performance enhancement.

The same treatment methods PT’s use to treat injured and diseased persons are effective with healthy individuals, like athletes who live in a constant state of low-level inflammation. Coach Amy uses a combination of Neurological Dry Needling (NDN), Active Release Techniques (ART), and Applied Functional Science (AFS) to help non-injured athletes recover faster during training.

“I sought treatment with Coach Amy during the rigors of Ironman training. Her treatments allowed me to return quickly to a very functional level of mobility for training. It was great that competing in my upcoming races wasn’t jeopardized!”

— Anonymous 

Your first performance enhancement visit with Coach Amy includes a thorough evaluation of your training history, current goals, mobility, and stability as it relates to your sport. Typically treatment is started during this initial visit. PT for performance enhancement is not covered by insurance.

To book an appointment for performance enhancement: 

1. Choose NEW Patient Evaluation & Treatment-Self Pay

2. Athletes who would like an assessment of running form should choose Running Evaluation from the menu (otherwise stick with the first option)

3. For all subsequent performance-based treatments (after the initial evaluation), choose PT Treatment-Self Pay, or PT Treatment-Self Pay with Dry Needling

Stay tuned for our upcoming articles on just how NDN, ART, and AFS work to speed recovery and improve sports performance.

The Magic of Rest Day in Training

Athletes dread rest days. They believe they are missing out, falling behind their competition and losing strength and fitness. 

They are wrong.

Believe it or not, your rest day is the most important aspect of training. On training days, the body is challenged and worked, tested and pushed. On rest days, the body takes it to the next level. 

"Rest days are when the magic happens: the body makes biochemical changes at the cellular level. It adapts to the positive stress of training and improves to a better, adapted state. It recovers and reforms.” -Coach Amy

Microtrauma occurs in bone, skeletal muscles and tendons during training. This positive and normal part of training is necessary for the development of strength. It is similar to the formation of a callus on the foot of a ballerina or the hands of a rock climber. The musculoskeletal system changes and provides strength and protection just like a callus. The microtrauma causes a low level of inflammation that is typically not seen or felt. There is no observable swelling, redness or pain. 

Without adequate rest days, repetitive microtrauma is left unchecked and can result in poor performance and injury. Learn more about the positive and negative impacts of inflammation in our three-part series:

• Inflammation Part One: Aid and Control Early Inflammation

• Inflammation Part Two: How to Break the Vicious Cycle of Chronic Inflammation

• Inflammation Part Three: How Autoimmune and Chronic Disease Conditions Play a Role in the Inflammatory Process.

Rest can entail curling up on the couch with a good book, but usually rest for the athlete is relative and active in some way. Rest is dependent on the training cycle, the sport, and the athlete. 

• After a marathon race, the best form of relative rest is walking. 

• For the triathlete in the midst of high volume and high-intensity training, a rest day may be light, restorative yoga or taking the dog for a walk. 

• A runner who runs 5-6 days per week needs rest from high impact and load on the heart, so a low-intensity swim, spin, pilates or yoga is a great option for reformation day. 

A knowledgeable coach can help an athlete determine the best length, frequency, and type of rest.

Finding the delicate balance between load and rest is tricky business. A coach can help, but even with the best of training plans, managing the microtrauma and inflammation is challenging. Over the last few decades, athletes have relied on physical therapists to speed recovery from microtrauma with regular visits during training and tune-ups during the off-season. 

Stay tuned for our series on how Neurological Dry Needling (NDN), Active Release Techniques (ART) and/or Applied Functional Science (AFS) help speed recovery and enhance performance.

Inflammation Part Three: How Autoimmune and Chronic Disease Conditions Play a Role in the Inflammatory Process

Our two-part series on inflammation prompted a really good question from one of our subscribers: 

“How do autoimmune and other inflammatory conditions play into the inflammatory cycle?”

People with autoimmune disorders and chronic diseases like diabetes, arthritis, lupus, and celiac are in a varying but constant state of inflammation. Medication and lifestyle changes such as exercise, adequate sleep, good nutrition, and stress reduction can help regulate inflammation. Unfortunately, there is no cure for these diseases and no way to eliminate the inflammation associated with them. 

Injury, illness or stress, such as training for a marathon, can exponentially affect a person with chronic disease. It is like adding gasoline to a fire. Just as a bigger fire takes longer to control, chronically-inflamed patients typically require longer recovery and treatment times.

Physical therapy measures such as NDN, ART, and AFS can help calm inflammation associated with disease brought on by added stressors. Unfortunately, while PT can help, it cannot extinguish inflammation or cure disease.

While we can’t eradicate the disease or completely break the inflammatory cycle, we can decrease the pain and dysfunction it creates. We can take a raging fire down to controlled burning embers. 

Many of my patients and coaching clients with autoimmune disorders do amazing things like run businesses, raise families, and train for marathons. If you are struggling with autoimmune disease, let's get that inflammation under control.

To read more about inflammation, check out our two-part series:

• Inflammation Part One: Aid and Control Early Inflammation

• Inflammation Part Two: How to Break the Vicious Cycle of Chronic Inflammation

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