Hey RMA crew!
Welcome to June guys! Things have been a bit crazy in the running world and I can’t wait for Gold Coast to recharge with all the excitement! Only four weeks to go! We’ve been seeing a lot of people preparing for the half and full and distances are pretty much peaking at the moment so I know there are a few of us stressing about sore knees, calves whatever. I just wanted to go over a few strategies to make sure you get to the start line and get the most out of your run on the day.
RMAers Alison and Sarie at Mother’s Day Classic
In a nutshell it probably comes down to managing your load in this last push. Your body might be kind of fragile, a bit like a crystal vase. Take home message, don’t chuck it around too much with crazy speed work and stuff, it could smash.
So to stay in one piece check out our four keys.
Key 1 Miss a session if you have to!
I had a mum in last night who’s juggling three young kids as well as training for her first full marathon. She wakes up at the crack of dawn to run before hubby heads off to work, gets the kids off then works herself and then does gym in the afternoon. She’s looking kind of wrecked and knees are niggling, something’s got to give. This week we have adjusted her plan to skip her 10k and we’ll see how she is for the long run. If she misses it, it’s not the end of the world. She will still get there race day.
Key 2 Swap a session… or even a week!
It’s getting close. You’ve done most of the work already. The worst thing you can do from here is have pain and warning signs and just ignore them. If you feel something, back off! This doesn’t mean you have to stop altogether. We have a number of people that have swapped running for water running at the moment. Instead of distance you switch it for time in the water. Continue your normal plan just without the impact. If it’s serious you can do that for a couple of weeks or more at this stage and still make it race day. If you are just dealing with pain during long runs, you can try the run but do it near a pool so if you need to stop, just head back to the pool and finish the long run time wise in the water.
Key 3
Tackle Niggles! Don’t just hope they will go away. At this stage probably best to get it checked out. Then learn how to release calves, hamstrings, knees, whatever. Also try to ease tension with your running technique as well. Always have Will Wragg’s voice in your head, LLRS (Length, Lean, Relax, Shoulders). If you can’t remember, check out this quick overview we did at the Paris marathon last month.
Key 4
Ice ice baby! Remember if you’re struggling with tension and niggles after your long run ice the area. Ice will help inflammation but what everyone forgets is it will back off muscle and ‘trigger point’ pain and tension as well. Ice immersion is best but a pack will do if it’s freezing like it is here at the moment, (my dog Flash is not impressed). Usually do 12 minutes but be aware of skin condition, health issues etc. before you put it on. If you have any health issues check with doc first to be sure.
Enjoy the lead up to Gold Coast everyone! You’ll get there now! Also big congrats to running mum, Shona Stephenson who came third at TNF the other week. Awesome effort!! Love hearing your training stories guys, keep sending them through. Any questions give me a buzz at RIFREV.com.
Paul Trevethan
Running Physio
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