Darn rocks

My New Year began with a feeling of being well rested. I just completed my downtime month and started my January training with a couple of nice long runs. I was thinking about running a couple winter cross country races. That all came to a screeching halt on Sunday. I had decided that I would go out for a nice easy 3 miler on my favorite trail. After about a half mile I felt a sharp pain in my ankle dove to the ground. Yep, I rolled my ankle. After a few choice expletives, I looked back to see what I got me. I expected to see an unknown stick or root. No, it was a perfect round rock in the middle of my beautiful dirt trail and it didn't belong there. I promptly threw it back into the creek. I have no ligament issues, no severe swelling and no knee issues. I am fairly confident I strained my Peroneal Brevis. This can be a serious injury if it is not treated carefully.

So, time for me to try to listen to my own medicine! I will be hitting the ice bucket, iontophoresis and kinesio tape. No running until pain-free with everyday activities. Time to hit the pool!

the runner's core exercises

In this post we have listed the key exercises which Lou & I use in order to keep up our baseline strength and mobility. These exercises load the key muscles involved with running. Each of these phases have a different goal and we try do them in this order to achieve these goals. More reps is not necessarily better. As I do these exercises, I try to think of the goal and concentrate on the quality or control of the movement. We try to do these 2-3 times per week on easy running days or rest days. In the off season, in our case winter, we may do these more frequently. Click on the highlighted words for a link to the post which will demonstrate each exercise. I will also eventually add these to our sidebar with updates for the exercises which I don't have a description. Remember give us some feedback with a comment. I never really know if anyone gets anything out of this blog.

Phase 1
Foam Rolling Goal- relax/release key muscle groups / Hamstrings, ITB, quads & hip flexors
I do 20 reps on each muscle group

Phase 2- Gently lengthen muscle groups which were released with foam rolling.
My key areas are my hamstrings and hip flexors.

Hip Flexor stretch

Lower Abdominals -This is a good way to indirectly work lengthen my hip flexors by increasing
the strength of my lower abdominals and stretch my back extensors without
actively loading my hip flexors as with the majority of Pilates exercises.

Phase 3 - With this group of exercises, the goal is to strengthen muscles by isolating the weak ones which try to get out of doing the work (primarily the glutes).

Clams

Bridging series

Arms

Phase 4 Goal- Strengthen the key muscles in a more functional way or to integrate the muscles which were stressed in phase 3. I don't do all of these in one session but rather I pick 2-3 of these. In the next workout I do the ones I skipped in the previous workout.

• Step Overs /Balancing
  
• Step Downs
  
• Lunges/Front Step up (modified lunge)
  
• Squat

Note to readers: Always consult a physician before starting any exercise program. The posts on this blog are purely for educational purposes only. The information written in the posts is the opinion of the authors and should not be taken as medical advice.

Functional Strengthening/Mobility

I decided that it would be beneficial to provide an occasional link to our previous posts/ video regarding functional strengthening and mobility exercises.
the why...
Got Strength?
You don't have squat?
Be Hip
the video...
Squat
Lunge
Step downs
Step overs

Note to readers: Always consult a physician before starting any exercise program. The posts on this blog are purely for educational purposes only. The information written in the posts is the opinion of the authors and should not be taken as medical advice.

Roll on!

Here is a link to a great summary article on foam rolling which, Lou & I do the day after our long runs and on rest days. I usually do this on my Quads, Hams & ITB. This helps my recovery and eliminates the need to "stretch" my ITBs.
Keep on rolling! http://www.sbcoachescollege.com/articles/Roll%20Out.html

Be Hip!

(c) http://www.physiotherapy.co.uk/
This weeks topic on take and run Thursday is running injuries. This guy has a problem. Check out that hip position. This is a great picture of hip drop which is a problem we see often. The left hip drop is most likely because of right Gluteus Medius weakness. The primary function of this muscle during gait and running is to help stabilize the hip when the foot is in contact with the ground. It controls stance leg hip adduction. This can lead to multiple running injuries including ITBFS, knee, groin, lateral hip & lower back pain. The best way to correct this problem is to train/strengthen this muscle the same way it functions during gait. That is with the right foot on the ground. With my left groin strain last year, we noticed that my pain would increase in cushioned running shoes which allowed more pronation. We also noted that along with that I had more right hip drop (left gluteal medius weakness). I initially worked on left single leg stance exercises while simulating where my hip should be during stance (level hips). This is done by contracting or squeezing my left buttock/ leveling the pelvis. I would hold this position for 5 to 10 seconds and would fatigue very quickly. I then progressed to higher level functional exercises but only if I could maintain this position. In my case, flexibility had very little to do with why I was having pain with running. With a different neutral running shoe and increased functional strength of my hip I was able to return to pain-free running.

Our previous post on the step down, is an example of one of the higher level exercises. We will post some more video of others. Check out this related post. Got strength?
I hope this helped to explain this common hip issue.
Be hip!

More on Running injuries

Here is a link to a good post on Universal Truths about Running Injuries. I am pleased with the praise for physical therapy! I want to expand on the comment of "best PT". It is important not to automatically assume a MD or PT who tells you not to run is a bad one. I don't believe this was the intent of the author of this linked post. As I've previously posted, rest is a very important part of training but also of rehab. We must give the body time to respond to rehab without the stress that helped to cause it originally. As a PT, I often have my running patients stop running. In our current health care system, by the time they get to me it is not in their best interest to continuing to try to run through it. Most have already tried that and it hasn't worked. One of my biggest battles is to get my runners to actually stop "testing it out". I try to get my patients back to running as fast as possible but very carefully. I follow the rule of, if I feel my symptoms walking around doing my daily activities, then I have no business trying to run. I start back at a very low level/ walking then progressing to walk /jog then to continuous running. Each phase of this must be symptom free before progression to the next phase.

Please visit our other posts on strengthening, running injuries, prevention & rest.