by TIm Waanders, PT, DPT, FAFS
We’ve all been here before: fall marathon season is over, the holidays have rolled around, the temperatures dipped and sunlight feeling harder and harder to come by. Before we know it it’s been weeks since we last ran consistently let alone trained for anything. Yet, knowing us runners, we’ve signed up for spring races (or will at some point soon) that we need to get back into the groove for. It can be challenging to know how to safely get back into running after taking a long break, but it’s important to do so properly in order to prevent injury and end up taking even more time off unintentionally!
Below are a few things to consider during the process:
Understand That Changes in Fitness Are Normal
Understand that changes in fitness are normal and a part of the process. It can be disheartening to see your paces slow down and your heart rate being higher than normal when you were at your peak fitness. But that’s the whole point – you were at your peak! If we were to always maintain a steady level of high fitness, then we would never make room to grow. These recovery periods are necessary in order to not plateau and actually make future gains when training. This doesn’t mean it’s okay to be sedentary necessarily, but a base build from a lower level of fitness is totally warranted and okay.
2. Use Cross-Training to Rebuild Endurance
Use cross training to help increase endurance without overtraining on your feet. If you are able to and have access to necessary equipment, using cross training to increase cardiovascular endurance is a great way to lower the impact compared to running but still making gains in your fitness. Great options include the bike/spin classes, elliptical, swimming, and even an interval class a few times per week until you are back into a groove with running outside.
3. Maintain Strength Training
Keep strength training in order to ensure your muscles and tendons are up to the task of being loaded while running. Running requires being able to handle 2-3x our body weight, in a single leg position. That’s asking a lot from our muscles! Strength training and stability work are necessary not only for injury prevention but also performance enhancement. My suggestion is 1-2x/week hitting both double leg and single leg exercises focusing on global movements like squats, lunges, hip hinges, and calf raises.
4. Follow a Plan
Follow a plan! Even if you don’t have a race goal in mind, you want to make sure you’re steadily increasing mileage and avoiding going too fast too soon. Remember the general rule of thumb: Your mileage should only increase about 10% from one week to the next. That doesn’t necessarily have to be stuck to as a hard and fast rule, but you shouldn’t be doubling your mileage from one week to the next. Keep the runs easy (think Zone 2 or 50-60% effort level max) and if you need to consider inserting walking intervals at first if your fitness is feeling significantly reduced compared to usual.
5. Listen to Your Body
Listen to your body. When returning, it’s important to listen to how your body feels and not push past a certain level of discomfort. It can be expected that you will feel a little more sore or fatigued as you start getting back into running consistently, so you certainly should be taking at least a day off in between runs to start.
By taking a gradual and intentional approach, you’ll set yourself up for a successful and injury-free return to running. Happy running!
