It happens to all of us at one point or another. It doesn’t
matter if you have the muscles and strength of LeBron James from the Miami Heat
or the speed and soccer skills of Wayne Rooney from Manchester United. Sometimes
there is just no avoiding it: we all suffer from a sport’s injury at some point
in our lives. This week it was Derek Jeter from the New York Yankees still
sidelined with his ankle injury from last season! A running injury does not have to be a death
sentence to your cardiovascular fitness, there are alternatives to keep you
going while your body is healing whether you have a twisted ankle, plantar
fasciitis, or a much too common stress fracture. Do not despair; relative rest
can actually be a good thing!
I love my swim training for triathlon! Michael Phelps would certainly agree, swimming
is an excellent, low-impact alternative to running. As the water supports your body, your joints
do not experience the same level of stress and impact they do during a run.
There’s no doubt that swimming is a strenuous sport, allowing you to increase
your endurance and reach your cardio fitness level just as easily as running.
Besides working out, water is also frequently used for rehabilitation purposes,
such as kicking your knees back and forth to build strength and increase range
of motion after a knee injury or writing the alphabet with your foot to help
the healing process of an ankle sprain. If you are someone who often struggles
with shin splints, incorporating a swim into your training regime can help to
eliminate this problem. Moreover, swimming is a total and complete body
exercise, working everything from your arms and abs, down to your heels and
toes. And who knows, you may even decide
to try a tri!
Hate to swim? Fear of drowning or looking stupid in the
pool? If you are more of a land mammal
than a dolphin, biking can be another substitute for running. A stationary bike
is a great start following an injury as it enables you to adjust the resistance
you’re pedaling against to minimize your pain. As you heal, you can increase
the resistance and adjust your speed accordingly, or even switch over to a road
bike. Similar to swimming, biking reduces the amount of stress on your joints
when compared to running, but can still be used to burn calories and boost your
endurance.
When swimming and
biking can’t satisfyingly scratch your itch to run, why not try something
completely different? It might not be the first thing you think after an
injury, however yoga could be another new and unique alternative to running. And
yoga is not just for girls! Some of the best yogi I know are guys who run with
us in Grapevine at the Lake Grapevine Runners and Walkers Club! Yoga exercises
work to stretch and extend every aspect of your body, including your skin, your
muscles, your tendons and your ligaments. All the varying yoga postures will
increase the flexibility of your body and ultimately help you to avoid future
muscle tears and injuries. Yoga can be utilized as a way to build strength as
well. Such stances as the upward dog and downward dog require you to support
your body weight with your arms. These postures are then out held for a period
of time, compelling the use of your muscles to maintain your balance. The
benefits of yoga will not only help you avoid injuries in the future, but will
help to perfect your overall running form through improved posture. It is important
to keep in mind that some yoga poses will actually irritate your injury, so
keep that in mind while you venture into the yogi world.
Last, but never least; you can try circuit weight training.
This is combining 3 or 4 different push: pull combinations with light weight
training that will increase your heart rate and increase your muscle metabolism
at the same time. This is great off season training and recovery training.
Think about it, burn fat and build muscle. What could be bad! You may even get
some decent looking shoulders, abs and back out of it as well!
When you do find
yourself suffering from a an annoying injury, it can be difficult to accept the
fact that you cannot and should not run. Furthermore, that runner’s high, the
natural endorphins our bodies create when we run for long distances, can allow
us to easily ignore even our most excruciating pains. As addictive as the runner’s
high is, I urge you to listen to your body! You will know better than any
doctor in the world when something is not right. When your body is sending you
signals to take it easy, don’t ignore them. For example, what started out as
three to six weeks off may quickly escalate into a year’s worth of recovery
time if you push yourself past your limits. Listen!
No matter what,
always stay positive! Don’t forget that you will bounce back from an injury,
just like you always have in the past. As long as you have the desire and drive
to run, an injury will never hold you back for too long.
Happy Recovery!
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