Injuries, they suck!
For this week’s blog post I wanted to discuss injuries as unfortunately they are a very real part of training for any sport. I unfortunately have recently fractured my foot which has not only put a hiatus on my training but also had a significant impact on my mental health.
How can we prevent them and how can we heal them?
Injuries can be preventable (not always but we can do our best!) For me, I have found that I often push myself far past my limits and while that may feel good or exciting in the moment, it is important we listen to our bodies!
It may sound cliche however in my experience the best injury prevention techniques are hydrating, sleeping properly and stretching! We also need to build muscle in other ways! Our bodies are very impressive but if we don’t take care of them, we cannot expect them to carry us to the finish line on race day.
The reason for my fracture is over-use so unfortunately I need to dial back the training and work on recovery. For this, I am going to physio once per week and working on simple strength training and stretching. Fun fact: our calves work 10x harder than our hamstrings or quads while we run as they are smaller muscles but they bear the majority of the weight and help propel us forward! This has been really good for me to know as it is helping me work on important strength training to prevent another future injury to my foot.
Taking 6 weeks off running while training for a half marathon is hard on my body both physically and mentally. To help keep myself active I have spent extra time in the gym to keep my body working. I also have spent time at yoga to work on mindfulness and take care of my body. While neither of these are the same as getting that “runners high”, it helps keep me active and healthy while protecting my foot.
This Runna podcast episode talks about important injury facts and prevention and I would recommend everyone to take a listen!
https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-runna-podcast/id1741984871?i=1000659713556
