You Aren’t Ready to Run Again, and Either was I
Recent 8.7 mile run prepping for Half Marathon
We are back on the running topic as it is truly something that I thought I would never get back to after I left my last pickup basketball game in college. I had never ran a great distance or accomplished some sort of 5k back in the day. In all honesty, when I was in high school/grade school I was the kid who worried about blowing it for the under 8-min mile pizza party celebration for the class. I also grew up with asthma as a kid, so I oftentimes had to sub out of soccer games in order to use my inhaler. Which left me constantly fearful of getting back on the pitch because I knew it would either be fine, or I would have 5 horrific minutes of not being able to breathe.
Quite the toss up if you ask me.
I thought it was just something that was written in stone for me as a kid. Even though a few years before I had asthma; I was skinnier, ran all of the time, and never had bouts of terrifying breathlessness. So it was so strange to think about. I remember loving soccer and being a forward/striker as a kid (I know how this sounds now for people who know me, but that is how I used to be and my parents have proof I swear lol) to then a defender who stuck to mainly “being big” and not running around too much. This began the ever slippery slope of never being quite “designed” for long distance running or cardio.
I remember always picking the sports that made it easier on me since I was a “bigger dude” (otherwise known as picking the sport to play with the least running). For example, I loved basketball, was pretty shit at it for the most part, but if I had the choice I would have slimmed down for it and tried to play it throughout high school. I never thought I could be that person just due to my body type and the fact that I was overweight for majority of my childhood. So I picked football, the least amount of running sport I could possibly pick. Slap me on the O-Line/D-Line combo, and I was good to go. Would I do anything differently? Of course not, but it is just insane to look back and realize how limited I felt my options were back in the day.
Fast forward a bunch of years through college and into post-college, or professional life, I am running again and it feels better than ever. So why was running and cardio such a scary thing to me back then? Was it because I hated it or because running just wasn’t for me and my “body type”? Not at all, it was all because I wasn’t ready for it.
Why wasn’t I ready for it though, and why are you potentially not ready for it also? Well let’s talk scary biomechanical studies and you tell me. Give this a read:
The estimate that running places about 2.5 to 3 times a person's body weight on the knees comes from biomechanical research studies on the forces exerted during running.(American Journal of Sports Medicine and Journal of Biomechanics)
A 2017 study found that muscle fatigue in novice runners increases faster than in trained individuals due to lower mitochondrial density and muscle fiber inefficiency, resulting in quicker onset of lactic acid buildup. (European Journal of Applied Physiology)
A 2013 review in (The American Journal of Sports Medicine) concluded that novice runners are at a significantly higher risk for injury due to the rapid loading of unprepared musculoskeletal structures, especially when training volumes are increased too quickly.
Let me give you a summary of the snippets from studies above - running sucks if you are not prepared for it. You are more likely to get injured, less likely to enjoy the run because your body is maladapted, and more inclined to never do it again since the first few experiences were so damn horrible. This cycle happens consistently for people I see trying to get into running or working out. They try it, it sucks terribly, and then they never try it again.
So let’s do the practical approach once again to get us back in the game (This is not an all inclusive list btw, and they are in no specific order of precedence):
Build a strong lower body with resistance exercise. The impact that your body takes from running and consistent pounding on joints can not be sustained from a body that is missing the necessary supporting structures. Building muscle isn’t just for bodybuilders looking for a pump, it is detrimental in allowing the body to perform movements efficiently and effectively. So grab some weights; start with lunges, body weight squats, calf raises, etc. Do 8-12 sets per muscle group and consistently increase the weight or reps to ensure progress, and wallah! You will simultaneously be able to withstand and enjoy more running workouts.
Lose the weight. This is how my journey started with the loss of weight allowing me to move more freely. The more and more weight I put on, the more I vouched to play sports that worked in a slower and less cardio-based manner. You lose weight, movement begins to be more enjoyable (and a LOT easier), and all of a sudden you want to do more of it. It is the natural progression for nearly everyone I have talked to about losing weight.
Run more. This one might seem a little stupid, but it is actually the simplest truth. Sometimes you just need to put the shoes on and go for more runs. Consistency, consistency, consistency! I preach it and will preach it again. I am not some sort of “athlete” at all. In fact the only reason I am here is because I became consistent with my running workouts. You could be in the same situation as I am right this moment. Get out there and kill some miles!
Find your weaknesses and attack them head on. I don’t like the idea of using some sort of “excuse” or specific body injury that results in you shying away from running. I am a stubborn bastard what can I say. Be curious in your injuries! In one of my recent posts I talked about the gift of injury, (https://www.relffits.com/fitnessbreakdowns/the-gift-of-injury) and how it allows you to clearly see where work needs to be accomplished. Here’s a few examples, if your feet hurt after runs, figure out why. I figured out that my toe box was restricted from all the shit footwear I used to wear. So I would have this nagging pain in my feet consistently. I got out of the shit footwear, worked on progressing foot strength with exercises such as heel raised squats and wearing barefoot shoes. Then all of a sudden my feet started to feel better. Here is a great video from “Squat University” (DR. AARON HORSCHIG) that talks about foot strength. And yes, it addresses the “Flat foot” argument: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QoLKoWrwEik. That little Google-box in your hand is your friend, and of course there is a lot of hoop-la out there about injuries. But with the rising tide of Physical Therapists sharing content online and making it more available, it has made it easier than ever to address and potentially fix these problems. No more, “My knees hurt I can’t run”. Well, why do your knees hurt? Most likely due to a muscle/biomechanics issue you are dealing with - SO ADDRESS IT!!
Do it with others. In all honesty, sometimes people just don’t have the will to push themselves to work out consistently. Most people don’t have the same motivation or consistency measures whatsoever. That is perfectly alright, and that is the natural occurrence of humans in life. So instead of me hating and saying that people should just do it (watch a David Goggins video and just run), I need to understand that I have something that makes it easy for me to workout. In fact, I workout by myself nearly 90% of the time - so I am basically cheating. For those who struggle to keep consistency, find others that will hold you accountable. Find buddies that will keep you in the game; keep you working out, and consistently focusing on your goals. Whether that is a coach, group of friends, run club, etc. It is harder for you to be consistent on your own, so you need to hack your system to allow you to become consistent. The energy and environment of a group workout class, run club, getting a pump in with the lads (pause), or anything close to those is unmatched. You will run further, lift more, and become more accountable in that environment.
Fuel properly! And we are back to the food topic! It’s clear when you eat shit food like chicken strip baskets and ice cream after or before fitness bouts, you’re going to gain weight and perform like shit. Here is an easy way to think about it pre-training fuel: prior to workouts you are going to want to eat a 3, 2, 1 proportioned meal. 3 is the amount of carbs you will want to digest as carbs are the fuel for exercise. 2 is protein, which is the building blocks for muscle. This is mainly to keep your muscle from breaking down post and intra workout, as you should have your body use carbs for most of its fuel. Then 1 for fats, this is due to fats not being completely necessary for training unless you are in ketosis (whole different story). But let’s not get too in the weeds with these things, here’s a simple one for the morning runners: protein shake, two pieces of peanut butter toast with honey on top. Two pieces of toast and honey make up the carbs and majority of the meal. Protein shake adds protein to the mix along with the peanut butter as the number 2. Then finally the peanut butter makes up majority of the fat as the 1 spot. LAST THING: Whatever you do, breakfast before a workout is NOT THE TIME TO ADD A TON OF FIBER. If you want to have the worst stomach ache in your life, add a ton of fiber and then go run 5 miles. Its atrocious. Fiber is amazing, but for other times when your body can focus on dealing with it instead of focusing on running 5 miles. So, just think of fuel as the making sure you body have the necessary components to perform. Once you get this one down, workouts will feel better and you won’t be completely fatigued throughout.
Is this absolutely everything? Of course not, but this is certainly a good start and to be honest - most people probably didn’t even make it through half of them. If you did, thank you for reading! Add some of these steps into your life and allow movement to become fun and freeing again. Just like it was wayyyy back in the day. Peace!
