I've been thinking some more about when I'm going to start running again and also about what sort of mileage I should run when I start over.
The shins have still been niggling me at times over the last week so naturally I'm a bit gun shy about taking to the road again in case it is too early and I end up incurring the same old problem. I've therefore put my come back run back one week just to be safe. By that stage it would have been three weeks rest from running and I will just have to get out there and see how it goes.
I came across a website the other day called marathontraining.com. It's a site full of useful information for runners of all experience levels, however it is chock full of information for first time marathoners or those training for their first full marathon.
Given my current shin splint problem, I was particularly interested in the page on minimising injuries. The key thing I picked up from that page was something called the 10% rule which states that your weekly mileage should not increase by more than 10% and the distance of your weekly long run should also not increase by more than 10%.
I had heard of this rule previously as I'm sure most readers probably have also. I never really paid much attention to it though. I was just looking back in my log at the training I did in the lead up to my first half marathon last October. I trained for that with just six weeks of running as prior to that I was out with the shin splints. The biggest weeks of those six were weeks four and five when I ran 23 miles for the week. The problem has more or less been with me since then and I have managed it through regular icing and only running a maximum of three days a week. Long term though that doesn't seem too healthy and as my Podiatrist said, my aim should be to get to the stage where I'm running pain free.
Maybe way back in October is where the current shin problem has stemmed from. I just came back too fast in trying to make the start line for the Half instead of going for a slow buildup. That said, I'm glad I did the Half and got that first one out of the way, but maybe I just shouldn't have waited until now to take a break.
So from next week, I'll be rigidly following the Milage Buildup Schedule from the marathontraining.com site. This will ensure a gradual buildup in milage thus avoiding any chance of again falling into the trap of doing too much too soon.
All going well the 10 k races I wanted to do next month will still be doable, we'll wait and see about the Half in July though.
Happy running
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Wednesday, 23 May 2007
Starting Over
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6 comments:
Met Dean the other day and spent 7hrs running with him.
I was very inspired to the point where i have never run more than one marathon before and only planned to run a few km that day (if it was ok with him) well it was an awesome unplanned adventure that i will blog about soon enough.
But i recommend you get the book,if you like running you'll enjoy it.
Ps i see you correspond with Rob,Olga Tesso et al as do I...small world!
R2B
wise choice with the slow build up. you might consider doing some cross training and/or strength training as well. good luck!
i feel like everyone is trying to recover from injuries lately.
but it looks like you're being smart about it...i'll have to follow your lead.
the 10% rule is good but its just a guide with exceptions. Use with caution and 1st try to get up to a level that you're comfortable with and stay there for a bit. Good luck with the shins!
Good plan, and a good resource there Bruce. Gradual adaptation is so often overlooked. It's surprising what can be achieved if you do it right. All the best!
I am not injured currently, but because of my busy schedule I have averaged the lowest mileage that I ever have. I too am trying to figure out what kind of mileage I should start with and how fast to build from there. I am hoping that my previous base will help me increase a little more quickly, but I want to stay injury free as well. The 10% rule is a safe rule to follow.
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