- The worst part of a running injury
is not being able to do the sport that you love.
The best part, however, is being given the all clear
and getting back to running pain-free.
Now if this is managed well,
you'll find that you can actually return
to your previous level of fitness relatively quickly.
If, however, you get it wrong,
you could find yourself being off running for far longer.
So today I'm going to be guiding you through
how to return to running following an injury.
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Let's start with the beginning of the return.
You've been given the all clear, you're pain-free,
and it's time to celebrate.
Although hang on a moment 'cause there are several things
that you need to consider before you can just jump back in
and return to the running that you were doing
before your injury.
So to start with, you need to make sure
that you're pain-free in everyday life,
and a good way to know if you're ready
is to go for a brisk walk of at least 30 minutes,
and if you don't get any pain during that
and nothing the next day, then it's probably time
to start thinking about lacing your shoes back up
and starting the build.
Now it's obviously going to depend a little bit
on the type of injury you've have previously,
but you need to make a plan and have some realistic goals.
So if you have been treated by a practitioner,
you obviously need to follow the advice
that they've given you and make sure
that you carry on doing those rehab exercises
right up until you're back to full running,
and even then, you want to continue with them
and just drop them off very gradually.
Rest is frustratingly one of the best ways
to recover from an injury,
but when it comes to preventing old injuries reoccurring
or a new one from appearing,
then you'll be pleased to know
that it's actually good to be active,
and this is when strength and conditioning comes in.
Now I know you are going to be desperate
to get back to running and to see the back of the gym,
but a little bit of investment now
will certainly be worth it in the long run.
So I'm not talking about the rehab exercises
that you might've been given that are specific,
but this is going to be more of a general exercise.
It's going to help you make your body more robust
and ready to take the stresses you get from running.
And if you've been off your feet for a while,
then your muscles, your ligaments, your tendons,
joints, fascia, all of that is not going to be as strong
and as pliable as it was,
so if you do want some more specific ideas
on what exercise you can do,
we've got a video on strength and conditioning
purely for runners, so go and check that one out.
And whilst you're there, if you hit the subscribe button,
you'll be able to get all of our GTN videos
that come out every day.
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It's pretty normal for an injured runner
to seek other activities or sports
in order to maintain some fitness
and get those endorphin levels,
and that could be something closely related to running
such as elliptical trainer or maybe doing aquajogging
or further filled with cycling, swimming,
or maybe even a completely different sport.
And cross-training is obviously great
for your cardiovascular fitness, but now,
as you start to increase your running,
you're going to need to drop those sessions back
and not get too carried away 'cause your body
really needs that time to recover
from this relatively new stimulus,
rebuild, and get stronger,
so please don't overdo those sessions now.
And, if you are quite fit, it's going to help,
but you need to be aware of this
'cause you're probably going to be feeling raring to go
and want to get straight back into running,
but you need to be patient, so please, please,
make sure that you take your time here
and you're going to have to wait for your legs
to actually catch up to your relative fitness.
However, I do have some good news,
as the longer you've been running overall in your life,
probably the quicker you're going to be able to get back
to running at the previous level you were at before
because you will have muscle memory.
So say, for example, you've been running for 10 years.
You're going to be able to get back to that level
you had before much quicker than someone
who'd only been running for one year.
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There is no hard and fast rule
as to how quickly you should come back after injury,
and it's less about how long you've been a runner,
more about how long you've actually had off from injury.
If it's been a week or less, well, you're pretty lucky
'cause, realistically, you're not going to have lost
any notable fitness.
Yes, you might feel a bit sluggish,
but you should be able to return
to your previous level of training pretty quickly
once you've got your legs moving again.
On the other end of the spectrum,
if it's been three months or more
that you've had off from injury,
well I'm afraid bad news is you're going to be having to start
from scratch, so you'll have to build up really gradually.
And anything in between that,
well, you're going to have to listen to your body
and take it by feel and build it up
according to what the injury was
and where you were at beforehand.
And it's always good to err on the side of caution,
so if you're unsure, I would say back it off now
'cause it'll repay you in the long run.
And go with the 10% rule,
so never increase your training by more than 10% each week.
Now a 10% rules takes into account,
obviously, your training load, looking at your volume
or the time that you're spending running,
and it doesn't necessarily take into account intensity.
So if you are doing a longer run,
then obviously keep that to a really low intensity
to start with.
But if you're wanting to start to run a little bit quicker,
I'd advise keeping that short, so breaking it up
with a rest or maybe even adding in walks
in between your intervals.
Walking can play a key part in your rehab
as it's going to be time on feet,
so even if it is before you're able to run,
it's still going to give your legs
a bit of the same stimulus
and reintroducing them to the impact.
Then, once you're ready, you can progress it
to run-walks like we've mentioned,
but still keeping a check on that pace.
And it isn't just the old injury you need to watch out for,
but new ones as well because you've had a long time off
and everything's going to be a little bit rusty,
so this is a really important time
to make sure you still put in a warm-up.
Even if you are running slowly,
it's a good idea to do some activation work
just to get those muscles firing again
in the right movement pattern.
It could even end up making your run more efficient
than it was before your injury.
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Looking a week ahead, I'm factoring a rest day off
to each run day, or at least an activity
that isn't weight-bearing so your body has a chance
to fully recover, get stronger,
and also adapt to this relatively new stimulus again.
And as for how much running you can do,
well that depends on the type of running
that you're going to be doing.
So if, for example, you've had a stress-related injury,
you might want to consider changing the terrain slightly.
As opposed to asphalt,
go for something a little bit more forgiving like grass.
And also, check your shoes and make sure you've still got
plenty of cushioning left in them.
And if you are going to buy a new pair,
I would recommend at this stage
not changing anything too drastic unless, however,
you've had some professional advice on that one.
And going back to the surface,
you might be lucky enough to find an anti-gravity treadmill,
which actually takes away some of your body weight
and you can then gradually increase it
until you're back to holding your whole body weight,
although those are quite hard to access
for amateur athletes.
Although, having said that,
a normal treadmill is still quite a good option,
as it is a more forgiving surface
and you've obviously got the added bonus
that you can control the speed
and the gradient very accurately.
Plus, you can stop running whenever you need to
rather than having to get back to a start point each time.
At the end of the day,
you're going to have to listen to your own body and be honest.
It might sound really tough to push through a pain
and ignore it, but realistically,
you're going to have to judge whether that is a niggle
that you can work through or if it is something more serious
you're going to need to address.
And painkillers can be dangerous here
because they can mask a pain
that you might need to listen to, so be cautious with those.
And finally, patience is key.
Yes, I know I've gone about it enough,
but you'll be thankful once you're back
to your old running self, and who knows,
the rest might have done you some good,
both mentally and physically.
Well if you have enjoyed this,
then find that thumbs up button,
give it a click, and give us a like.
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And if you want to see that video we talked about
with strength and conditioning specifically for runners,
that's just down here.
And if you want to see a video
comparing the calories that you burn
from cycling or running, that's just down here.