Injury Prevention 101

After over eleven years of competitive running, I’ve learned a fantastic injury prevention strategy and it’s working in my own training.  I feel better now than I have in a very long time and what’s more, I actually feel fit with less training volume.  This training and injury prevention perspective is from Brad Hudson, who coaches elite athletes out of Oregon and is co-author of the book Race Faster: From the 5k to the Marathon.

They key is…drumroll…variety.  Simple, isn’t it?  Take a look at the last month of your training – everything from your workout shoes, running terrain, types of workouts, and paces of your distance runs.  Most people stick to the same route in the same pairs of shoes run at the same pace every day.  This type of monotony produces the same type of stress to your legs which increases your injury risk.

Every time you change the way you’re running – by using different shoes, running on hillier terrain, or varying distances – you change the type and level of stress that your body experiences.  Your brain is forced to alter the way it talks to your muscles and you get stronger and more efficient.  Having a well-rounded program is the name of the game here.

A varied training program is not only physically beneficial, but mentally as well as the runner will not get as bored with their training.  I am a very big believer in incorporating fast running in every single workout, every day.  A sample of my person training is sampled below taken from a 55 mile week.  You can see the types of training that I typically do in a base period:

• Monday: Recovery run of 7 miles on roads/trails.  5×10″ hill sprints.
• Tuesday: Mostly trails with some roads.  9 miles with a 20′ tempo and 3×400m hills @ 5k race pace.
• Wednesday: Very slow recovery run of 8 miles on roads/trails.  4×30″ strides.
• Thursday: Distance run of 7 miles with 5×10″ hill sprints.
• Friday: 10 miles, mostly road and track. 2k @ tempo, 2 x mile at 10k pace, 3×200m @ mile pace.
• Saturday: Very slow recovery run of 5 miles with 4×30″ strides.  Roads/trails.
• Sunday: 17 mile long run with the last 15′ at marathon/tempo pace.  Mostly hilly trails.

The trails I run are rolling hills, mostly dirt but with some sand/gravel and lots of changing directions.  It’s some of the more technical terrain I’ve ever run.  The paces in my schedule range from all-out (hill sprints), 1500m pace (strides and 200’s), 3k-5k pace (hills, some intervals), 10k pace (intervals), and tempo/progression (half-marathon/marathon pace).  My distance runs vary from 7min/mile to probably 8:30 depending upon how I feel.  I rotate two pairs of shoes (currently ASICS Speedstars and Piranhas).

All running isn’t the same.  Trail running vs. road running, hills vs. flats, tempo pace vs. 3k pace, hill sprints vs. recovery runs – different types of running produce different types of adaptations that increase economy and make you stronger.  The next time you head out the door for a run, ask yourself if it’s what you did yesterday.  Are you doing that same loop around your neighborhood?  Here are my top five ways to mix things up and reinvigorate your training:

1. Explore a new trail or neighborhood you’ve never run.
2. Instead of hitting the track again this week for a workout, cut the intervals by 20% and do them on a long hill.
3. Rotate 2-3 different types of shoes.  I prefer having a very light flat to wear on my very short runs or workouts.
4. Run something fast every day.  Stop equating fast with hard – it could be something as easy as 2×1′ @ 5k pace during your run or a few strides when you’re finished.
5. Run more trails.  Roads are smooth and don’t require you to activate all those small proprioceptive muscles.  Trails are unpredictable and much easier on your legs – as the Kenyans say, “Roads kill fresh legs.”

The next step: Sign up for a customized injury prevention and training package here to transform your training.  Follow Coach Jason Fitzgerald on Twitter at JasonFitz1.