I have been running on and off my entire adult life. The ‘off’ parts have inevitably been due to injury, resulting in me taking time off, losing my fitness and starting over again a year (or more) later. Repeating this cycle was frustrating and disheartening. I felt that no matter how much effort I put in, I was never getting any faster and that my body was letting me down.
Recently, this has changed for me completely. As I march towards my 35th birthday, I am in the best shape of my life. I feel strong, and I am faster than I have ever been. So, what has changed? Well, several things, but shifting my mindset played a large part in turning things around.
I will talk through the steps that have really helped me shortly, but first, a little bit of background. I trained as a doctor before taking time out to raise a family. By the age of 30, I was overweight and struggling to recover from a very complicated caesarean section following the birth of my son. A couple of years later, my daughter arrived, again by c-section (not my preference, but it’s how things played out). What followed was years of back and neck pain, which plagued my mental and physical health.
To try and get back into some fitness, I followed the NHS ‘Couch to 5 km’ app. I actually found this app very helpful and supportive, but from there, I reverted to my typical behaviour of signing up for a half marathon, before my body was ready, injuring myself during training, and then proceeding to run the race on a busted ankle. There I was again, injured, and six months later, it was only just starting to get better.
At this point, I decided I needed to change my approach. What if the running was a step too far? My body clearly needed some tender love and care. I needed to heal from years of professional stress and the physical challenges of having two giant babies, and the surgery I had to deliver them. We underestimate the challenge that pregnancy and birth place on a woman’s body, especially if there are complications.
So, here are the steps I took to heal my body, build strength and gain speed as I restarted my running journey from scratch:
Focus on Your Long-term Running Goals
Previously, I found it difficult to get into the habit of running unless I was training for a specific event. I would intermittently sign up for a half marathon and then start working towards that, inevitably injuring myself along the way.
This time, I made myself slow down. I started running again in January, and I did not allow myself to enter any running event. This meant there was no immediate pressure to reach any sort of specific running goal. I just said to myself that by the end of the year, I would like to improve my 5km and 10km running times. This was a specific, time-bound goal that was realistic for me.
I shifted my focus more to the long-term and thought about ageing well and building positive habits that would serve me in my later years. I want to be that granny who stands on the starting line along with the youths. This meant preventing injuries, building muscle and fuelling myself properly. I focused on slow runs, incorporated strength training and increased my focus on recovery after each session.
After years of being Go-Go-Go, I decided that maybe a slow and steady approach would serve me better. I thought I would find this approach really frustrating as I’ve always been one for instant gratification, but as it happens, a couple of months of slow and intentional work paid dividends. My injuries healed, I felt much stronger, and, as a result, I started running faster.
Strength Training
I am not a personal trainer or physiotherapist, but I could tell certain areas of my body were particularly weak. I had a niggle in my hip, my ankle pinched when I ran, and my calves were always tight. That was in addition to the back pain that was always there.
I decided to suck up the cost of a gym membership and risked looking draft on the weight machines. To my surprise, no one was staring or laughing at me, and after a couple of sessions figuring out the machines, I was able to start doing a good 30-40 minutes of weight training twice a week. I felt the difference almost immediately. My back pain improved, I was standing taller and the niggle in my hip stopped when I was running.
You do not need to pay for a gym. There are many ways to do resistance training at home. You can start with simple exercises that use your body weight, and then maybe invest in some resistance bands or kettlebells. I chose the gym because I wanted a dedicated place to focus and take my mind off childcare!
As for which exercises you do, that’s up to you. If you have the funds to get a proper assessment by a physiotherapist or personal trainer, then go for it. Otherwise, YouTube has plenty of whole-body or site-specific workouts you can pick and choose from. I focused on movements to support neck pain and strengthen my core. I’ve moved on to more specific exercises to support long-distance running. Here is a link to a strength training YouTube Video on The Running Channel.
Stop Running Junk Miles
Unproductive running or ‘junk miles’ are those sessions which do not have a real purpose. Previously, I would just ‘go for a run’, but those sessions did not have a real purpose, and my fitness did not seem to be building at any great rate. Now, each of my sessions are a specific type of workout with a purpose.
To begin with, just focus on easy running. You may have heard of heart rate zones. I won’t go into detail about these here, but an easy run would fall into zone 2 or the lower part of zone 3. An easy run should be at a pace where you could still hold a conversation. This ensures that you are training your aerobic system, which builds endurance and overall fitness. For those trying to lose weight, zone 2 training is also the ‘fat burning’ zone, so low and slow is the way to go.
To begin with, all of your sessions should be at this easy pace, while you are building your general fitness levels. Once you feel ready for a challenge, you can add in other types of sessions, such as interval training, to build speed. Even then, 80% of your overall weekly training should still be at an easy pace.
Prioritise Recovery After Your Run
Recovery is important. You need to have downtime in between your sessions to give your body a chance to heal. This means taking a de-load week every 3-4 weeks. This is where you either do fewer sessions or easier sessions for a week, to allow your body to adapt to the training you have been doing recently. You can’t keep going full steam ahead, or you will burn out.
Missing a session always pains me, but sometimes it is necessary. If your body is telling you that you are tired, then it is usually a good idea to listen. You can change your programme around as necessary. For example, today I was due to do a 6-mile easy run, but yesterday’s interval session was crazy hard, so I only ran 4 miles instead. I’ll see how the next couple of days go, and I may make up the mileage, or I might just drop those two miles and call it good.
After a session, it is important to look after your body. Walk to cool down and take the time to stretch! I invested in a couple of foam rollers (this one is my absolute favourite) to sit there in the evening, rolling out my muscles while watching television. A few minutes here and there can make all the difference.
Fuel Your Body
Your body is a machine, and it needs energy input to be able to function effectively. This can come in many forms. For me, I focused on improving my diet, incorporating supplements and improving my sleep.
My diet has always been pretty healthy, but like many people, I found myself falling off the wagon in the evenings. I found that increasing the amount of protein I was eating helped my hunger cravings. After each workout, I take a protein shake, and I try to incorporate protein with each meal. I often use protein powder in smoothies, pancakes or overnight oats for an added protein boost.
I try to stop eating by 7pm to allow my food to digest and this helps me to get to sleep. I’m also trying to decrease my screen time before bed and reading or meditating for 15 minutes before bedtime. As someone who has really struggled with sleep in the past, I have a lot to say on this topic. You can learn more here about how to Supercharge Your Sleep.
Whether or not to take supplements depends on your individual situation, but I take several. As a mother who is still nursing and also doing a lot of exercise, I want to make sure that I’m getting enough nutrients in. Supplements act as an insurance policy for this. I take a calcium supplement for bone protection and a vitamin D supplement (as I live in the UK, which is not known for its sunlight!). I also take creatine monohydrate to help build muscle. Finally, I take magnesium glycinate to help improve my sleep quality and relax sore muscles (here is a link to the specific supplement I am taking).
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