Running Injuries and Mental Challenges
Are you currently injured? You can’t run? It’s not only your Doctor or your Physio who said that. You actually feel it. You know you can’t run. Even walking causes you pain. Listen first off, get well soon. This, today’s blog is for you stay tuned.
The Challenges of Running in Harsh Weather
Absolutely terrible being down due to injury, Heiko is my name and I am really thankful you are joining me on today’s blog. How and what a week it has been. I mean running wise. I must’ve experienced all types of weather. It snowed and please if you life in a country where it doesn’t snow don’t give me that aaaah snow no, it’s not aaaah, its cold and slippery I had rain, cold rain, wind, and the first signs of spring But it’s those first signs that catch you out looking out of the window and seeing sun, my brain somehow makes me select clothes that are ok for spring, but it’s not spring yet it’s just a sunny winters day
Understanding Common Running Injuries
Ended up having some fast times just because I was so cold whilst running, so there advice nr. 1 already and we are just a minute into the blog just kidding, I am content because I made it through the ice cold winter months without any injury. See I run early mornings or when it’s dark, and there were quite a few times where it froze so I am happy to report no injury.
Beside you remember I don’t like the cold
The Mental Impact of Running Injuries
But still, what a blessing especially if I run in a southerly direction. That’s when I ran past the hospital.
That’s how I came up with today’s topic: Running injury. Isn’t that the worst? When actually I read that 80% of running injuries can be prevented. Runner’s world, but who knows might just be a scheme to sell you more kit. LOL.
Strategies for Effective Recovery
But the most common injuries are up to 7-50% Knees. Ouch. Then it was divided into lower leg and upper leg, 9-30% and 4 to 38%.
The foot, 6-40% and weirdly enough the ankle 4 – 16%. I would have figured that is much higher. How often don’t runners suffer from torn ligaments, or do I see runners with those ankle stabilizers?
How to Manage Injury Recovery and Avoid Common Pitfalls
The knee pain is usually associated with some weakness in the hips. The famous achilles, well if you carry on whilst it hurts, you might end up with a torn tendon. But it doesn’t need to be something so dramatic. Maybe you are just sidelined with shin splints, or IT band syndrome.
Utilizing Mental Imagery for Better Recovery
I don’t want to talk too much about the injuries, I want to focus on what actually happens upstairs, in your brain. See if you are sidelined for a couple of months, let’s say you had surgery on your ankle, you know the next 3 months your running shoes are not going to see the pavement. Ha, you know that crutches and sandals are going to be your dress code.
Managing Expectations and Staying Positive During Recovery
That realization can be quite a shocker. That moment when your physio or your doctor tells you: “no running” and you ask, “till when ” and he might just smile back at you and say “first you will need to learn how to walk again Once that is possible, we talk about getting back to running”.
Dealing with the Mental Strain of a Long Recovery
OUCH. We are talking months, not weeks. A fellow runner, he had a serious injury, and was operated on, physio, walking with crutches hey that’s nearly a year without running (in total). Yes there are other cases where runners yes I know, Can you imagine what thoughts go through a runners’ head? I mean even worse if it’s the perfect season, the right kind of training and momentum and it’s unfair because you were just at a training peak And now this. No running. Or, I hear I was just getting close to improving on 10K PB, and now this.
Finding Helpful Advice and Avoiding Pitfalls
If you look at the internet, and try to get advice there, you know what to do whilst injured. Of course first off that algorithm will sell you compression socks, kinesiology tape, massage guns but once you skip all that advertisement, tell me what advice do you find?
Using Mental Imagery to Enhance Recovery
See I am talking about first hand experience here. My one and only injury was a really bad one. I was out of action for months. First off my Doc, great guy, but he was really not even remotely interested in talking about running. He really looked at me as if now he KNOWS I am completely nuts. And hey don’t blame your doctor he’s just there to get you walking again.
Practical Tips for Effective Mental Training
Back to the internet: you will read about: don’t start training too early, means you should wait until your doctor or your physio gives you the OK before you start running. Apparently some runners start too early really who would’ve figured that? The you find the slow build Means be patient, strange thing, but some runners’ come out of injury and then somehow the joy of running leads to a long run, too long, and rather than healing the excess mileage causes the injury to resurface, which in turn means longer recovery period, still dragging that injury with you longer than necessary.
Setting Realistic Goals and Maintaining Motivation
Of course no essay would be complete without referring to core strength training, hey and swimming. But unfortunately if you are a runner, you will want to run. There is little that allows a similar effect. And why do runners start too soon? Why do they run further than they should? Why don’t they listen to the doctor? Simple, it’s the comparison trap. And before I go off on a tangent you can head over to my YouTube channel, and watch the video running can make you satisfied || satisfied runner. But honestly, you wouldn’t be the first runner to reason that For example your neighbor, she had that, and she was back to running in 2 months, plus she’s 5 years older. So there. Come on what type of reasoning is that? and that type of reasoning doesn’t come from just anywhere; it’s by spending too much time on social media. Fear of losing out, grass always greener on the other side and last but not least on the list a lot of hang in there low-level motivation quotes.
Embracing a New Approach to Recovery
And now well nothing left to do but either add weight, or try to do some or other form of exercise I guess. But you know it’s not the real thing. Come on, if all runners out there would be doing a daily fitness routine be it with body weight or training in a gym, that would be idyllic. Usually runners like to run. And if they can’t run, well they sit. Sit and become miserable. Miserable because, well, they can’t run. Their fitness level falls as fast as the stock exchange after a banking scandal. It is just something inside of a runner. That immediate tension, that frustration, that build up of stress that has no way to find release.
Transforming Your Mindset During Injury Recovery
Fact is once you get better you need and this has also got to do with your brain you have to take it slow you need to control that urge to go out and run.
How slow ok let’s stick to that knee let’s say you had knee surgery on average running can be started after the 8th – 16th week. Now please note I am not giving medical advice, I am referring to the timeline. And yes, I did confirm this data with my local doctor, and of course he told me to say that we are all different and not to give medical advice Ok between the 8th to 16th week.
The Role of Visualization in Rebuilding Your Running Routine
There are some clinical measures that your doctor will take to determine whether you can start exercising or not, the knee extension, the limb symmetry, so that’s the first phase, return to walking Then as you make slow progress, we are talking more weeks here, it is a return to slow & even running. And then after further tests, the hop test single leg squats then you can start performance oriented training. Listen up, we are talking for months. Months Days of frustration, days of wondering, and thinking what could’ve would’ve should’ve been a great running year and by now I would be doing so and so many miles per week
Turning Recovery Time into a Strength-Building Opportunity
I know that feeling, I have been there and it is a deep hole you can fall into. During those months, I could run, I couldn’t coach, I couldn’t do much of anything. Foot in a cast, and getting up or sitting down is a major act. Time to do what I have been preaching You know the study I told you about in the episode Running pictures || Just picture it. If you haven’t listened to it you should because I go into details of a group of basketball players now if you don’t play basketball, and I am sure you can relate to this try to shoot aim for the hoop ad what happens That ball goes left right anywhere but close to the net.
Embracing Mental Training Techniques for Runners
Because obviously it takes a lot of practice that leads to skill. The study shows that players that used mental imagery techniques improved by over 30%. Obviously with basketball and all the money that’s involved the results were pretty precise. It’s not a runners’ world study, that’s what I want to say.
Debunking Misconceptions About Mental Techniques
Using mental techniques, yes sure pro’s do that all the time, and before you start thinking I don’t have the time to first learn how to do meditation, and then spend hours sitting around thinking about running. Hang on, leave those preconceived notions aside for a second. Well, thank goodness that’s not how it works.
See, what I am talking about is a mental imagery technique that was designed for runners. Means, it can be used quickly and the more often you DO IT, the more effective it becomes.
Yes, it is a course you need to pay attention to, and you need to invest some time but hey The whole online course is designed only if you really your interest to return with the best running form possible is your top priority.
See, no mental training will work if there is a halfhearted approach. Let me give you a bit of a preview as a runner, the first thing you do is see yourself running. In your own mind. As though it is really happening. You are really running. And yes it has lots of names and lots of terminologies used.
But the name isn’t important, it’s important what it does. And then you need to feel a positive impact. That’s when all scepsis is broken.
And yes, it is strange that an injured runner prefers to sit around and build his story of how he will lose his running form or how she will need years to get back to her form.
Listen, you are wasting words on negative sentences. What for? Don’t, rather invest the energy, or the words, on something positive.
Ok, I got you interested
Now according to science, we refer to visual imagery. That’s creating pictures in your mind. Like a camera, a mental camera. You can take a look at yourself internally or externally. Seeing yourself as though you are being filmed, or as though you are looking at a situation through your own eyes. Don’t roll your eyes, come on, just try it right now. See yourself as a bloger and now tell me what you saw?
And there you have it it was either an internal or I presume an external view. Just use this first person perspective (that’s the terminology) and now picture yourself running. That’s all you need to do.
Just start off with that simple daydreaming exercise. There are various other types that you can add later on, be it feeling the wind in your face, or hearing your breath. It might sound a bit strange if I explain it like this, the blog isn’t the right forum that’s why I created the course. You know, explaining to someone how to ride a bicycle. Please give me verbal instructions on how to ride a bike ok. You have to hold the bike in your hand which hand left or right ok left hand, then swing your right hand over the saddle one knee goes up other knee goes down how complicated
Same with mental training, it is something you must do to experience the benefit. And same with riding your bicycle the more often you do it, the more natural it will become.
Why do you want to waste those weeks, like they say on a facebook post aaah all things happen for a reason well exactly.
Use this time to create new neural pathways to identify what kept you from doing hill repeats. What kept you from doing fartlek training? Why don’t you like to run on the track? Using techniques that unravel that mystery you yourself cannot understand and then you create a new process. A process that serves you well.
So that by the time you come back to slow running form you are mentally in a much better state. Your limiting beliefs are no longer holding you back, your motivation doesn’t waiver, you have a purpose, whilst your body was healing you became a mentally better stronger and smarter runner.
In the bible it says pray without ceasing now why would we say that because that is what builds faith, that reduces feeling of anxiety or fear same with your mental training. Your brain is built to re-think, reorganize and restructure itself.
I LIKE THE SIMPLE THINGS. NOT the complicated solutions invented by so and so used by big names, no. I like techniques that you can use and DO. That is easy to learn, and do, and extremely effective, and this is my passion. Hey and yes I have been lucky one serious injury in over 35 years of running but more than that, it’s an attitude and mindset that I have been able to reach and inspire many runners’ with. Not only inspire, nope helped them reach goals they previously weren’t so sure of.
If today you haven’t gone for a run yet get your running gear on right now, head out that door and run. You will be so glad you did.
If your health is holding you back, start visualizing, start thinking about how it would be if just imagine yourself running. Perhaps take your mind back to a great run experience you once had reliving.
Yup, clever isn’t it? Your 365 Day Run Streak, one whole year of running Why who or what would you want to do that? And if your first thought is “I couldn’t do that” then definitely you should get the book. The link to the video you know what.. just go to youtube, enter “heiko stribl” and concentrate or you will get sidetracked and end up somewhere you don’t want to be.
Anything is better than watching the days go by and be miserable. Hey if you know someone who needs to hear this, then please do share this blog.
Thanks for your time, if you enjoyed the blog give me a 5 star rating that will help others who are looking for content like this find it, and it’s a nice thing to do. I didn’t bore you with ads for a horrible sports drink, nor did I recommend you a pair of vitamins that apparently make you run faster.
Thanks for reading come back next week, my name is Heiko,
God bless you and remember take it easy.
