DOWN BUT NOT OUT
10 ways to stay positive when injured
by Bob Wischnia, Runners
World Online
This article isn't going to be a sympathetic, touchy-feely
treatise on getting in tune with the five stages of grief when you're injured
and, boo-hoo, unable to run. If you're looking for compassion, don't talk to me.
I don't want to hear it.
Don't get me wrong; being hurt stinks. I've been injured
plenty of times-once for about two years-and have been forced to learn how to
deal with it.
The easiest thing to do when you're hurt is to get bogged
down in funereal gloom and moan about the unfairness of it all. Which, of
course, does you no good at all (just the opposite, in fact). Recovery is your
goal, and what you need is an effective way to bridge that depressing gap
between the day you're forced to stop running and the day you can start again.
It's your choice. Wallow in self-pity, lose your aerobic
base, put on weight and make yourself and everyone around you miserable-or get
busy! Here's the plan.
1. No whining. If you love to run, there's no denying that
injury downtime can be brutal. But try to keep some perspective. Most running
injuries are relatively minor and will heal in due time. It may seem
catastrophic when you can't run, but a bad case of shin splints is nothing when
you compare it with friends who have real problems, real illnesses and real
pain. Some of those friends may not recover; you will. So don't complain,
because no one wants to hear it. Not your spouse, not your kids, not even your
running friends. Besides, complaining is counterproductive to getting healthy
again.
The payoff: You'll stay positive during the layoff,
thus speeding your recovery.
2. Be patient.
Every runner I've known has been injured at one time or another. And every one
of those runners-even a 72-year-old friend who broke his hip-was able to run
again. My point is simple: There's a cure for practically every running injury,
and most injuries heal with time. Unfortunately, no magic pill will instantly
cure you. Nor is a simple change of shoes the likely answer. Instead, be
confident that regardless how bad your injury may seem, it's only temporary. You
will run again, if you're patient enough to allow the healing process the time
it needs.
The payoff: You'll give the injury adequate time to
heal.
3. If you have
a routine, stick to it. That is, if you normally run at lunch, continue to get
some sort of exercise at lunch. If you're an early-morning runner, go for a walk
early in the morning.
I'm so mental about my routine that I try to maintain the
same daily pattern even when I can't run. Particularly on Sundays. No one enjoys
a long run more than I do. I love to get up early, hit the trail at dawn and
cruise for 2 hours.
When I'm injured, I still head to the same trail and hike
for a couple of hours (being more attentive to the hawks, deer and occasional
wild turkeys). I follow this with my post-run ritual: some stretching, a session
with the ice pack, a shower, warm bagels and the Sunday paper. From a
psychological standpoint, this ritual is almost as important to me as the run
itself.
Is this walk as satisfying as my long run? No way. But
maintaining my routine is a whole lot better for my mind and body than doing
nothing.
The payoff: By sticking with some semblance of your
exercise ritual, you'll reap many of its mood-boosting benefits.
4. Do it
outdoors. Especially when you're injured, you need fresh air. You can scoop up a
lot of it on a bike ride. If it's winter, or if the weather's too lousy to
cycle, I walk. Or go for a hike. Or grab cross-country ski poles and pole-walk
up and down some hills. Processing lungfuls of oxygen is one of the things that
makes you feel good when running, and you'll get a similar effect by doing just
about any other vigorous outdoor activity.
The payoff: Checking out the world around you will
take your mind off your injury, and you'll get your accustomed dosage of fresh
breezes and sunlight.
5. Sweat. If
you normally run 45 minutes a day, make sure you do some activity vigorous
enough to keep you aerobic for 45 minutes a day. This is critical for hanging on
to your sanity, not to mention your aerobic fitness. It doesn't matter too much
what you do as long as it doesn't aggravate the existing injury.
The only problem with things like fast-paced walking or
even hard hiking is I don't sweat. Working up a big sweat is so ingrained in me
that I desperately need the feel of a wet T-shirt after a workout. If only from
an emotional standpoint, I must do something to jack up my heart rate and work
up a lather every day. If I do, I've accomplished something. If I don't, I can
feel myself slipping into that dark, gloomy abyss of worthlessness.
An indoor exercise machine, the elliptical trainer is
something of a hybrid: part cross-country ski machine, part treadmill, part
stairclimber. There's virtually no technique involved in using it properly, and
it simulates the running motion to some degree, without any jarring. Therefore,
it doesn't seem to irritate any of the common overuse running injuries.
I guarantee that if you put in 45 minutes on an elliptical
trainer, stationary bike, stairclimber or rowing machine, you will be drenched
in sweat. More important, several studies suggest that if you do these aerobic
alternatives properly and with high enough intensity, they can maintain and even
increase your fitness level.
Even so, it's mindless, boring stuff, so treat your
cross-training activity like you do your running. For instance, I know every
flat section, hill and pebble on my favorite 6-mile loop, so I try to simulate
each section of this run on whatever machine I'm using. I start with an easy 10
minutes on the "flats," then pick it up over a series of three
"hills." I'll recover for a bit, then go really hard at the point when
I'd be hitting that steep hill on my run. You get the idea.
The payoff: You'll end up with a puddle of sweat and
a saturated shirt-tangible evidence that you've done something to burn calories
and maintain your aerobic base.
6. Strength
train. I don't know about you, but when I'm gearing up for a marathon, the last
thing I want to do is throw lead around in the gym. I barely have enough time to
do all the running and stretching I need, much less mix in weight lifting.
But when I'm hurt, weight lifting can be a real buzz. Since
I'm often at the gym anyway riding a stationary bike or working the elliptical
trainer, it's not a big deal to spend another 20 minutes with weights. And
because I'm not running, I'll do more legwork than usual, along with some
abdominal and upper-body stuff.
The payoff: You'll burn calories and maintain overall
fitness and muscle tone.
7. Stay
connected. For me, one of the worst aspects of being injured is not being able
to run with my friends. The only time I ever see some of them is when we run
together. So when I'm out of action, I make an effort to stay in touch and at
least feel like I'm still part of the running scene. A good way to do this is to
volunteer at races or go to club meetings.
I also try to hang with my family in better ways. Normally,
they make all sorts of concessions to my running idiosyncrasies, so when I'm
injured I do the activities they want to do. During layoffs, I no longer have
convenient running excuses ("I'm too tired, I'm resting for a long run
tomorrow") for begging out of things like playing soccer with the kids,
going to a late party or visiting the aquarium.
The payoff: Instead of becoming too self-absorbed,
you'll keep lines of communication open with friends, family and the running
community.
8. Do something
every day to get your running health back. While injuries can be markedly
different, most of them respond extremely well to rest and self-treatment. If
there are things I can do-see a chiropractor or podiatrist, get a massage-I do
them, even if they seem like a hassle. If all I need to do is ice the injury or
take anti-inflammatories, I do it religiously. If muscle inflexibility or
imbalance may have contributed to the problem, I make a point of stretching
carefully twice a day.
The payoff: By taking action, you'll speed recovery
and achieve peace of mind.
9. Eat
properly. When I'm running, I tend to eat large quantities of anything that gets
in the way of my face. When I'm not running, I can gain an few extra pounds in a
hurry. A layoff calls for exerting a little more control over what I eat.
That's not to say I recommend going on a crash diet;
reduced nutrition lessens the body's ability to repair itself. It's inevitable
that I'm going to gain weight during an enforced layoff, but by focusing more on
low-fat goodies and fruits and reducing my intake of a few staples (namely, fast
food, chips and salsa), I can exercise some control and keep from getting out of
running shape. When I start running again, the few pounds I put on will come off
quickly.
The payoff: Staying lean and in shape will keep you
out of a self-image slump.
10. Focus on
today. Don't set an arbitrary deadline for when you'll be ready to run again,
and then start, whether you're healthy or not. With any luck, you'll only be out
of action a few weeks, but you never know how quickly you'll heal. Simply
because an injury took four days to heal last time doesn't mean that same injury
will take four days to heal this time. The older you get, the longer it takes
your body to heal.
You may also have to forget about that upcoming race
(particularly if it's a marathon) you'd planned on running. Just because you
signed up for it doesn't mean you'll recover by then. And if your injury does
heal before the race, be prepared to lower your expectations on race day. Be
happy you're on the starting line and in one piece, and enjoy the race.
The payoff: By not setting strict deadlines, you
won't get frustrated when you miss them. More important, you won't start running
before you're ready.