This week’s Team Tough Chik question is: What running rule(s) are you guilty of breaking???
How appropriate to have this question pop up in our forum this week considering I am out of commission for 6 weeks with a probable stress fracture as a direct result of breaking many rules of running 
First off when I started training for the NYC 1/2 marathon in January I pretty much pushed myself too hard. I increased both my speed and mileage too fast leading to terrible shin splints which I continued to run on for about a week before resting….a major faux pas. I rested about 4 days, felt a little better and began to run again only to be sidelined once again by some serious shin splints…or so I thought at the time. I took another week off and ran a few short, slow runs that were painless but yesterday’s 4 miler pretty much put me out of commission.
I have talked to my doctor and a physical therapist I work plus with previous 1st hand knowledge of having stress fractures in the past I am 95% sure I have a stress fracture in my left tibia. I have opted not to see an orthopedist based on the fact that they will feel my shin and determine I have point tenderness (a sign of a stress fracture). Then they will take an x-ray which will most likely be inconclusive (most stress fractures don’t appear on x-rays until they begin to heal) and then they will send me for a radioactive bone scan which may or may not show the stress fracture. After all these tests I will return to the orthopedist who will tell me to rest for the next 6-8 weeks….I have decided to cut out the middle man and I will wait 6-8 weeks before I resume running. This is a personal decision that I have made based on the advice of medical professionals and my previous experience I do suggest if you have pain that you be seen by a medical professional.
Back to the running rules I have broken (but have been working on):
- Increasing my mileage too fast.
- Increasing my speed to fast.
- Not stretching or foam rolling.
- Not listening to my body.
Great article Toni,
My biggest faux pas is not pacing myself correctly. I need to learn to slow down! My second worst is lack of stretching. It is sooo important and I’d like to read about certain stretching techniques. I’ll check your archive or look forward to a future blog. Thanks.
Ah, good article. My biggest broken running rule is that I really don’t warm up my legs as much as I should before beginning my ‘official’ run. I tend to do only 2 to 5 miles at a time, so I think I don’t require as much as marathon runners, for whom MY run would be THEIR warm-up! Hah. But I know I should warm up more. I’m working on that!
terrible at stretching. bad. very bad.
Guilty of all the above -_- Hoping you for a speedy recovery for you!
Going out too hard too fast all the time…..my legs are begging for relief.
My worst offense.
Oh no on the stress fracture! I had something similar this summer, but took the time off and came back slowly, and so far, so good! Hope you’re back at it soon!
Thanks…it’s rough but I will have to shift my focus to other activities.
Label me Guilty.
I am now probably too cautious with increasing mileage and speed, both of which I did too fast, and suffered plantar fasciitis and then runner’s knee. I’ve been running pain free since the end of July, but I have stepped back and am completely focused on building a solid base, and increasing my distance very slowly. Also incorporating lots of core and hip strength and just trying to enjoy the fact that I’m running again.
You sound like you are doing a great job…it is what I plan on doing too!