Injured during Marathon Training: What to Do Now
Unfortunately you’re injured and you have a marathon soon… maybe like 5 or 6 weeks away. Your longest run has been 15 miles but after that you knew it wasn’t right to keep pushing so you held off, rested for a few weeks and are wondering either if you should get back to it or HOW to get back to it and still make it to the finish line of the Marathon.
In this article:
First of all… if you’re feeling better and feel like you can run you can train. You know your body, you know its limits. So yes you can train, but now the question is how.
So to get into how to keep training after this injury we need to first get into why this happened. When you know why this happened you’re less likely to repeat those events and have it happen again.
80% of running injuries happen from overuse/ over training / over doing it.
However you want to phrase it, unfortunately you did too much too soon, or too fast, or both.
This happens when you don’t follow the training plan as described, or you follow the training plan but it wasn’t the right training plan to begin with. And for the latter it’s not your fault… if you’re prone to injury or have succumbed to an injury in the past you didn’t know the training plan you found wasn’t right for you.
But, you’re here now so we can change the future.
How to Keep Training for a Marathon with an Injury
If you want to keep training for your marathon without a hitch this’ll take 3 main steps: Start Strong,
Adjust to You,
Follow the Program.
Because these injuries happen from overtraining you need to look back at the beginning to start with a strong first run, then adjust your program to you based on your specific needs and finally follow the program. Developing a program doesn’t do you any good until you follow it.
Start Strong
The 1st step is to figure out what distance you can comfortably run now.
You have two choices for this: you can guess at a low distance (like 1-1.5 miles), or you can test your injury’s limits to know exactly to the 100th of a mile how far you should be running.
Either option can work. I like the second option because you do this before you ever go out and run. So you don’t go too far and risk feeling pain and struggling to get back to your house or car. This is the test I used in the physical therapy clinic for years and it’s been my go-to ever since I learned about it.
This test works because when we think of running, running is like a series of single leg hops because you’re never on both feet at the same time when you’re running. That’s the literal definition difference between walking and running… Are you on both feet at any point together or not? And this test tests your tolerance (or your injury’s tolerance) to single leg hops. You get a score with it and that score translates into your running distance.
Some of the benefits of the test are you get to do it right from your living room, hence why I dubbed it “The Living Room Test”, it’s easy, and it takes about 5 minutes.
Once you have your score: now what?
Well, now you get to go and run. Go test the waters
Adjust to You
The 2nd main step is to adjust the program to your needs.
A good training program to use after an injury includes strength training, cardio training, using the right equipment, rest and recovery, stretching, and proper nutrition.
And all 6 of these categories differ from person to person based on their history: what they’ve been doing in the past, what injury they have, how long the injury’s been present and other factors.
So now you need to adjust your schedule and amount of activities to be the right amount for you.
To fit into a nice acronym I label these categories just slightly different to come up with the acronym STRESD.
Because your training program wants to balance how stressed your injury (and the rest of your body) is.
So let’s go over all the components of the STRESD Framework so you can start to figure out where you need some adjustments.
S = STRENGTH
T = TRAINING
R= RECOVERY
E = EQUIPMENT
S = STRETCHING
D = DIET
When looking at this framework we need to think about the things that add stress to your body, and the things that take stress away. If you have too much of the stuff that stresses your body you’ll continue with your injury, and if you have too much of the stuff that takes away the stress you won’t make any progress. Either way you’ll be frustrated with your training.
So let’s get into it.
Strength
Strength exercises are important to build the muscles that support your body so you can run. The problem most injured runners make is that they strength train too much too soon.
And honestly it’s no fault of their own because everywhere you read says strength exercises are a must for injury rehab and prevention.
And yes, that’s true. However, the amount needs to be tailored to your needs. And those needs are based on how long you’ve had the injury, how far into injury recovery you are, what kind of strength exercises you were doing before injury, and some others but those are the main ones.
Stick with a whole body routine, not just to the area that is painful. When you keep adding more strength exercises to the painful area you can make things worse.
This is because when the injury is caused by overuse, which 80% of running injuries are caused by, then those muscles are already doing too much work. By adding more strength exercise to them you are adding more work. You aren’t giving them enough of a controlled break. There’s a time and a place for strength exercises for the specific area, and that’s once the symptoms have calmed down and you’re not in-season.
Progressively add strength exercises, whether the whole body routine, or specific to the injured area, in a controlled manner with professional guidance.
Training
Training is all about the cardio activities you’re doing to build endurance. This includes running, walking, run walk method, and cross training.
While you’re rehabbing your injury cross training and non-running activities that can maintain or build your endurance are very important. If you’re thinking that running at 1 mile right now seems scary because you have a marathon soon, fear not… cross training is going to be your best friend for now. Find a cross training activity that gets your heart rate and breathing rate up and do that in lieu of long distance running.
Then you’ll use your Living Room Test score to determine your actual running distance.
Cross training includes
Walking (if you’re not racing with the run walk method)
Elliptical
Swimming
Riding a bike
Spin class
Ice skating
Other activities that make you out of breath and gets your heart rate up
There are 2 keys for cross training at this time. Keeping the cross training to something that doesn’t make your pain come on. And getting your heart rate up to the level that it would get for long distance running and keeping it there. This way it mimics what your lungs and heart have to go through during the marathon, without the stress running puts on your injury.
Recovery
Recovery is all about finding tactics to help your muscles, lungs, heart and any other body part that’s needed for running, recover so they’re ready for the next bout of training you’re going to do. When you first get injured recovery may mean some rest, taking a break from running completely. This usually doesn’t need to last more than 1-2 weeks, and most people can keep it to 1 week when they use the Living Room Test early on.
At any point in your injury rehab, or training, recovery is vital to prevent injury from coming back or new injuries from forming.
Recovery tactics are
Ice
Heat
Ice baths
Hot epsom salt baths
TENS
Massage
Massage gun
Foam rolling
Stretching (this one’s so important I made this a category in and of itself)
Pneumatic compression devices on your legs
Chiropractic
Physical Therapy
Others
Find the ones that work for you and stick with them. Do them soon and do them often. After any long run for me I foam roll, use my massage gun, stretch and take a hot epsom salt bath at the end of the day. That may not be the routine that works for you, maybe you get a massage or sit in an ice bath. I recommend using a combination of many of these options.
Equipment
Equipment is all about the quality of equipment you’re using. This includes
Shoes
the quality of the
massage gun
foam roller
heat pack
epsom salt in your bath
etc.
And also how are the shoes you’re using,
and the quality of the professionals that are helping your rehab,
in other words: is the professional you’re going to actually helping you progress in your recovery?
You wouldn’t want to use a massage gun that doesn’t work out muscle knots, or worse it dies after 10 uses. Or you don’t want to keep going to a Chiropractor, Massage Therapist, or Physical Therapist if you’re not getting better or worse, you’re getting worse.
Finding the right kind of equipment helps support your body so when you are in the midst of training you know that the things you’re using are the right ones.
Stretching
Stretching involves static stretches to help flexibility, mobility and soreness; and also the warm up and cool down you’re doing.
Stretching helps loosen up tight muscles so you feel better after a run and workout. Warming up and cooling down helps prepare your body either for ‘fight or flight’, or ‘rest and digest’ modes.
Warming up helps your body get ready and adjust to ‘fight or flight’, with more blood flow to your muscles.
See, typically at rest your body is using blood flow to your major organs like your brain, lungs, and other organs that are doing their thing beneath the surface.
When you workout your body shifts the majority of your blood flow to your muscles because they're going to do more work than your organs. If you start working out too quickly your muscles aren’t ready to accept that blood flow and you can feel things like cramps.
By allowing your body to adjust to the change in blood demand and let the blood vessels in your muscles dilate, literally expand, and be ready to accept blood flow you don’t get as much of that cramping and lead-leg feeling. A warm up should be about 10 minutes long, or get your heart rate up by 20%. You’ll notice you’re warmed up because your heart is beating faster.
After you run or workout, cooling down helps your body do the opposite of a warm up… it starts constricting your blood vessels in your muscles so it’s prepared to go back into rest and digest mode. This involves walking for 10 minutes to bring your heart rate and breathing back to resting levels.
After a cool down is one of two times you can do static stretching.Your muscles are still warm so you get the benefit of static stretching, your muscles won’t do much of anything if you stretch them cold. The only other time it’s appropriate to static stretch is if you are in the middle of a workout and get a cramp.
Static stretches may include
Quads
Glutes
Hamstrings
Piriformis
Calves
Chest
Neck
Upper back
Lower back
Static stretching involves holding a stretch position for anywhere between 15 to 60 seconds at a time. The newer you are to stretching that muscle the shorter you hold the stretch. Ultimate goal is 60 seconds, but if you’re a newbie or in pain keep the stretch short and build up over 8-18 months. If you stretch too far too fast you can get rebound tightness and pain, so when in doubt get specific guidance to your needs.
Diet
Honestly, I don’t *love* the word diet but it works in the acronym so I guess I’ll keep it. But, I’m talking about fueling and nutrition.
There are ways to nourish your body that will facilitate the healing process, especially if it’s a muscle, tendon, ligament, meniscus or joint surface injury.
Eating and drinking more things that have protein and collagen peptides in them help heal those tissues. Protein gives muscles and tendons the building blocks they need to put down new connections in the injured tissue, and collagen peptides support any part of your body that has collagen tissue so that’s things like ligaments, meniscus and joint surfaces.
And giving your body the amount of water it needs during training helps keep you hydrated and keep stiffness low.
Follow the program
The 3rd step is to follow through.
Once you have the program all planned out, follow it. I can’t stress this enough, it’s no good to have it written on paper and then you choose what you’re going to do each day willy nilly. It won’t work and you’ll wind up injured again.
“But, I’m worried I won’t hit the top mileage & be ready for the marathon”
I hear you. It’s really scary to get hurt and then look at your training plan when you get back to it the mileage is so low… How are you ever going to complete the race?
So, there are 2 things I’ll talk about here. And the first one is: you can increase your mileage BEYOND the 10% rule ONE TIME. So if you’re going to skip the 10% rule at any point do it once and do it at the race. It’s not the first strategy to use, but it is a strategy.
Training injuries *rarely* happens from increasing your mileage that much once, it’s from repeat offenders, increasing mileage beyond 10% over and over and over again.
The second thing at play here is to use your cross training.
Find some cross training that will build your body’s endurance so you can last the 4+ hours it’ll take for the marathon. This way your body isn’t blind sided with the time it’s working… it will just be surprised by the running aspect of it.
So this may mean swimming instead of your long run. It has to be fast enough to get your heart rate up to mimic running a marathon. And you’d increase your swimming distance by the same 10% rule every week. Or riding a bike, or spin classes, etc.
Ok there you have it, that's how you can run a marathon when you’re injured. Yes you do need to tone down your training on the actual running aspect, but you don’t necessarily have to pull out of the race. Have more specific questions or want help implementing these strategies? Book a free call with me to see if the program I offer could help.
If you’re looking for more specific tips based on your injury, head over to the Running Injuries page and click on your specific injury.
