CHAPTER TWO

OPTIMIZATION

REFINING YOUR APPROACH BY DECADE

W e are slowing down a little; that’s okay, it’s natural. The good news is that we’re still going, and moving forward at any speed is much better than the alternative, right? (Research shows that runners who stick with regular training and racing routines slow down a little—about 0.5 to 1 percent—every year throughout their 40s, 50s, and 60s.) Whether you were a competitive athlete in high school or college, like me, or you’ve always been chasing your own personal records as a recreational runner, the process of aging, combined with work, family, and other life obligations, may mean your fastest race times are behind you.

One thing I’ve found that keeps running enjoyable over the years is training with others, especially those with like-minded goals and similar ages. Where I live, in Mammoth Lakes, California, my wife, Deena, and I lead a running organization called the Mammoth Track Club, which comprises runners of all ages and abilities. We have elite athletes, like Deena, who is a three-time Olympian, Olympic Bronze Medalist, and the American record holder in the marathon (2 hours, 19 minutes and 36 seconds); adult recreational runners, many of whom have never run on a track before; age group racers; and young athletes. We host a track practice every Tuesday from April to October. Every now and then, I survey our adult members and ask them what they’re training for, why they enjoy the club atmosphere, and whether or not they would run repeat intervals on their own. Every single time, the answer to the latter is a resounding no. As we age, the two main factors that contribute to our running decline are drops in our VO2 Max (your maximal oxygen uptake) and our muscles’ ability to produce power.

TIPS BY DECADE

AGE GROUP	COMPETITIVE CONSIDERATIONS	TRAINING FOCUS
35–44	Consider yourself a young master’s runner. You might be coming off some personal records in the 10K, half-marathon and/or marathon distance and you’re kind of secretly looking forward to joining the 40-year-old age group so you can be one of the faster ones (maybe for a change). Longer distances are still approachable and hitting new PRs in the half-marathon or marathon is totally achievable. Life is very busy, so finding balance is necessary. You are fierce, competitive, and have a killer instinct.	Your training shouldn’t look too different from when you were in your 20s and early 30s, but rest and sleep become increasingly more important. It might be time to consider adding one more recovery day in between your hard training sessions and long runs. Or maybe it’s time to add an aerobic cross-training workout into your weekly routine—you can use it as a recovery workout or just something to get your heart rate up and make you sweat a little more than usual. And be sure to incorporate some hill repeats into your routine.
45–54	Look forward to being the youngest—and/or fittest—competitor in your age group! You have a chance to really clean up, bringing home age-group medals and awards! You’re just going to need to start incorporating things into your routine that help keep you fit and healthy, like consistent weight training, and longer running warm-up and cool-down sessions.	With your ability to recover gradually decreasing each year, you might want to consider switching your current 7-day training cycle to a 10-day training cycle. You’ll take 1 to 2 days off and cross-train 1 to 2 days every cycle. Since we lose a bit of power each year as well, it would be wise to lengthen the recovery intervals in your workouts by 25 to 50%.

AGE GROUP	REST AND RECOVERY	MIND-SET
35–44	You’ve probably got a lot going on in life with work, family, and friends. Your body might be willing to press hard 2 to 3 times per week, but you need to ask yourself if adequate sleep is there, too. Ideally, you’ll go to a massage therapy session every couple weeks, and if nothing else, do foam rolling and self-massages as much as possible. If you’re going to crank up your training in an attempt to be more competitive, then you need to make sure there is ample recovery happening outside of running to reap the rewards.	Personal bests are still possible, particularly in the longer-distance events that require more endurance and experience. Experience, yes, you’ve got it! You can be more relaxed going into races now, too. You’ve been there and done that, you know the drill. Also, now that you’re a more responsible adult, if you can, treat yourself to nicer accommodations—and healthier meals—on race weekends, travel a day earlier, schedule a massage every 2 to 4 weeks during training, and spend time taking care of your body. Be competitive with people in your age group and the one below.
45–54	If possible, take a nap after your long run each week. Schedule those massage therapy appointments in advance. Give yourself plenty of time in the mornings to eat a nutritious breakfast, hydrate well, and, of course, get your workouts in before work. Start relying on your experience during training and racing and make sure you listen to your body’s little aches and pains.	Don’t get upset with your training and racing times. Start referring to age-graded performance charts (you can find them online) to keep your motivation up. This is a great way for you to more accurately compare your stats to those of the younger runners who are breaking the tape every race. Be confident in your abilities and rely on your race experience to guide you to consistent performances throughout the year.

TIPS BY DECADE

AGE GROUP	COMPETITIVE CONSIDERATIONS	TRAINING FOCUS
55–64	The great news is there are less competitors in your age group now! So you’re basically guaranteed some sort of racing win in your near future. At this age, and from here on out, simply show up to the starting line healthy and undertrained—easy!	Theme: undertrain. Show up to each workout healthy, feeling good, and well prepared, then just follow your instincts; the ones you’ve been developing for decades as a runner. Warm-ups are critical, so be sure you start your workouts walking, then break into a jog to ease into the pace. Keep those hill repeats in your plan as well—one session every 7 to 14 days should do the trick.
65–74	Show up, get the work in, and go home. You don’t need to prove yourself to anyone else or do anything fancy on the track. Get to the starting line healthy and you’ll win, in addition to inspiring other younger competitors.	Hang around younger runners at the local track. Don’t listen to anyone who brings you down and says that you shouldn’t be running hard or competing at your age. They’re just jealous that you’re out there crushing 10Ks each month. Disclaimer: Listen to your doctor’s advice; he or she may tell you to curb your intensity for a reason. Use races as your speed work. Keep the hill repeats in your training plan—once every day can help keep your power up.
75+	Congrats! Most races, you’ll be one of the few in your age group. That alone is worth celebrating. Be sure to have on shoes that are comfortable and functional (and have less than 300 miles on them). Get a new uniform, too, and be sure to get your name printed on it so folks can cheer for you during the race and at practice. You’re pretty much the closest thing to a celebrity they might see today.	You’re going to start drastically reducing your running volume and training time. Go to the alternating On Day, Off Day approach. And dedicate one day per week to working on turnover by doing some easy strides on a track or field. Let the races be your threshold work and race sparingly to allow for recovery.

AGE GROUP	REST AND RECOVERY	MIND-SET
55–64	I have one more piece of advice for you: TAKE NAPS. Lots and lots of naps. Getting that extra shot of human growth hormone (HGH) while you sleep is critical for your recovery after a hard training session. By now, you should be working out every 3 to 4 days and cross-training 2 days per week to alleviate acute and chronic inflammation.	It’s okay (ideal, really) to start off each and every run with a walk to warm up your joints. When it’s cold out, be sure to wear extra layers that you can easily shed throughout your run. Ask yourself, “Do I still enjoy this? Am I making progress and getting satisfaction from putting in the miles?” If the answers are all yes, then keep at it. If not, you might want to consider shifting your focus. Find comfort in your training log, your race bib numbers, and the medals that you’ve accumulated over the years.
65–74	Not much is different from the last decade, but you need to be better about listening to your body. By now you should have settled into a cross-training routine that you’re comfortable with. Sleep will, of course, be dependent on how hard you’re training now. If you’re only doing one workout per week, then the demand for sleep might not be as great.	Just keep turning your legs over. Accept that you are now an inspiration on the track, an icon. Men and women in their 20s and 30s will aspire to be you, even if you think you’re running pretty darn slow. There should be more time in your schedule for recovery, exploring new trails, meeting new people, and traveling to dreamy destination races.
75+	Most runs should now be considered “recovery runs.” There is not a huge need for dedicated speed workouts. Just getting out the door on healthy legs is your goal. Start each run with a short walk to limber you up. Get in some strides to maintain power and dynamic flexibility.	You are an inspiration. Running is not only a way to improve yourself and your personal journey, but it’s also a way to inspire others to continue on into the twilight years of their life. Just by showing up and finishing races, you’ll be motivating the masses to live a healthy lifestyle, with running as a key component. Be proud of yourself and be ready to high-five your way through every workout and every race.

MATURE MECHANICS 101

How you run always matters, but frankly, as we get older, it matters even more. Maintaining proper running form may look a little different for everyone, but what it ultimately means is the same—you’ll be able to keep up your distance year after year. Good running technique helps us go faster and helps protect our joints and muscles from repetitive motion over the miles.

During my coaching career, I’ve watched and studied thousands of runners, from newbies to world record holders, and what I’ve concluded is that everyone is unique in their running form. I think it’s safe to assume that even the biomechanical experts out there would agree that we’re all different in the way we run, as slight and subtle as those differences may be.

There are a few running methods out there that claim runners using them achieve the best technique over the years, but most of these are weighted heavily in theory and fall short on evidence. The Pose Method and ChiRunning, for example, both have one major concept in common—they assert that if we lean forward while running, then we can use gravity, the constant force that holds us to the planet, to propel ourselves forward.

There are no secrets or tricks. We are all capable of reaching our best running form by following a few simple steps.

ADJUST YOUR POSTURE

Posture, in a nutshell, is the position in which you carry your body. The coordinated actions of various muscles are required to get into—and maintain—a good posture. Your posture while sitting, standing, or running is important. All the recommended running techniques out there tout the importance of maintaining proper posture while running. I, myself, have a very upright running posture when running. I believe it’s important to think about staying “tall” and “upright.” Running “tall” does a couple of things—it helps keep your center of gravity right where it should be (near your navel), and it helps enhance your respiratory function by allowing for adequate rib expansion (inhalation) and contraction (exhalation) so you’re able to take in more oxygen. Go ahead and try taking a deep breath while you’re hunched over—it simply doesn’t work.

In addition to the enhanced gas exchange touched on above, there’s also a mechanical energy advantage when running upright. The Achilles tendon functions optimally when running with perfect posture.

Holding yourself up a little taller is not just great for improving your running performance, but it’s also important for maintaining a healthy life and having a more balanced body. Sitting, standing, walking, and running tall does require a strong core, one that has endurance and is resistant to fatigue, but don’t worry—we’ll get to that in a minute.

Do a quick posture check while you are running. Look for these key variables to make sure you are maximizing your alignment:

» Your head should be up and your eyes should be looking forward as opposed to down.

» Keep your back straight.

» Shoulders should be level, relaxed.

» Don’t lean forward . . . or backward.

ENGAGE YOUR CORE

When we talk about our core, the first thing most people think about is their abs. But this complex group of muscles is made up of so much more than that. Your core, which is located primarily in your belly region and back, includes these major muscle groups: pelvic floor muscles (hello, Kegels!); transverse abdominis; multifidus; internal and external obliques; rectus abdominus (six-pack); erector spinae (muscles along the vertebrae), especially the longissimus thoracis; and the diaphragm (muscle that controls breathing). Additional minor muscles that comprise your core are the lumbar (low back) muscles, quadratus lumborum, deep rotators of the femur (upper leg bone), and the cervical muscles of the neck.

So why are these muscles important to running and the rest of your daily life? Think of your core as a bridge that connects your shoulders to your hips. Both regions of the body are important for smooth running, and they need to complement one another as you stride. Keep in mind, we run with our whole bodies, and we need the momentum from our arms to counteract the torque that is generated from our hips with every step.

Here’s a little exercise to illustrate my point . . . kneel down with your knees flexed on the floor, the tops of your feet touching the floor and your bottom resting on your heels. Sit up tall, then pump your arms by your sides, like you’re running. Notice that your knees move back and forth slightly as you do it, which is a direct response to the torque you’re creating with your arms. This proves that the force generated in your shoulder girdle gets transmitted to your hips via your torso and can either negatively or positively impact your running form and biomechanics.

PUMP YOUR ARMS

Have you ever tried walking without moving your arms? Feels weird, right? That’s because your body parts aren’t designed to move independently of one another. When you’re running, the role your arms play is even more critical. For one, arm movement while running is important in counterbalancing the rotational forces that our hips and legs create. But even bigger, research shows that pumping your arms simultaneously while you stride actually makes running easier. A study published in the Journal of Experimental Biology revealed that when runners held their arms loosely by their sides and didn’t engage them while running, they experienced a 3 percent drop in their metabolic efficiency. And when the same runners held their hands on top of their heads, their running efficiency dropped a whopping 13 percent!

“Pump your arms!” My high school coach would stand at the top of a hill on our cross-country course and shout this over and over again as my team and I sprinted up a seemingly never-ending 100m dirt hill every Tuesday during the cross-country season. He wanted us to know that it was always okay to use our arms for extra momentum and to never fear doing it during a competition, especially when we were going uphill.

You always want to move your arms from your shoulder joint, and your elbow should be bent 90 degrees, so it forms a perfect right angle. If the angle is greater than 90 degrees, then your stride length will increase too much, causing you to lose efficiency. If the angle is less than 90 degrees, your stride length will shorten too much, also causing you to—you guessed it—lose efficiency. A 90-degree angle allows you to truly maximize your stride length. Think of this relationship like a pendulum and a lever.

HAVE HAPPY FEET

I have a PSA: Take care of your feet; they’re special. The human foot is remarkable, and if you’re a runner, it can be either your strongest—or your weakest—link. It’s composed of 26 bones (33 joints) and is flimsy and floppy when not in use, but instantaneously becomes a rigid lever once weight is put on it. Genius.

Our feet endure so much every day. Once you add on the extra miles as a runner, it’s no wonder we’re all losing toenails, getting callouses and blisters, and experiencing other aches and pains.

There are a few easy things you can do to make your feet happier and your running smoother.

» Make sure you’re wearing shoes that fit your feet properly. Everyone is different, so just because your training partner has found the perfect pair of shoes, it doesn’t mean that they’re also going to be perfect for you.

» Go to a local running store and have them perform a gait analysis and proper fitting. Be sure there is enough room in the toe box to allow your toes to spread out and for your foot to swell and lengthen during long runs. Run in them before you leave the store. Remember, comfort is key.

You should perform routine maintenance on your feet as well.

» Consider it part of your regular training routine. You can even do it at night while you’re winding down and watching TV. Gently spread your toes apart, flex and extend them and roll your ankles in both directions to rotate them. Stretch them.

» Grab a golf ball, place it on the floor, and gently roll the bottom of your foot on top of it. This action will stretch out the plantar fascia and help break up fibrous adhesions that have built up over the years.

Having supple and flexible feet is super important if you want to continue running pain-free year after year.

COUNT OUT YOUR CADENCE

When running, you should aim for 160 to 180 steps per minute, counting every time your left and right foot hit the ground. You can simply count in your head, or try using a GPS watch. Having a quicker landing pattern will reduce the impact forces in running and can help minimize injuries as a result.

Also, when running into a headwind, quickening and shortening your stride will ensure that you don’t lose too much momentum from the wind pushing you backward. The inverse is true when you have the wind at your back: try to lengthen your stride and spend more time in the air to allow the wind to push you along.

How do you determine your cadence without a GPS watch? During a run, count the number of times your left foot strikes the ground during a 30-second time frame, and then multiply that number by four. This will give you your total amount of foot strikes per minute, or your cadence.

A friend of mine, Dr. Douglas Will, a 68-year-old neurologist and passionate athlete, insists that keeping his cadence consistent over the years is what has allowed him to run well for the last four decades. I met Doug when I was 25 years old, a fresh new coach in Mammoth Lakes. He was twice my age and had a wealth of knowledge in the sport of running. At the time, he mentioned that he still felt as fast as he did when he was in his 30s, competing in the half marathon (with a personal best of 1:18, which he reached at 38) and marathon. He said his cadence has been relatively the same through the decades and he feels the only reason he’s slowing down is because of lower power output from his legs.

ASSESSING YOUR FORM

Now that you know how important it is to maintain good form, it’s time to learn how to assess where you currently are. Ever take a glimpse of yourself when you’re running past a storefront window, checking yourself out in the reflection? Did you think, “I look good!” or maybe it was more like, “Is that seriously what I look like when I run?!”

HOW CAN I ASSESS MY FORM?

A running form assessment can be valuable, and it’s honestly one of the tools I use all the time with the elite runners I coach. Biomechanists and local coaches can analyze your form (there are human performance labs that are set up to do it) with treadmills and computer software that can measure degrees of joint flexion, along with your horizontal and vertical planes of motion. The best way to do a self-assessment is to record a video of yourself running on a treadmill.

Everyone has a camera on their phone. Ask a friend or relative to take a video of you. But if you really don’t want an audience, simply place your phone in a position where you can capture the video yourself. There are several apps that are designed to analyze running form, so you can download one to your phone, upload your video, and get feedback quickly.

In all likelihood, if your form feels good and you’re not experiencing any running-related aches and pains, then it’s probably “sound” and doesn’t need much improving. Some things to check for though: See if your head is over your shoulders or protracted in a forward position. Check out those arms. What are they doing? Are your elbows at a 90-degree angle or close to it? Do your wrists break (when they go limp and flex on your back swing)? You want to avoid that, as it wastes energy and throws a hiccup in your stride frequency optimization, so keep a straight wrist. One thing that helps is to imagine you’re holding something delicate in your hand that you don’t want to squish.

Now, take a look at what your head is doing. Is it directly over your shoulders? Meaning, are your ears in line with the tops of your shoulders? If so, great! You’re doing it right. If your head is slightly protracted forward, then this could pose a problem toward the end of long runs, or when you’re building up your mileage for a longer race. This positioning changes your center of gravity and causes you to place more of your mass out in front of you, which in turn puts excess stress on your posterior muscles, or everything on your backside (glutes, hamstrings, calves). This, unfortunately, causes more stress on your tendons, and I personally believe it’s the root of many calf strains and Achilles and plantar injuries. Remember, run tall.

LISTEN TO YOUR BODY

Every runner should be able to finish an easy recovery run feeling fresh, like you could do the entire distance again. It should leave you feeling renewed and invigorated. It’s always a good idea to do a quick check-in with yourself after an easy run. If you’re feeling okay or even better than when you started, in all likelihood, your form is sound and functioning well.

One question I’m asked a lot is if you should modify your form when training and racing different distances, and the quick answer is YES. However, there’s a but . (There’s almost always a “but.”) If you were to do a one-mile road race (which I highly recommend if you haven’t done one before—they’re a blast!), your arm swing would be more forceful, with your hand coming up higher at the end of the forward swing and your elbow pushing farther behind you on the back swing. Your back kick (when your heel comes off the ground) would be higher, and you would pull your foot through the leg swing cycle much more forcefully. And your knee lift would be higher, as you want your stride length to be near its maximum. But most of us are not racing one mile these days, at least not often enough to try switching our form for the occasion.

WHAT TO PUT ON YOUR FEET (OR NOT)

If you’ve been running through the decades like I have, you’re probably pretty particular about what type of shoes you run in. Many of my athletes are creatures of habit, and they stick with the shoes they’ve been running in for years and years simply because they know they work and they’re not getting injured. But every now and then, shoe companies change up their designs, color schemes, materials used, and they change the shoe so much that it doesn’t work for some runners anymore—so then what? I am a big advocate of heading down to your local running store and asking the experts, the ones who sell shoes to runners of all ages and abilities on a daily basis. You’re very likely to learn something new and potentially find a new favorite pair of shoes.

There are many perfect shoes out there for every runner. The major shoe companies sink millions of dollars into research and development each year to make a wide variety of shoes that work well for all different types of feet and foot strike patterns. I also learned that the people who work at local running stores are passionate about running and legitimately want to improve every runner’s experience out there on the road and trails.

In the mid-2000s, a barefoot running craze swept the world. Running shoe companies started making their own versions of a minimalist shoe, the closest thing to being barefoot they could offer. Many of them looked like gloves for your feet, with just a thin layer of rubber on the bottom to protect your sole from debris. The theory was that since our ancestors ran barefoot, they didn’t have medial posting to correct overpronation, and they didn’t get injured all the time, then clearly there was something to it or something to that effect.

But the reality is, if you’re training for a 10K or longer, your feet need shoes to train and race in. Sure, our running mechanics are slightly different, possibly even better when we are barefoot, but most of us, growing up in Western society, all wore shoes our entire lives. So now we need the cushioning and support that well-engineered shoes bring to the game. If you’re reading this book, then you’re likely training at a fairly high level, logging 30 to 60 miles per week, and maybe running half-marathons and marathons every year. This level of training is extraordinarily difficult on the body, and it’s above and beyond what the other 99 percent of people on the planet are doing. With marathon training, you’re asking your body to endure a stressful training regimen. For this, you need to protect your body and protect your feet from the impact forces of repetitively striking the ground.

AVOIDING COMMON INJURIES

We all want to avoid injuries, especially as we get older and recovery takes longer.

For starters, I’ve got a few simple rules you can follow:

1 . Stay hydrated. Avoid excessive caffeine and alcohol consumption. Most musculoskeletal injuries are caused by not consuming enough electrolytes or drinking enough water. Consuming too much caffeine can also make you dehydrated and put you at risk of cramps and strains that are far too typical in training.

2 . Stretch. Do this periodically throughout the day, even if it’s just for a few minutes.

3 . Warm up. Simply start every run off at a very, very slow pace. Heck, start off walking for five minutes, so you can allow your body to warm up gradually and naturally. Some days it might take five to ten minutes to ease into your average pace—other days it might take 45!

4 . Listen to your body. I repeat, LISTEN TO YOUR BODY. No one else can hear what’s happening in there. If something is sore, don’t run through it. Missing one or two runs to allow a body part to calm down will benefit you in the long run. Your goal is to stay healthy enough to run another day.

5 . Ease your transitions. Most of us sit . . . a lot. This nonaction is what causes most injuries. Trying to immediately transition to running from this sedentary position takes the body by surprise, and it may reject the activity. This is why you need to take your time transitioning from either sleeping for eight hours or sitting for a few to doing a workout or run. Remember to listen to your body and never force it through anything. It’s a common practice for Kenyan runners to start their runs with a walk. I’ve been to world championships and Olympic Games and watched speedy Team Kenya start a hard training session with a slow 10-minute group walk. If they can slow down, so can you!

TEN COMMON RUNNING-RELATED INJURIES

Type of Injury: Stress Fracture

CAUSE: This small crack in any weight-bearing bone is usually found in the tibia, fibula, femur, pelvis, and metatarsal. Repetitive trauma to those bones is usually caused by the impact forces that occur when landing during walking and running. It could also be surface-related if you’re running on cement or pavement too much, but the most common cause is increasing your training load too quickly or adding in speed training while simultaneously increasing training volume.

EARLY SIGNS: A dull ache or burning sensation in the affected area. Consult an orthopedic doctor about getting an MRI. If caught early enough (in the stress reaction stage, not broken through yet), the downtime from weight-bearing activity can be cut in half. If the MRI comes back showing a slight crack, then it’s likely the doctor will prescribe a walking cast or put you on crutches for six to eight weeks.

HOW TO PREVENT AND TREAT: Eat a robust diet filled with foods rich in vitamin D and calcium. Wear shoes that are cushioned enough to absorb the impact forces of running. Stick to a sensible running routine, adding miles gradually and safely to your training (about a 10 percent increase each week, with a reduction week every three weeks to allow for recovery). Consult your doctor about taking vitamin D and calcium supplements for your bones as well.

Type of Injury: IT Band Syndrome (ITBS)

CAUSE: An exact cause is not really known, but experts have concluded that old shoes (with too many miles on them) could be at least partly to blame, as they can change the way your foot strikes the ground. Another possible cause is running on a cambered or sloped road, which can throw off your hip height and lead to an imbalance. I personally think that another possible cause is starting multiple runs in a dehydrated state, which leads to subtle muscle cramping in your hips and tightens up vulnerable muscles and tendons.

EARLY SIGNS: A sharp pain on the outside (lateral aspect) of your knee. This sharp pain is usually felt when your knee is bent beyond 20 to 30 degrees. A runner will likely feel this sensation just a mile or two into their training run.

HOW TO PREVENT AND TREAT: Stay hydrated and eat well. Replace your shoes frequently (every 250 to 300 miles). Also, start each of your runs off slowly, allowing your body to gradually warm up. And be sure you activate those hip adductors, or groin muscles, before you run. Stand tall and squeeze your legs together until they feel fatigued. This little exercise will help wake up those oft-forgotten muscles and get them working before breaking into a sprint. This group of muscles opposes the muscles that control your IT band of fascia that’s hurting your knee. By activating the adductors (the muscles used to bring your knees together), the abductors (the muscles used to widen your stance) tend to relax and loosen up, which allows your IT band to have a little bit of slack so it doesn’t rub against the bony part of the outside of your knee.

Type of Injury: Achilles Tendonitis

CAUSE: Worn-out shoes and tight calves or weak/tight hip flexors and restricted ankle mobility. Starting speed work too aggressively can contribute to this injury as well. Dehydration can also cause tight calves, which can lead to the irritation of your Achilles tendon (the largest and thickest tendon in the body). Tight hip flexors (often from sitting too much) can lead to Achilles irritation and eventually tendonitis, too. If your hip flexors are not working properly, then the calves have to make up for it in a more forceful way. Too much uphill running can also lead to a sore Achilles.

EARLY SIGNS: Soreness and pain in the tendon itself, either right at the insertion point or as high as two to three inches above the heel bone (calcaneus).

HOW TO PREVENT AND TREAT: Work on maintaining good ankle flexibility, stretch your calves frequently throughout the day, start each run off slowly, and stay hydrated. To treat this injury, you’ll need to stop running altogether. Perform eccentric calf lowering exercises off a step with your injured leg. Elevate and ice lightly, for no more than ten minutes at a time. Avoid running uphill until the pain subsides.

Type of Injury: Runner’s Knee (Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome)

CAUSE: Tight quadriceps muscles can cause a dull pain surrounding the kneecap.

EARLY SIGNS: You’ll feel discomfort about one or two miles into a run, usually like a dull ache behind or above your kneecap. The pain does not go away and will likely prevent you from running any farther.

HOW TO PREVENT AND TREAT: Hydrate! Stretch your quadriceps well every day, either before or after running. Perform a set of squats (without weight) a few times a week to strengthen this muscle group, too—I’ll give you more details on how to do this in chapter 3 .

Type of Injury: High Hamstring Tendinopathy

CAUSE: This injury usually starts off very small and with little discomfort but is usually ignored and then worsens over a period of weeks and months. Again, I believe dehydration is a major cause.

EARLY SIGNS: The pain associated with this injury is located at the very top of the hamstring and just below the buttocks. If you bend over to touch your toes and feel a sharp grab in this location, then it’s likely there is damage to the area. Very slow running with a short stride seems to be fine, but if your pace quickens and your stride lengthens, there will be severe discomfort.

HOW TO PREVENT AND TREAT: Stay hydrated. Avoid sitting for long periods of time. Stretch your hamstrings for a few minutes every day. Get a massage to increase blood flow. Ice the area occasionally until your symptoms are gone. Avoid a long stride when running.

Type of Injury: Black (or Lost) Toenails

CAUSE: When training for a long-distance event such as a marathon, our feet have a tendency to swell and lengthen as they fatigue. If your shoes are too small, your toes will start to bash into the front of the toe box, causing irritation to your nails.

EARLY SIGNS: Sore toes, right at the tips. You’ll possibly see some discoloration after just one run. If your toes are black, it means that blood has collected underneath your nail(s).

HOW TO PREVENT AND TREAT: Trim your toenails frequently, once or twice a week. Purchase shoes that have plenty of room in the toe box so your toes have ample space to swell during a long run. I’ve heard of runners having their toenails surgically removed so this doesn’t happen to them, but that’s an extreme, totally unnecessary way to address this issue if you ask me.

Type of Injury: Plantar Fasciitis

CAUSE: Chronic dehydration plus tight calves and hip flexors are likely to blame.

EARLY SIGNS: Pain in the plantar fascia is usually felt when you first start walking around in the morning. The bottom of your heel feels sore and tender to the touch. The discomfort can disappear in the first few minutes of your run, but the pain starts to linger longer and longer after a few weeks.

HOW TO PREVENT AND TREAT: Make sure you stretch your calves and hip flexors well each day. Stay hydrated during long training runs. Ice the affected area for 10 minutes a couple of times every day. Frequent calf massages can also help loosen the tension pulling up on your arch.

Type of Injury: Shin Splints

CAUSE: Worn out shoes and/or increasing training volume too quickly is likely the culprit.

EARLY SIGNS: Pain is felt on the medial side of your tibia bone. It’s caused by inflammation of your muscle and tendon, which are ever so slightly tearing away from the bone. The inside of your shin will feel sore when running.

HOW TO PREVENT AND TREAT: Check the wear on your shoes and keep a tally on how many miles you’ve logged, changing them out before they’re completely broken down (250 to 300 miles). Add mileage into your schedule slowly and methodically, with no more than a 10 to 15 percent increase from week to week. To treat, you’ll need rest or a severe reduction in mileage, icing, and light massage.

Type of Injury: Patellar Tendonitis

CAUSE: The mechanism behind this injury is roughly the same as runner’s knee, but the symptoms are different. Inflammation in this area is brought on by tight quads and a great deal of pounding on the roads, especially if you’re doing a lot of downhill running. Chances are, you have been feeling pain for a while but have been ignoring the signs and/or running with a cheap knee brace, trying to make it better.

EARLY SIGNS: Lower knee pain when running. This injury seems to be more common in men.

HOW TO PREVENT AND TREAT: Keep your training progression easy and methodical. At the first signs of pain at the bottom of your kneecap, take a day or two off. Get a massage and apply ice to the affected area for up to 10 minutes each day. Do a quick check of your current training shoes to see if there is excessive wear and tear.

Type of Injury: Blisters

CAUSE: Friction between the skin on your feet and your socks, often due to an ill-fitting shoe. Wearing the wrong socks or not breaking in shoes enough before going for a longer-distance training run can also cause irritation. Blisters on your toes can be caused by a shoe that is too small for you.

EARLY SIGNS: A rubbing or pinching pain on the skin of your feet in one or more spots that causes you to change your stride pattern to seek relief.

HOW TO PREVENT AND TREAT: Run in shoes that fit your feet well and choose socks that provide enough coverage and support. If blisters persist, you can rub some Vaseline on your feet to reduce the friction of your sock against your skin. Do not pop a blister, as opening it could lead to an infection. When not running, wear sandals to let air get to the affected skin. Use a Band-Aid to cover and protect the area if your training needs to continue.

COMPLEMENTARY PRACTICES

Let’s cover activities that mix up both training and recovery goals for the runner. We talked about avoiding injuries in the previous section, so I’ll reiterate here that our bodies need some variety to avoid repetitive stress injuries and to recover fully.

In an effort to run successfully (read: injury-free) for decades, we must incorporate more than just running into our weekly routines. Adding in strength training, stretching, yoga, walking or hiking, and some interval training sessions will help prevent boredom and improve your overall fitness and running performance. Mixing things up will also reduce your risk of injury and aid in your recovery.

STRENGTH TRAINING

It has been known for decades that strength or resistance training can enhance endurance. Strength training is a broad category and many folks often get confused about how to apply these types of exercises and movements into their running regimen. I always try to break it down into simple and basic components for my athletes, so it feels approachable and easy to execute.

First off, know that a little strength work can go a long way, and you don’t have to use heavy weights. Etching out 15 to 20 minutes, two to three times a week, is really all you need to do. During each training session, your goal should be to hit all of the major muscle groups in your body—your quads, hips, abs, back, and shoulders. Try to squeeze in a couple exercises for your arms and shoulders, such as push-ups or dumbbell overhead presses; a couple for your legs, like walking lunges or squats; and a couple for your core, such as alternating side planks or Supermans.

Adding a weightlifting component into your current training program will bring big benefits. For one, your tendons, ligaments, muscle tissue, and bones all become stronger and more resistant to injury. This is especially good as we get older and have to start worrying about things like osteopenia (a weakening of bone tissue).

Strength training also helps create balance in your body, which becomes increasingly essential as we age. It’s common for us runners to become unbalanced, either from sustaining an injury or just running on the same cambered sidewalk for months on end. It’s important to be intent on creating balance when you are lifting weights or performing core exercises.

When performing resistance exercises, keep in mind that less is more. If you’re just starting out, keep the weights light and perform the movements slowly and with purpose. Be sure to warm up lightly beforehand, too, getting your heart pumping and muscles moving with a short, easy run either outside the gym or on a treadmill. When you’re finished lifting, cool down with light aerobic work to flush out some soreness that you’ll inevitably experience in the first few weeks.

STRETCHING AND YOGA

For the last decade, the benefits of stretching have been widely debated. I personally like to stretch afterward. I do not wish to confuse stretching with yoga though. My motto is: Stretch for performance, and do yoga to enhance the spirit, along with the mind-body connection. Both can be valuable and positive training components when gearing up for a race.

My wife, Deena, and I have been practicing Active Isolated Stretching (AIS) for the past 20 years for workouts and race preparation. AIS is a controlled, dynamic way of stretching muscle groups individually. You can find out more about this technique in my first book, Running Your First Marathon, or online by searching for "Active Isolated Stretching with the Whartons."

Stretching periodically throughout the day helps speed up recovery by allowing your muscles to return to their resting length, which helps promote blood flow to each and every muscle fiber. Years (err, decades!) of the repetitive pounding that comes with running contributes to the inevitable accumulation of scar tissue between your muscle fibers. Stretching helps break up these adhesions, or as massage therapists like to call them, “knots.” If you, like most nonelite runners, can’t see a massage therapist every few days, then invest in a foam roller and roll out the major muscle groups in your legs regularly. Combined with your body weight, this device breaks up the fascia between your skin and muscles to alleviate tension and assist in regaining your mobility.

Now let’s talk about yoga. I get asked all the time about the benefits of yoga on running performance. I am a big supporter of yoga for any athlete, to be honest. I believe yoga can teach all of us how to have better body awareness through guided sessions with an instructor. I do like to emphasize that performing yoga should be for the sake of getting better at yoga and not to become a better runner. View yoga as a way to calm your mind and harness the focus that leads to being productive. By balancing your physical being with your mental being, you’ll fall into alignment fairly easily before your next training session. The best runners in the world aren’t necessarily doing yoga, but they work on their flexibility and mobility every day during their training. These athletes have learned how to be present and focused from years of experience; they know how to get their minds and bodies to peak at the right time every day, week, and season. The rest of us, well, we could probably use a little more help in that department. So if time allows in your weekly schedule, try a few guided yoga sessions and see what you think.

WALKING AND HIKING

The next best thing to a daily run is a daily walk or hike. No question. Many of the Japanese elite distance runners employ walking into their training. It’s a great mode of recovery that’s low impact and will get your heart rate up enough to circulate the blood through your veins and arteries, helping flush out the metabolic waste produced from training runs. This can be a really productive way to recover mentally and physically after a tough training event or race.

Hiking is also a wonderful way to get out into nature and explore a new trail that you’ve never experienced before. You can take mental notes on what it would be like to come back and run the trail, or take a stab at the climb or rocky descent. If you’re into ultra-marathon racing, hiking is a normal part of the race strategy, too. Ever see someone in a trail race with their hands on the tops of their thighs, pushing down on them with every power step they take up a steep grade? Yep, this is a useful strategy!

Walking is a great way to warm up before a workout or a race. It is also a smart way to get in a little aerobic work when recovering from a hard event or building back fitness from some time off due to an injury or illness. Many elite athletes who have been injured work themselves up to walking for an hour with no pain before they try a training run.

INTERVAL TRAINING

Interval training is a key component to maximizing your running performance. It’s essentially alternating hard efforts with easy efforts—and it can be applied to both strength and running workouts alike. Some interval workouts are designed with specific race demands in mind, like running 6 x 800m (½ mile) with a two-minute recovery between each. The 800m portions are supposed to be run at goal 5K pace, as 6 x 800m is roughly 5K worth of work. Another example of interval training that has a wider set of parameters is that of a natural fartlek, the kind of run that I find myself on at the beginning of each season. After about two to three weeks of aerobic base training, I find myself slowly picking up the pace and accelerating for several minutes, then backing off to a slow jog again. Each hard bout of running lasts somewhere between one and three minutes, followed by one to three minutes of easy running to allow for recovery, and this pattern continues for the entirety of my 60-minute run.

What are the benefits of interval training? It’s been well proven that a quick 30-second sprint can boost human growth hormone (HGH) production by over 500 percent. Men and women all produce HGH, a wonderful molecule that floats around the body repairing damaged tissues, rebuilding them to be stronger and better than before. We need a steady diet of intervals to keep us fit, fast, and healthy.

Here’s a simple workout to get started—you don’t need a track, just a watch with a timer: Do a 20-minute warm-up running easily, followed by a few light, dynamic stretches. Then run one minute at 5K race pace, jog for a minute, and repeat. Do 8 to 12 reps. Run easily for a few minutes to cool down. And you’re all done . . . high-five! You can eventually take this workout to the track and run 8 to 12 x 400m (one lap around the track), with a one- to two-minute recovery interval between each. Try to incorporate this into your routine once a week.