R&R
Rest and recovery is one of the most important aspects of training, yet runners often tend to neglect this more than anything else. It is often a common fear that taking a rest day will derail training, or that there is simply not enough time in a day for recovery. Especially with a plan like Hansons with only one scheduled rest day, it may seem hard to fit in yet more time to focus on other aspects of training. Yet without rest and recovery we cannot be the best runners possible. Having fallen victim to injury a few times in my life, I know how important it is to listen to your body and make time to take care of yourself. Here are my suggestions for incorporating rest and recovery into your training plan.
Listen to your body
There is a difference between lacking motivation or not "feeling" like going for a run, and actually needing a day off. If you feel unwell or you have pain that is not typical soreness, take a day off. One or two days off will not cause you to backtrack in your training. The few days off upfront could save you additional days of rest later on. Your body will thank you for the day/s off and your recovery time will increase more than if you continued to train through sickness or injury.
If you feel that you might have an injury, check to see if your local physical therapy center schedules free assessments. If you do not already have a orthopedic doctor or someone specializing in running injuries, make an appointment to see one who can diagnose your injury and prescribe treatment. Do NOT keep running through an injury even if running itself does not feel painful. Do NOT consult the internet to diagnose you. I can tell you from personal experience that running through an injury will only add to recovery time later and actually causes imbalances in other parts of your body that will affect your running form and possible permanent damage. Do not be scared to see a doctor for fear that he or she will tell you not to run. It is a common misconception that if you are injured, a doctor will automatically tell you to stop training. Most doctors who specialize in running or are runners themselves do not want you to stop running unless necessary, and will do what they can to minimize the down time you may need.
Incorporate Active Recovery into your Training Plain
Yoga/Stretching
For training plans like Hansons with limited rest days, it is important to maximize your recovery between runs. The best form of active recovery is yoga. Yoga helps you "hit reset" and restore balance to your body after hard workouts. This can be as little as 5 minutes a day which most can make time for. "Legs against the wall" is one of the easiest recovery positions to perform, especially after a hard run, and reaps huge benefits in a short time period.
I review my training plan each week and select easy running days or days with light mileage and schedule this time. I subscribe to Jasyoga online, which is a fantastic resource for yoga sequences as short as 5 minutes up to an hour. Based upon the time you have available, you can pick and choose the workouts that are best for you or by specific areas of your body that you want to focus on. After difficult runs I select a recovery sequence, while on rest or easy days I will select certain body parts to focus on. While this is just one great resource for yoga, there are many videos and sites out there to find something that works for you. The few minutes a day you choose to recovery actively will help you feel refreshed and ready to take on the next workout, while preventing injury. Here are a few of my favorite yoga dvds/sites:
Jasyoga
Yoga for Runners
Yoga for Runners: Intermediate Program
Runner's World Yoga For Runners
Foam rolling
Make foam rolling part of your daily recovery plan by habitually including this process after every run. By always performing this exercise at a specific point in the day or workout will help you remember to do it. Whether you do this right after your run, before bed, or after a shower, make a point to roll your muscles or use a massage stick for a few minutes and your body will thank you the next day when you are less sore. If you are stretched on time, you can always use a massage ball on your feet while sitting at a desk, or use the foam roller while you are watching The Bachelorette! I also foam roll before a hard workout to loosen any areas of tension in my body and I find this just as beneficial as after the workout. Either way, making this a part of your daily routine will actively help you recover between workouts.
Massage
My favorite way to recover! I am not sure how I went so long without incorporating this into my recovery plan, but now I look forward to this more than anything. I used to think that sports massages were a luxury but after my hamstring injury, I realize that they can be an effective tool in recovery. During physical therapy I was receiving manual therapy (massages) and once I was discharged it was recommended that I continue to do this once or twice a month. Following this recommendation, I try to go every 3 weeks during peak training cycles and always after a race. Besides the mental rewards of relaxation and meditation that massage brings, the physical rewards have been very beneficial to me personally in recovery, correcting imbalances, and staying injury-free.
It is important to find a licensed massage therapist that is right for you. While massage is wonderful, I recommend seeing someone who specializes in sports or athletic massage as these therapists understand how to work carefully with overworked muscles and can focus on specific areas of a runners body that may need more attention than non-runners. Always talk to your therapist about areas that are bothering you and let him or her know if you have recently completed a race with greater stress placed on your body before you start your session. There is nothing wrong with visiting a few therapists and deciding which one is right for you. My therapist is located at a local small massage and yoga business that focuses less on the clinical aspect of massage and more on the holistic and spiritual side of massage. I find that these sessions really restore me physically and mentally and I leave a much better person.
Nutrition
What you eat and drink after workouts also impacts how quickly you can recover between runs. Hydrating and fueling properly after a run will provide your body with the nutrients it needs to rebuild muscle and replace lost fluids. Eating and drinking anti-inflammatory foods is also another great way to recover without having to rely on drugs for aches and pains. Soreness or inflammation are not always bad as this is a sign your body is repairing itself. Over-medicating will delay this response or can cause you to miss the warning signs of injury. Some of my favorite anti-inflammatory foods are ginger, turmeric, tart cherries, blueberries, and strawberries. I drink a ginger and turmeric tea every evening and notice that I wake up the next day with less inflammation and soreness.
Sleep
Lastly, sleep is so very important in recovery. This is when your body does most of the repairing and healing. During peak training weeks leading up to a race, try to head to bed earlier than usual and this will help you feel less run down and over trained. Naps are also a great way to get additional rest your body needs without having to head to bed earlier. I love coming home from an early morning run and napping afterwards as I can wake up feeling refreshed after a short period of time and most of the soreness from the run has already begun to dissipate.
Once you have planned active recovery into your training for a few weeks, you will begin to reap the benefits and hopefully make these habits a necessity going forward.
Listen to your body
There is a difference between lacking motivation or not "feeling" like going for a run, and actually needing a day off. If you feel unwell or you have pain that is not typical soreness, take a day off. One or two days off will not cause you to backtrack in your training. The few days off upfront could save you additional days of rest later on. Your body will thank you for the day/s off and your recovery time will increase more than if you continued to train through sickness or injury.
If you feel that you might have an injury, check to see if your local physical therapy center schedules free assessments. If you do not already have a orthopedic doctor or someone specializing in running injuries, make an appointment to see one who can diagnose your injury and prescribe treatment. Do NOT keep running through an injury even if running itself does not feel painful. Do NOT consult the internet to diagnose you. I can tell you from personal experience that running through an injury will only add to recovery time later and actually causes imbalances in other parts of your body that will affect your running form and possible permanent damage. Do not be scared to see a doctor for fear that he or she will tell you not to run. It is a common misconception that if you are injured, a doctor will automatically tell you to stop training. Most doctors who specialize in running or are runners themselves do not want you to stop running unless necessary, and will do what they can to minimize the down time you may need.
Incorporate Active Recovery into your Training Plain
Yoga/Stretching
For training plans like Hansons with limited rest days, it is important to maximize your recovery between runs. The best form of active recovery is yoga. Yoga helps you "hit reset" and restore balance to your body after hard workouts. This can be as little as 5 minutes a day which most can make time for. "Legs against the wall" is one of the easiest recovery positions to perform, especially after a hard run, and reaps huge benefits in a short time period.
I review my training plan each week and select easy running days or days with light mileage and schedule this time. I subscribe to Jasyoga online, which is a fantastic resource for yoga sequences as short as 5 minutes up to an hour. Based upon the time you have available, you can pick and choose the workouts that are best for you or by specific areas of your body that you want to focus on. After difficult runs I select a recovery sequence, while on rest or easy days I will select certain body parts to focus on. While this is just one great resource for yoga, there are many videos and sites out there to find something that works for you. The few minutes a day you choose to recovery actively will help you feel refreshed and ready to take on the next workout, while preventing injury. Here are a few of my favorite yoga dvds/sites:
Jasyoga
Yoga for Runners
Yoga for Runners: Intermediate Program
Runner's World Yoga For Runners
Foam rolling
Make foam rolling part of your daily recovery plan by habitually including this process after every run. By always performing this exercise at a specific point in the day or workout will help you remember to do it. Whether you do this right after your run, before bed, or after a shower, make a point to roll your muscles or use a massage stick for a few minutes and your body will thank you the next day when you are less sore. If you are stretched on time, you can always use a massage ball on your feet while sitting at a desk, or use the foam roller while you are watching The Bachelorette! I also foam roll before a hard workout to loosen any areas of tension in my body and I find this just as beneficial as after the workout. Either way, making this a part of your daily routine will actively help you recover between workouts.
Massage
My favorite way to recover! I am not sure how I went so long without incorporating this into my recovery plan, but now I look forward to this more than anything. I used to think that sports massages were a luxury but after my hamstring injury, I realize that they can be an effective tool in recovery. During physical therapy I was receiving manual therapy (massages) and once I was discharged it was recommended that I continue to do this once or twice a month. Following this recommendation, I try to go every 3 weeks during peak training cycles and always after a race. Besides the mental rewards of relaxation and meditation that massage brings, the physical rewards have been very beneficial to me personally in recovery, correcting imbalances, and staying injury-free.
It is important to find a licensed massage therapist that is right for you. While massage is wonderful, I recommend seeing someone who specializes in sports or athletic massage as these therapists understand how to work carefully with overworked muscles and can focus on specific areas of a runners body that may need more attention than non-runners. Always talk to your therapist about areas that are bothering you and let him or her know if you have recently completed a race with greater stress placed on your body before you start your session. There is nothing wrong with visiting a few therapists and deciding which one is right for you. My therapist is located at a local small massage and yoga business that focuses less on the clinical aspect of massage and more on the holistic and spiritual side of massage. I find that these sessions really restore me physically and mentally and I leave a much better person.
Nutrition
What you eat and drink after workouts also impacts how quickly you can recover between runs. Hydrating and fueling properly after a run will provide your body with the nutrients it needs to rebuild muscle and replace lost fluids. Eating and drinking anti-inflammatory foods is also another great way to recover without having to rely on drugs for aches and pains. Soreness or inflammation are not always bad as this is a sign your body is repairing itself. Over-medicating will delay this response or can cause you to miss the warning signs of injury. Some of my favorite anti-inflammatory foods are ginger, turmeric, tart cherries, blueberries, and strawberries. I drink a ginger and turmeric tea every evening and notice that I wake up the next day with less inflammation and soreness.
Sleep
Lastly, sleep is so very important in recovery. This is when your body does most of the repairing and healing. During peak training weeks leading up to a race, try to head to bed earlier than usual and this will help you feel less run down and over trained. Naps are also a great way to get additional rest your body needs without having to head to bed earlier. I love coming home from an early morning run and napping afterwards as I can wake up feeling refreshed after a short period of time and most of the soreness from the run has already begun to dissipate.
Once you have planned active recovery into your training for a few weeks, you will begin to reap the benefits and hopefully make these habits a necessity going forward.
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