Category Archives: Marathon Training
The Benefits Of Periodization Training
Robert Forster, CEO & Founder of Phase IV and Forster Physical Therapy has teamed with Herbalife to create a fitness program called Herbalife 24Fit. Tired of encountering ill-advised training programs that only cause more injury, Robert created a new approach to physical therapy, which is divided into phases that follow the body’s natural healing and growth patterns. His practice in Santa Monica, California, provides athletes with effective, scientific and injury-free solutions for health and performance.
The 24fit program uses the very science that has made Robert so successful. This includes periodization training principles which recognises that all exercise is much less effective if rest and recovery periods are not provided.
“Recovery should be so well understood and actively enhanced that it becomes a significant component in training” – Tudor Bompa, Father of modern periodization theories.
Have you ever thought about why for over three decades the Russians were dominating almost every sport? The answer is something called ‘Periodization’. In the early 1960’s, Tudor Bompa, who is considered the ‘Father of Modern Periodization’, influenced the way Russian sports scientists approached training. Although Russian sports scientists had tried dividing the training year into different periods in the 1940’s, it wasn’t until Tudor Bompa’s revisions in the 1960’s that people really started seeing results. Perodization was a method that included phases of training that promoted rest.
Prevention and Treatment of Running Injuries
Whether you are a seasoned runner or new to the sport, every time you run the tissues in your lower body, pelvis, trunk and even your shoulders and neck, are subject to a stress load that will either make you stronger or break you down, depending on your running technique, training adjuncts and recovery efforts.
No one ever got stronger during a workout; it is only after hard work that your fitness and injury prevention capacity evolves. The stress placed on your body during running stimulates a healing reaction from the body that will result in a “shoring” up of the tissue as your body attempts to get stronger and better able to tolerate the load. If you help your body adapt to the stress by following the science of warm up and recovery you become stronger and more resilient to injury.
Before workouts
Hydration and Nutrition: Recovery efforts need to begin before your run even starts. Be sure you are well hydrated and nourished going into all workouts. You must have taken in calories in the form of a meal or snack within two hours of the start of your run and be sure your are drinking regularly throughout the day.
Stretching: is an essential part of your warm up. Stretching muscles and connective tissue structures (tendons ligaments and fascia) to their normal resting length will allow for proper running mechanics and makes them less susceptible to the stress involved with running.
Warm Up: Always begin with a slow pace and take five minutes to build up to your training pace. The slow increase in tissue temperature makes your tissues less susceptible to injury and improves the lubrication of the joints to avoid excess wear and tear to joint surfaces.
During Workouts
Form: Maintain good form throughout your workout by focusing in the three aspects of good mechanics:
- Arm swing: swing the arm as one unit with all movement from the shoulder. Keep your arms tracking at your sides.
- Knee lift: focus on leading your leg swing by lifting the knees in front
- Turn over: keep your feet moving! Cadence is defined at the number of steps you take per minute. A higher step count prevents over striding which is the number one cause of running injuries.
Hydration and Calories: Towards the end of a workout it is important to stay well hydrated and maintain energy stores with adequate calorie intake. This way you are not subjecting yourself to unnecessary stress that will only add to your recovery needs.
Don’t Sprint: Never sprint or pick up your pace at the end of a training run when you are fatigued and most susceptible to muscle and tendon strains. In addition it makes no sense loading your muscles up with lactic acid and before shutting down your circulatory system.
After Workouts
Cool Down: All workouts must end with a “cool down” to flush the waste products from your muscles. This can be as simple as a five minute jog or walk to allow the “muscle pump” to rid the muscles of waste products and assist your recovery.
Nutrition and Hydration: There exists a 15 minute window after your workout that your body is best equipped to take in calories and begin the recovery process. Immediately after runs is when you should begin replenishing the fuel you have spent. Add some protein to the mix and it will jump start the repair of the muscle damage suffered in that workout.
Stretching: Stretching not only helps “wring” the waste products out of your muscles but helps the muscle and tendons “heal” with a functional scarring as they adapt to the stress placed on them in the workout. This is how to toughen your body against injury
Foam Roller: This is the biggest advance in recovery techniques and injury prevention since stretching became a scientific training adjunct. The foam roller flattens the muscles and tendons and breaks adhesions that form as the body attempts to heal and recover from the stress of training. The foam roller also further assists the removal of waste products from the muscle. Tip: after workouts stretch and roll when the tissues temperatures are still elevated. This helps elongate the connective tissues and will make the foam roller experience less painful.
Ice: The “frozen miracle” is great for recovery and limits the inflammation that results when tissues are strained during workouts. Don’t wait for pain to ice! Ice tight and tired muscles and joints to avoid injury and the time you will need to recover when injury occurs.
When Injury Occurs: There is a sport medicine idiom that states that it takes two days of active recovery for every day you run in pain. If you feel pain in the same area of your body twice in any 7 day period, consider yourself uninjured and start immediately to address the problem before it gets worse. Rest alone does not fix running injuries. All rehabilitation efforts must be active, not passive to be effective.
Can you Run with an Injury? If you are having pain in your daily activities you cannot run. If you cannot run pain free, you cannot run (It is not good enough that the pain subsides after you warm up) However, you need to find a cross- training modality that is pain free to maintain your fitness. If your injury is only bothersome with speed work, hills and longer distances you might be able to continue to run as you seek active rehabilitation. First you must check to see if your shoes have broken down, and if so, replace them. Cut your weekly mileage in half, and avoid all higher intensity workouts, i.e. speed work, hills and longer distances. Stretch three times a day, followed by icing with ice cubes and water in a bag (not a gel pack) for twenty minutes each application. If the pain persists, seek immediate evaluation by a qualified clinician with experience treating runners.
By Robert Forster, PT
Phase IV Run Lab Analysis clinic
Wednesday, January 30th, 7:00pm – 9:00pm
> Run Gait Check and Shoe Check
> Flexibility & Posture Screening
> Training Plan Review &
> Nutrition Optimization Class
The Bio-mechanics of Efficient, Injury Free Running
Becoming the efficient running machine that evolution has intended requires a sound strength & flexibility program and a basic understanding of a few simple laws of physics as they relate to the movement of our extremities. Improper running technique often results in injury and always results in an inefficient use of energy stores which is one major reason people “hit the wall” and wind up walking the last several miles of the marathon!
Running Mechanics are governed by some simple laws of physics. Human locomotion is a cyclic repetition of extremity movement performed to transport the body from one place to the other with the least amount of energy expenditure. Evolutionary changes in human anatomy occurring 2 million years ago allowed humans to run long distances in search of food. These changes in body type from ape-like tree dwelling creatures to the way we look today, provided for an efficiency of movement that improved our chances of survival. The arms evolved to be shorter and balance the cyclic movement of the legs better. The larger muscles of the leg migrated upward toward the hip to allow a lighter lower leg to swing through the air with greater ease and less wind resistance. The feet became bigger and provided more surface area of the sole to absorb the shock of the body crashing down on the earth and the lumbar vertebrae became larger to withstand the greater forces generated by a more upright posture.
It is now clear that the ability to travel long distances economically in competition for food is the key trait that forever separated humans from our predecessors and destined us to succeed like no other species to dominate the planet. We were born to run and have many anatomical features and specializations that permit us to run well. However our sedentary lifestyle has robbed our bodies of the strength and flexibility necessary to exploit these built in efficiencies. It takes specific training to regain our potential for efficient and economical long distance running.
ABC’s of Running Mechanics: You will reach your highest genetic potential as a runner only by training your body to be able to attain the proper bio-mechanics. This requires an effective stretching and strengthening program to reestablish proper mechanics and harvest all the built in energy savings therein. It is never too late to improve mechanics and your economy of motion. We focus on these three aspects of bio- mechanics and create a personalized program of strength and flexibility and running technique drills that work together to create smooth and efficient running.
A) Arm Swing: Contrary to what you might think, the upper extremities play a big role in the act of running. The arms move forward when the opposite leg swings forward to minimize trunk rotation and save energy. The arms must swing like a pendulum with all the energy savings built into the pendulum like action of the upper extremity. The elbows should not open and close but remain at a fixed angle.
B) Knee Rise: The degree your knee rises when the swing leg comes to a forward position and before it hits the ground is critical to minimize the braking action that occurs with each foot strike on the ground. Every millimeter in front of your center of gravity that the foot strikes the ground the more this event brakes your forward momentum and wastes energy. The swing leg must not hit the ground moving in a forward direction but instead after reaching peak knee height in the front of the body the lower leg must start to move backward to land as close as possible below your center of gravity to minimize the lost of energy that occurs with each foot strike.
C) Stride Frequency: The number one cause of injury and energy inefficiency is over striding i.e. foot strike way out in front of your center of gravity. This is also a function of the number of steps you take per minute while running. Stride frequency and stride length are inversely related. The more steps you take, the shorter the stride length of each step and the closer under your body your foot will strike the ground, and thus less energy is wasted on braking your forward momentum. Secondly, the more steps you take per minute, the less time the foot spends on the ground each step. This limits the time the foot has to pronate and prevents the energy lost to over-pronation. Limiting over-pronation also serves to help prevent the myriad of injuries related to this common bio-mechanic condition.
Learn more about the creation of efficient running technique in a free lecture and see how easy it is to incorporate the training strategies that will help you achieve injury free, peak performance.
Join Robert Forster, Physical Therapist to 43 Olympic Track Field Medalists at Fleet Feet Sports (16545 Ventura Blvd., Encino) Monday November 5th at 7pm. for a talk “Improving Run Technique to go faster and Prevent Injury”.
Call Phase IV at 310.582.8212
Article by Robert Forster, PT, Founder & CEO of Phase IV and Forster Physical Therapy, National Spokesperson, Author, Physical Therapist to 42 Olympic Medalists, NBA and Grand Slam Champions and Member of the Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness.
