Weekly Recap: Coaching Session!

By Janelle @ Run With No Regrets | injury prevention

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Weekly Recap: Coaching Session!

Mar 03

Happy March! Due to my endless bout of sickness, I’m still working on getting back in the swing of things when it comes to working out. But I think I’m still making slow, positive progress. Here’s a review of what I’ve been up to the past few weeks.

Learning how to build strength in my running muscles by working with a running coach! Click To Tweet

Coaching Assessment:

Back on President’s Day I finally got to meet Coach Kristy for my first running assessment! It was super cold outside, but we made it work! First, we went over my injury history and running goals, and then we took it outside!

I did a series of tests with Kristy while she watched my form and determined my weaknesses. She checked out my posture and strength as I did one legged squats, stretched my hips, planked, and a few other exercises. At one point I even had to take my socks off while she checked the flexibility of my toes!

The good news was that my balance was actually pretty good. But there was definitely a weakness in my hips, which I was already aware of, so that’s got to be worked on more aggressively.

I also did a short run where she watched my form. The main takeaway from was that apparently I have inward rotation of my knees when I run. I never noticed that! So having strong hips help with that too. When it comes to running, I need to make sure my glutes are activated while I run, because otherwise, other muscle groups get involved, which can lead to injury (and I know all about that).

Here are my homework assignments moving forward:

Running:

Get back to running 3 days a week for about 2-3 miles max, and increase mileage no more than 10% each week
Foam roll my calves and quads after each run
Perform kneeling hip flexor stretch about a minute on each side after each run
Massage plantar fascia regularly (good thing I have that foot roller!) and do foot strengthening exercises with a towel (I used to do this in physical therapy)
Perform drills that encourage proper running form before I run: Butt Kicks, exaggerated marches and skips

Posture:

Keep an eye on my posture every day!
Keep weight equally distributed between the forefoot and rearfoot
Correct any arching in my lower back (anterior pelvic tilt)

Hip and Glute Strengthening:

Single Leg Squat, moving the glute downwards and backwards for 10 reps on each leg
Single Lead Deadlift with dumbbells, rotating, or on unstable surface, 10 reps on each leg
Hip Hikes, for at least 3 sets of 20 reps
Clamshells with a Theraband above the knee. Keep back, butt, and feet aligned and perform slowly 3 sets of 10 reps
Side Step with Theraband above ankle the length of a room back forth, two times
Bridges, 3 sets of 10 reps. Start with simple bridge and progress to single legged bridge
Plank with Glute Lifts, hold for 5 seconds and then lower, 10-15 reps on each leg

I had a great time. Kristy was so nice and really knowledgeable. I loved her enthusiasm and she really seemed passionate about helping me. The most amazing thing to me is that she’s given birth to her first child just a few short weeks ago, and here she is helping me!

It’s going to take quite a bit of work to be able to fully incorporate this program, but I look forward to the challenge. Then hopefully, when I’m ready to train for a race, I’ll be ready to go and ready to call Kristy!

Last Week’s Workouts:

Monday 2/10 to Friday 2/14: Hip strengthening exercises: clamshells and variations. Balancing exercises: Pistol squats and one legged deadlifts with a medicine ball. Half an hour on the spinning bike. Ab and Butt 30 minute workout with Nike Training Club app.

Saturday 2/15: An amazing run in Central Park! Bret and I ended up going 5.16 miles on our weekend getaway to NYC. There were so many runners out and the snowy landscape was so beautiful, I wish I had taken more pictures! Unfortunately my knees and back were really hurting during and after our run, which tells me it’s time for a new pair of running shoes! I didn’t do a proper warm up, so I was hurting for days!

Me after a 5 mile run in Central Park!

Monday 2/17 to Saturday 2/22: After my coaching session, I started to slowly incorporate the recommended exercises during the week. Hip hikes are really challenging for me right now, but I know I have to do them!

Monday 2/24 to Saturday 3/1: The sickness took another bad turn which made me pretty useless when it came to exercise. But I did go for a nice 2 mile run on Saturday, and I’m still keeping an eye on posture! I think I had some soreness just trying to keep my back straight…

It’s one of my favorite days of the week, #Bestfoot Monday! Now that I’m feeling better, I want to do my best to make sure I do my prehab exercises 5 times a week, keep an eye on my posture, and stay healthy! How were your workouts this past week?