Hello everyone this is my first (but probably not last) entry on this forum. I have been running for the past three months on nothing but the pavement. Although the running has been going well I am worried about possible damage to my knees/ankles. Is there anything to be gained from area specific weight training, or should I look for a better route to run, including grassland, athletic tracks etc..
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However, now that spring is sprung I'll belooking to go out on trails a lot more. I find running on grass quite hard going.
Firstly, running surfaces. Whilst RW mag would have us all believe that every runner lives 30 seconds from a running track it's not always the case. Therefore, you need to make the most of what you've got available. If you can, run on the road rather than the pavement - tarmac is very slightly more forgiving than concrete - and saves the constant up and down of kerbs and driveways. Grassland isn't necessarily much better for your ankles and knees unless you can guarantee it's flat because the uneven surfaces can twist your joints into awkward positions.
Obviously the best place to run is on a track - or failing that the treadmill. In this weather, however, you really don't want to be stuck indoors so I'd save the treadmill sessions for once a week and use them for speed or interval training.
Onto weight training, from what I know a lot of runners do nothing but running but there are advantages to doing a couple of weights sessions in the gym each week. Strengthening the quads and hamstrings on the legs will of course help your running, as will calf raises. And strengthening your arms will help as you use your arms to propel you along whilst running. In addition, working on your abs (stomach) will improve your posture whilst running - have I convinced you yet?!
Anyway, see how you get on! Keep your training steady - don't increase your mileage by more than 10% a week. And if you haven't done so already, get yourself to a specialist running shop and make sure you get a suitable pair of trainers for running outside.
I much prefer running offroad because the scenery is often better and there are no cars to get in your way. The ground is uneven which stresses your ankles and similarly you need to accustom yourself to this gradually. But when its been warm and sunny, offroad paths can be baked as hard as tarmac anyway. If you're going to run offroad the best defence is to get some low shoes (e.g. fell shoes or spikes) as these reduce the twisting stresses around the ankle.
1. It's actually the "popping" of the fluid between bones in the ankle joint as it moves suddenly from one part to another - causing a sudden bulge.
2. It's a sudden tightening of the tendons - like when you pull an elastic band tight.
Personally, I'd be more inclined to believe the second one. Particularly because it's affected my toe movements, so the tendons must be involved somehow. But thankfully not as bad as I originally thought.
Grass running is also good, but the best is the hard sand at the shoreline of the beach (not that this helps us city folk).
nb. I've read that getting used to running on uneven surfaces like bridle paths/grass etc. helps prepare your ankles for those awful cobbles under Tower Bridge!
It was the mat ON cobbles that did for my hip last time - far better to run on the cobbles coz at least you can see the sharp ones clearly - the mat hides the dodgy ones.
Yeah, sandy beaches are great. The soft stuffs hard work, the shoreline stuff ideal but then the rippled stuff washed compact feels REALLY hard.
Generally I run on paths in parks - fairly solid, but flat anda bit more forgiving than pavement.
re astroturf/other "artificial surfaces". The problem with many of these for footie, rugger (even yankee football in stadia) is that when you change direction your foot can stop immediately, so good is the grip.
That sounds ideal, but actually greatly increases the load on joints compared with grass, where you'll tend to slide a bit.
Cheers!
Flat grass is good but I've got nothing bigger than a couple of footie pitches nearby...best are canal towpaths and disused railway lines.
My sympathy to the lone girl runners who have to stick to the pavement...would do my head in.