Running is an incredibly efficient way to stay in shape and burn enormous amounts of calories within one activity. The only problem with a long running career is that somewhere along the way you are going to find yourself with an injury of some kind; this is just inevitable. There are 5 different running injuries that are the most common and we are going to go through each of them. It is important to understand each and every one of the most common injuries so you know how to treat them when they arise.

Top Running Injury Locations

1 Stress Fractures

These are by far the most common running injury and are an injury that each and every runner has experienced at one time or another. It will begin with the symptoms of a simple sore muscle but you will quickly discover your muscle pain is not disappearing. The longer it lingers the more likely it is a stress fracture. A stress facture is a small crack on the outer layer of your bone. The only cure for this type of running injury is to rest and take plenty of calcium through your diet to help heal the crack as quickly as possible. During this healing stage you will want to avoid drinking diet soft drinks as this will inhibit the calcium.

2 Tendonitis

is of course a running injury you have no doubt heard of. This is a running injury focussing on inflamed tendons. Your tendon will begin to ache first thing in the morning and will only continue to ache as the day goes on if no treatment is administered. This can be an extremely painful running injury if left untreated. Tendonitis is generally caused by running too far, too fast and your leg muscles are not flexible or acute enough to handle the stress. This can also be associated with how worn out your running shoes are.

3 Plantar Fasciitis

A nightmare of inflammation of the bottom of your foot. Plantar Fasciitis a very strong tendon in the bottom of your foot and one that is stretched each and every time you take a step whether you are walking or running. Tight calf muscles can lead to this type of inflammation over time and is generally the number one cause of Plantar Fasciitis. The first symptom of this injury will feel like a simple bruise on the bottom of your foot and as it goes untreated the more painful it can become.

4 Runner’s Knee

is yet another popular running injury that should be discussed. Runner’s knee is a direct result of too much training and too hard. You will feel most of the pain in your knee cap because scarring has occurred within the tissue which is forcing your knee cap to sit improperly causing the pain. Lack of flexibility or stretching before or after running is definitely a contributing factor to this injury.

5 Shin Splints

Shin Splints is a common term for pain in the shin region. It can be a misleading term and most sports medicine professionals try to avoid using it. This is because shin pain and ‘Shin Splints’ can be due to several different conditions. One of the most common shin conditions that gets labelled ‘Shin Splints’ is Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome.

Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome is fairly common in runners. People suffering from Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome will feel shin pain on the inner side of the shin during exercise and also at rest. It is important to consult a sports doctor who can distinguish Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome from other causes of shin pain (‘Shin Splints’) such as Compartment Syndrome and stress fracture.

As you can see there are many injuries that accompany running on a regular basis and the treatment for each of them is rest. You do not want to continue running while suffering from any one of these injuries. Take the time to heal so you can resume running safely.

In a previous post I talked about the four major ways to boost recovery time.

In this article I break down each step with the exact ways that allow me to go from so sore I cant walk one day, to able to run the next. If you haven’t read the general guide on how to boost recovery time, please jump back and read it now.

This has been a great way for me to go from so sore I cant walk one day to doing a workout the next, the faster you recover/get stronger the faster you can rinse an repeat, getting better each cycle. This method continues to prove itself to me time and time again, the most recent time being just last friday as I prepped for a big Division 2 college track meet. The meet was a complete success for me and I give credit to the time and effort I’ve spent working on this muscle recovery method to get my legs back 100% before the races.

A Muscle Recovery Pyramid

Note: These methods are in order according to how constantly you should be doing them, not the order. This guide works best when all 4 steps are combined for a 24+ hour time period.

Step One- REST (24 hrs)

As said before all steps should be done while you are healing not one before the other. Resting comes first because of its base importance much like grain and breads in the nutrition pyramid. Resting does not necessarily mean sitting on the couch with your legs up all day. Instead,

• keep  your muscles from reaching a point of work that they begin to break down. As muscles break down with use, this step is dependent on how broken down the muscle is already.
• Do not do anything at, or two steps below the intensity of what you did to make you sore (judging of a ten step scale) this is your maximum output while you heal.
• Stay active (at or below your maximum output) and as your muscles heal, raise your intensity until you are 100% again.

Step Two- ICE (15-20 min X 1-2 times every 24 hrs)

• Ice should be applied directly after a workout and generally two times a day is all that will be effective. There is no reason to over ice.
• Ice should be applied as directly to the skin as possible, do not use clothing, towels ect to buffer the cold. (By using this method, cold damage will not occur in 15 min as it would with prolonged exposure from the cold).
• The method of application is up to you- the better surface area you cover the more effective icing will become. This is why ice baths are so effective.
• NOTE- Do not over ice, do not expose your sore areas to over 30min of direct cold exposure in one icing session. Balance ice like balancing a diet; not to little, not to much.

Step Three- PROTEIN (1 gram = 1 pound of body weight)

• Find how much protein you need.
  • How much do you weigh?
  • Weight = Protein
• Yes Kentucky Fried Chicken and Long John Silvers have protein, but we want to find foods with protein that are
  • A) High in protein
  • B) low in calories
  • C) Tastes good, aka edible.
  • D) CHEAP

If you’ve looked around, that itinerary is a real challenge: here is a small list to get you started in order of rating:

1. EAS Myoplex Original (Strawberry Cream)
   • 300 calories
   • 42 grams of protein
   • Portable/Affordable at the cost of lunch meat
   • Great taste (yes its a pre-mixed protein shake; but I’m a VERY picky person in the area of protein shakes and I actually like it. Its a winner, trust me.)
   • Tons and tons of vitamins and minerals
     • Since vitamins and minerals play a part in recovery (talked about later on) This shake wins first place because of its great taste, high protein/calorie ratio, affordability and duel use.
2. HEB Deli Fresh brand of lunch meat
   1. • These stats are for the whole pound of lunch meat, they are seasoned and have variety; not a bad lunch for the price.
   • 250 calories
   • 40-45 grams of protein
   • Portable for about 3-4 hrs
   • Good taste
   • $2-3
3. Premier Nutrition Protein Bar
   • 300 calories
   • 30 grams of protein
   • Portable/Affordable
   • Good taste

Step Four- ANTIOXIDANTS (Vitamin A, C and E; The more the better)

For antioxidants it is important to:

• Not drown yourself in them in one sitting
• Space your consumption so your stomach and intestines can digest the highest percentage of what you put in
• Find the most antioxidants for the least calories/sugars (most high concentration vitamins are found in juices with calories and sugars galore)

The best source out there to my knowledge so far?

Simply Nutritious Morning Blend

• One Serving (out of 4 total) Contains:
  • 130 calories
  • Vitamin A- 150%
  • Vitamin C- 200%
  • Vitamin E- 290%
• This means that in total there are:
  • 520 calories
  • Vitamin A- 600%
  • Vitamin C- 800%
  • Vitamin E- 1160%

Taken one 8oz serving throughout the day so your body can absorb efficiently will provide maximum benefits. Each vitamin is water soluble and causes no negative side effects from high amounts, the biggest gain for a runner? Quickened muscle recovery! Again if you have any inquiries as to why this method works please check out the previous article about how to boost recovery time.

Wether you are a competitive runner needing to get rid of muscle soreness for the next workout or the average runner just hating being sore here is a number of ways you can get rid of soreness NOW instead of LATER.

• Steroids-

  That one is a joke, but to be honest thats the best method. There is a small misconception that using steroids results in bigger muscles. However, steroids simply provide the body with a way to radically, unnaturally recover and rebuild itself. In this way an athlete can run themselves into the ground, yet via steroids be fully recovered the next day ready to make unnatural muscular gains again through rigorous work. Steroids are awful for your body, and your body should NEVER be sped up 4X its natural pace, never use steroids unless a specific medical condition requires you to.

• R.I-C.E-

  Rest Ice Compress Elevate is a household phrase in the athletic world for how to deal with a general injury. Minus the “C.E” will land you a base step to recovery from muscle soreness.

  • Rest-

    When you run your muscles become deteriorated and the fibers that muscle is made out of begin to tear with use. As your body heals the damage that your muscle fibers have suffered it creates more than the original number of fibers and/or with greater strength (depending on what type of muscle building you are doing). The period in which your body is sore is also a period of time where your body is trying to reform the muscle fibers you deteriorated during your workout. Because of this resting is a no brainer as it allows time for your body to heal itself. This doesn’t mean skip you have to skip your runs, but it does suggest you don’t cause unnecessary fatigue to muscles whose fibers are already torn up from use. There is actually a surprising amount that you can do while you are in a rest/recovery state but it is up to you to find that balance. After 8 years of running I have found there are many ways to rest and recover depending on how fast you want to get better. For this article I am focusing sharing with you the basic guidelines of how I have found to maximize recovery time. This is based off of a detailed plan I’ve created and use myself.

  • Ice-

    This is a major step to recovery; icing a sore muscle will reduce the lactic acid in the muscle causing that “sore” feeling. In addition it will bring down inflammation if administered directly after your workout and help to limit your soreness. Every time you run or exercise your muscle fibers tear as they are used. As they rebuild you experience more muscle mass along with muscle fatigue and/or soreness. Picture that expansion as the muscle fibers tear and the ice helping to compress and minimize the damage as well as stop lactic acid leakage.

• Protein-

  Otherwise known as a polypeptide, protein contains amino acids essential in manufacturing muscle. It is needless to say how invaluable a high protein diet could be in aiding recovery time. As your body recovers, providing it the right building blocks to rebuild itself is a must. In general, when I want to get better as quick as possible I will up my protein intake above the average I take in per day. This doesn’t mean I splurge, in fact I keep my calorie intake the exact same via through searching for food with high protein and few calories. For a specific list of foods I use along with their surprising stats here is a mini guide to get you started, this guide also lists the number one Antioxidant Juice Drink to up your antioxidant intake 600% MINIUM. Its all natural of course, more information on antioxidants below.

• Antioxidants-

  New research is suggesting that high amounts of antioxidants such as Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin E can significantly increase muscle recovery time. In fact, from personal experience this, mixed with icing and a boost of protein has been very effective in recovering from muscle fatigue before a big race.

  In a recent study in which male subjects were given vitamin E capsules and put on a lifting program, blood-borne free radicals were reduced and muscle damage was minimized. Vitamin E initiated the healing process, allowing the muscles to rebuild sooner. The faster the muscles begin to repair themselves, the more they’ll grow. This is how you get bigger and stronger.

  “Our research supports the claim that vitamin E can significantly reduce the damaging effects of high-intensity resistance exercise,” explains Bruce Craig, Ph.D., Ball State University physiology professor and the conductor of the study. “However, our study showed that short-term usage does not enhance muscular strength or power.”

  Should you implement E into your diet if your goal is to pack on muscle? Absolutely, says Craig.

]]> http://runhardaustin.com/2010/02/how-to-boost-recovery-time/feed/ 28 http://runhardaustin.com/2010/02/what-are-the-best-running-shoes-for-you/ http://runhardaustin.com/2010/02/what-are-the-best-running-shoes-for-you/#comments Sat, 27 Feb 2010 18:05:50 +0000 warren http://runhardaustin.com/?p=54

A lot of people swear by a certain type of shoe that they run in. A lot of people, though, do a specific kind of running. A soccer player would never wear track spikes, a football player would never wear Brooks and a runner would never wear converse.

Just like there are specific shoes for specific sports there are also specific shoes for specific runners.

New Balance

New balance has typically been known for their specialization in athletic shoes. However, a large part of their sales goes to runners who are more recreational runners than avid or competitive runners. My mother had a few pairs of New Balance and loved them. She would go on 3-5 mile runs every so often to stay in shape and keep active; they worked for her. New Balance might not be crafted for the elite runners but they are solid shoes featuring

• Not Flexible
• Maximum support
• Maximum cushioning

Any beginner runner or recreational runner will find these are very solid shoes

Brooks

Brooks and Adias and Ascics have battled it out the title of best competitive running shoe for a long time. While Ascics and Adias are great running shoes, Brooks has a hair over the competition. Brooks crafts beautiful running shoes, a large percentage of high school, college and serious runners use them. Many colleges (including my own) supply their runners with Brooks brand shoes by default because of their many beneficial features. Brooks shoes are made to provide enough of what is needed in a shoe to protect your feet, but using a minimalist approach brooks has created a sturdy shoe with long distance capabilities.

• Medium flexibility
• Efficient support system
• Balanced cushioning
• Durable

Runners who are looking for a quality shoe for quality work will fall in love with Brook’s design.

Nike Free

For a long time Michael Jordan and basketball has been simultaneous with the word Nike Swoosh logo. They made Nike Air, Nike Zoom and then Nike made Nike Free. The Free series started as a revolution to running, but in all honesty it like with any new invention it started as a Model T and ended as a convertible. The shoes are designed with enormous grooves like a checkerboard on the bottom of the shoe. This allows the shoe to being 360+ degrees making it the most flexible shoe in the world. The second big difference is their all-cloth construction. The shoes are VERY durable and as strong as their counterparts, however, by using an all cloth method of creation “lightweight” is the Nike Free’s middle name. Lightweight, flexible, durable, and with an extreme minimalist approach, absurdly responsive these shoes are unique. Nike Frees are also for advanced runners. Because of the lack of support, flexibility and cushioning these shoes require your legs to stabilize themselves rather than relying on the shoe. This A) can strengthen a strong runners stabilizing muscles to prevent injury and heal shin splints or B) CAUSE an injury in a less than fit runner who’s legs NEED the support of regular shoes.

• Extremely Lightweight
• Extremely Flexible
• Extremely Durable
• No support
• Minimum Cushioning

Despite Nike Free’s minimum cushioning these shoes are very comfortable and a strong runner will love the extra strength they provide during training. The shoes cause stabilizing tendons to strengthen as it leaves them on their own, without help. This strength can help prevent injuries as well as heal existing ones. I personally had deathly painful shin splints and within half a year of switching to Nike Free 3.0 shoes reduced my shin splints by 80%+.

Reading books and learning via word of mouth there are tons of suggested ways to stay hydrated; what to drink, how much, when, where, what temperature should the water be ect ect. Too many rules, in fact; for instance wikihow.com states that one should carry water with you everywhere, keep a glass of water next you you. In addition to this your suggested to wear a digital watch that beeps at the beginning of each hour (to make sure you remember to drink water of course) + a water purification system and more…

This is an introduction to a new way to go about getting hydrated that is much more custom fit per runner rather than a by-the-book, one size fits all philosophy.

The easiest way to find how much water you need is by staying away from the symptoms of dehydration. If you have no symptoms of dehydration, by default; you are perfectly hydrated. Here are the top things to watch for.

1. Feeling thirsty? Drink a little extra, the rule of thumb here is that if you are feeling thirsty you are already suffering from the first signs of dehydration. Some people get thirsty faster than others, hence some people dehydrate faster, whatever your case drink enough during the day so that you avoid being thirsty/ having dry mouth.
2. Cramping- This is much easier noticed in runners/athletes because lactic acid will flow much more freely and soreness will occur much more quickly. Athletes will notice more tightness in muscles and that it takes longer to get warmed up. People that run less, or less than they should will might still notice an overall muscular weakness or cramping in the arms and legs.
3. The urine check- believe it or not but this is actually one of the most efficient ways to check your dehydration level. I’m not going to go into great detail on this but on a 1 to 10 scale urine that is a dark yellow, has and oder and/or is painful during excretion is considered fully dehydrated (a 10). As one is less dehydrated pain will cease during urination and the odor and color will lessen until an optimum 1 level is reached. At a 1 level on this simple test urine should have no oder and should be clear as water or have an extremely light yellow tint. This is literally one of the most efficient and downright easiest ways to check your dehydration level.

As long as these three guidelines are kept, all hats are off as to the what, why, when and where of how you hydrate, though I do suggest that you use water over sports drinks and beverages like gatorade. Simple guidelines to a simple result- easy. Sometimes though more information is needed; here are more in-depth symptoms of dehydration you want to avoid

Symptoms of early or mild dehydration can include-

• flushed face
• extreme thirst, more than normal or unable to drink
• dry, warm skin
• cannot pass urine or reduced amounts, dark, yellow
• unwell (can include weakness or headaches)
• dry mouth, dry tounge; with thick saliva
• sleepy or irritable
• crying with few or now tears
• dizziness

Symptoms of moderate to severe dehydration can include-

• low blood pressure
• fast, week pulse
• skin looses elasticity
• sunken dry eyes
• bloated stomach
• heart failure
• severe cramping
• fainting
• painful urination, dark yellow color, odor
• overall weakness

As we all know, people are different, some people need more water than others. Some people like athletes or your average US marine just use more water than others. Even from day to day your body will need a slightly different amount of water to stay hydrated, this can change with weight, heat, size, physically activity ect. Make no mistake, there is no magic number for ounces of water needed per day so a fluid (no pun intended) hydration system is needed. Using simple steps such as avoiding feelings of thirst or the urine test can be quick and efficient ways to avoid dehydration. Staying in tune with your body and knowing when you need to up the amount of water you need per day is the best way to keep hydrated.

Try working on your core strength. Improving core strength will let you to run for longer without suffering from fatigue and will also decrease your risk of suffering an injury. Improving the strength of your core muscles will involve some time and effort, but fortunately it does not require any heavy weight work.

I believe some core strength work should feature in ALL runner’s training programs. While core, is extremely important in fast sprints core also plays a large role in every runners progress.

But What Exactly is my “core”?

While not a text-book definition, your “core” is defined as your body from the waist up minus the arms. Most of your core muscles are found in the mid and lower back regions, mid and lower stomach regions and hip regions (mainly your hip abductors).

In more technical terms, the major muscles areas include:

• Internal and External Obliques
• Multifidus
• Erector Spinae
• Transversus Abdominis
• Diaphragm
• The Pelvic Floor muscles; and
• Rectus Abdominis

Here is a picture showing a few of your core muscles

Why Build My Core? Shouldn’t I Just Train To Get Faster?

Yes, it is true that the best form of training for running is the pure act of running itself, but there are many additional benefits to be hand from incorporating some core strength work into your program in addition to a schedule of pure running training.

Runners tend to focus on activities they think will return direct and obvious benefits from. Typically this means piling on as many kilometers as possible in a given week. I purport a broader and more balanced approach to all training factors will give you more consist performances in the long term, plus reducing your chance of injury.

I believe that all runners do at least some basic core strength work on a regular basis, say on a fortnightly basis at least.

Some direct benefits of core strength include:

• Improved balance – balance is an important factor for a runner in all situations, but especially when running off-road in rough terrain
• Better posture – the core muscles play a major role in improving posture, which in turn will improve your running technique which will in turn further reduce the chance of injury.
• Improved efficiency – you will be more comfortable in your stride and more efficient which means you will increase your endurance potential and not get so tired
• Increased stability – a more stable frame will result in less wear-and-tear on muscles, further reducing injury risk
• How to improve core strength

Improving core strength is about selecting the right exercises for your individual needs.
You are a unique individual, so your program will vary from the next runner, but a good fitness instructor can set you down the right path.

Don’t expect to see instantaneous results, you will more likely see a slow improvement over time, but if you are persistent and stick to a regular schedule you will most likely be feeling a lot better sooner rather than later, not only in terms of your running, but in your general health and well-being too.

Some ideas to get started:

Yoga or Pilates (beginner level)

Work your balance, flexibility and torso strength. Pilates involves, stretching and calisthenics. Many moves in this discipline involve holding your torso in place while moving limbs in different directions. The practice of Yoga involves postures improving well-being, vitality and body flexibility. Plus Yoga gives you an excuse to try out those yoga pants.

Gym Sessions (midium beginner level)

At a gym you can find a personal fitness instructor to set you a program or give you feedback. This can only be a good thing as core strength is very much an individual process, but like dating, it’s worth spending some time finding one who is a match. A personal trainer will identify exercises for target specific muscle groups and will set you a custom program. A gym for a runner is of medium beginner intinsety because gyms are most useful for low reps with high weight, this is for muscle building aka body building; not a runners dream

Cross training (medium level)

Cross training is labeled as mid level because it can be just what a beginner needs to get started but also what a hardcore runner needs to keep from burning out on running. Running by itself is not the most effective way of improving core strength, so participating in another sport might appeal to you. Just ensure you do it sensibly as some dynamic sports (like skiing) increase your chance of injury. I don’t do a lot of cross training as I prefer my activity to be event-specific. If you are keen to do some cross training, following the general principles of running is helpful. That is start off slowly when trying a new type of training that works muscle groups that aren’t normally used.

Floor exercises (medium hard level)

Floor exercises are highly recommended, not only are they easy to do, but don’t require equipment, so you can do them in the privacy of your home. You will need to have a good understanding of exercises are the most effective for the muscle groups you are trying to target. If you are not sure you should see a fitness instructor, at least for an initial consultation.

Resistance Training (hard level)

Resistance Training is the most efficient way to build strength and lean muscle, a potent combination for a long distance runner. In addition, resistance training takes a minimal amount of investment on equipment, can be done at home, and is very portable. Please note that resitance training is not a bench press, or squats; that is a gym. The difference between a gym and resistance training is that a resistance training uses free weights and resistance bands. The lack of perfect machine resistance forces the muscles to not only resist against the weight but also stabilize and control themselves.

A lot of people have interesting, even weird rituals when it comes to eating before a run.  I knew a runner who would chow down on a huge breakfast before her race as her race ritual. However, another runner couldn’t eat within 4hrs of her run without feeling nauseous and/or vomiting. It really comes down to what you are comfortable with in your stomach before that first step.

While this is true, ask yourself these questions:

What kind of run are you about to do?

If it is just a nice easy run, your stomach will be less likely to be disturbed as it digests its food and wont be bothered so much. However if your run is a pound-into-the-ground speed workout/race its needless to say your stomach wont be so appreciative.

What kind of food are you eating?

Light foods such as grains and fruits will be easier to digest while you run than lactose and meat products and bananas. Fruits tend to be able to be absorbed into the system easily and grains will absorb water and not slosh around as much.

On the other hand, lactose products are already hard on your digestive system and meats will sit in your stomach like a rock that grinds your stomach walls. I throw bananas in that mix because they take up to 12 hours to digest. Also, In the past before a major workout I ate two bananas at the same time I would eat any other meal before a workout. However, halfway through the workout it was VERY clear they were still in my stomach and utilizing a lot of blood for digestion. Bad idea.

How long is it before you run?

This factor plays in last because it directly depends on 1) What your run is and 2) What your eating. For example, I knew that I was running a hard workout and had to eat appropriately. But the food (bananas) I chose to eat changed the length of time that it was ok for me to run.

Here are two general rules to follow:

A) Water takes 30 min on average to move through your stomach (this is why fruits with high water content digest, go through, and are easier to run on)

B) Foods take 3 hrs on average to digest through your stomach

In short, running, like any activity is about finding your personal balance. Most likely this will take a few attempts and will change with the run you run, the food you eat and the time before you run. Using these guidelines will hopefully help to maximize your run while limiting the number of times you see your food AFTER you’ve swallowed.

Many runners believe in a mindset that the harder they work the better they get. Often times though, a competition this is not won through fitness alone. While under-working is usually not an issue for the competitive runner, too slow of a pace will leave the athlete with an inefficient surplus of energy. However, too quick a pace and a runner can “red line” by expending all of their energy dramatically reducing their performance during a race. Training throughout the season can be compared to the races a runner competes in. While it is vitally important to stay fit and train hard, the human body is only able to handle so much physical abuse. An athlete’s worst fear is burning out before they are done with their season. Runners’ burnout can be caused by mentally and physically overwhelming the body causing a figurative death to a runner’s season, training, ect.

Burnout often times starts in the mind

Losing a competitive race mentality during a runners season can break the will to compete. Many coaches and athletes believe that athletics is “90% mental and 10% physical.” While it is ideal to be rested and nourished before a run, a mentally tough runner can run personal bests in any condition. While mentally draining, many runners have run perfect races even while sleep deprived, hungry, dehydrated or in bad weather conditions. However, there is a mental capacity for how much stress the mind can take. Running in itself creates a vast amount of mental fatigue. Too many races built into a season can mentally burn the competitive drive out of a runner. To many races close together can from further issues as an athlete has no time to mentally calm down and relax before preparing for the next race. This constant need for a race mentality will eventually drain the enjoyment out of the running in itself. Over racing can cause a dip in race performance and cause a sense of dread, boredom and the unwillingness to push through the pain of a race. Just as over racing can deplete a runner’s competitiveness, overtraining can also cause an athlete to succumb to runner’s burnout. Running too much aerobic mileage or doing too many anaerobic speed workouts can put physical stress on the mind to the point it refuses to push the body further. Analogous to the effects of over racing, overtraining can make running a chore and create a danger for injury.

Motivation according to the Incentive Theory of Motivation simply describes motivation as a positive reward to behavior that causes someone to feel it is in their interest to achieve that stimulus again. When a runner loses motivation he or she no longer perceives that the gain of running through the physical and mental pain is worth the reward of finishing their race and running well. Often times in both overracing and overtraining mental fatigue causes a runner to lose motivation and the willingness to put any more stress on their body. This lack mindset in an otherwise competitive runner can be shown through Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs. While a runner can value esteem higher than temporary safety and homeostasis there is a certain line at which the human mind refuses to let the body take abuse. At this point due to massive fatigue the mind refuses to secrete adrenaline. The sympathetic nervous system then becomes unresponsive, stopping any runner cold. Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs shows that a runner will, if presented a great physiological need, mentally burnout in order to achieve a more healthy lifestyle.

Overwhelming a body physically is a key component to runner’s burnout

While only 10% of runners’ burnout is caused by physical exhaustion it can be the determining factor in an athlete’s season. Racing and training cause strain on the body, pushing muscles, tendons and joints to their limits. Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS) causes the body to regenerate muscle fiber lost during physical activity. When a muscle is used it deteriorates and the body then adapts by regenerating the tissue and causing the muscle to become stronger. However, when a body is physically overwhelmed it no longer has the time to regenerate muscle fiber and a deficit is created. With time this can have many effects; the most obvious being a dramatic decrease in performance due to unhealed muscle. In addition, injury can be caused due to physically overwhelming the tendons, ligaments and muscles. Lastly, burnout through dehydration is another common problem in runners. Without water due to constant running and exertion the body lacks available hydrogen and oxygen. When not enough hydrogen ions are available the body cannot produce ATP; cell energy, quickly enough for the demand of a hard run.

In overall activities running is one of the most physically daunting tasks for a body to accomplish. With such a task it is vital that an athlete mentally and physically provide for themselves. Physical and mental stressors can overwhelm even olympic athletes causing a burnout and unwanted decrease in performance. Often times runners avoid this by creating variety in their workouts, staying healthy and resting periodically. However, it is impossible to truly fine tune the complex human organism in a way that altogether avoids becoming “burned out”. Burnout continues to be an unfortunate downfall in runners who have not yet found how to adequately provide for their bodies’ needs.

Thanks, Warren Sanders