Stretch, breathe, run, repeat
48 days until the Chicago Marathon
Crucial: Getting in some good stretches
We are officially less than 50 days away from the Chicago Marathon! I can’t believe it.
I have not felt very sore following long runs this training season — that is, until this weekend. Which I found odd, because it was actually a step back week. But immediately after my run and all day Sunday, my legs felt unusually tight and stiff.
But I think the answer is disappointingly obvious: I’ve been slacking on pre- and post-run stretching lately. Plus, I didn’t go to yoga on Friday in lieu of a run. So, I guess it’s time to go back to the basics. Remember to stretch, friends!
Some people say stretching before runs is best, while others swear post-run stretching is most crucial. According to an article on Healthline, both are recommended by doctors. The article also says you should always warm up before stretching and running (this could be as simple as walking for 5 to 10 minutes). As an early morning runner, I’ll admit I skip this important step all too often.
Most runners (and my training guide for the marathon) encourage dynamic stretches, specifically, before a workout. Dynamic stretches are repeated motions that increase circulation and muscle length, like an arm swing, according to an article on Yale Medicine.
Yale’s orthopedic sports medicine surgeon Dr. Elizabeth Gardener suggests the following pre-workout dynamic stretches for runners:
Side lunges;
Standing figure 4;
Arm swings;
Bent-knee forward swings; and
Straight-leg lateral swings.
After a run, Runner’s World suggests the following static stretches (stretches you hold in place, like bending over to touch your toes) in order to aid recovery:
Lying hamstring stretch;
Lying figure 4 glute stretch;
Butterfly stretch;
Standing calf stretch;
Kneeling lunge/hip flexor stretch; and
Standing quad stretch.
There are more suggested stretches in the above articles and in lots of different corners of the Internet, but those are some of my favorites. I just need to remember to do them!
To be sure, I’m adding a Monday yoga session this week in addition to my usual Wednesday and Friday classes. Especially as my mileage picks up again this week, I can’t risk injury that could have been easily prevented with good stretching.
Runner’s log
Last week I ran for an hour on Monday, ran a 5K with Oliver on Tuesday (plus a speedy mile on my way home from the yoga studio), put in 4 miles on Friday and ran 9 miles on Saturday.
It was a busy week, but still a step back in terms of total mileage. The next two weekends I will break my longest-ever run record twice in a row, with upcoming 16- and 18-mile runs. I’m excited to keep pushing myself to run further and put these last few months of training to the test.
Living in the present moment with every breath
I started a new read last week that is reminding me to live in the present. It’s Thich Nhat Hanh’s You Are Here: Discovering the Magic of the Present Moment.
Below is an excerpt that was particularly comforting to me, and I hope will be to you, too, as we all take on a new week together:
“You are here, alive, completely alive. That is a miracle.
“Some people live as though they are already dead. There are people moving around us who are consumed by their past, terrified of their future, and stuck in their anger and jealousy. They are not alive; they are just walking corpses. If you look around yourself with mindfulness, you will see people going around like zombies. Have a great deal of compassion for the people around you who are living like this. They do not know that life is accessible only in the here and now.
“We must practice resurrection, and this is an everyday practice. With an in-breath, you bring your mind back to your body. In this way you become alive in the here and now. Joy, peace, and happiness are possible. You have an appointment with life, an appointment that is in the here and now.
“It is necessary to come back to the present moment in order to touch life in a deep way.”
I am grateful for all of you and hope you are finding joy this week and always.
xoxo,
mad mitch
Can I borrow your book when you are done?