It’s race week in NYC!
Now it’s time for recovery!
The NYC Marathon comes every November and it is a grueling race. This race has become a symbol of athleticism, drive, and determination. The Center for Spine Care and Mobility is here to help you run at peak performance, avoid those aches and pains, provide a recovery plan, and help make that hard decision to reschedule your race due to injury.
Listen to Your Body
Race preparation and building your base is the key to racing without injuries. Listen to your body, and don’t run through pain. Even if you are scheduled for a long run-it’s ok to change the plan.
Run Your Race
Training with a partner is great, but sometimes they can push you too much- or not enough.
Use a heart rate monitor early on to identify optimal heart rate zones. The simple calculation 220-age= max heart rate is a great starting point. Remember zone 1 is 50-60% of HRmax and is the base and the zone to run in if you are coming back from an injury.
Stretch
Develop a mobility plan to stretch the areas that get stiff and tight with running: the usual suspects are the gastroc/soleus, hamstrings, glutes and hip flexors. Warm-up and start with dynamic stretches and drills then after your run perform passive stretches to prepare you for your next run.
Recover With Chiropractic and Massage
Use chiropractic and massage therapy to schedule your recovery. Use the recovery boots to flush out lactic acid and be ready to run again sooner. Remember to take 3-4 days off after a long run or if you feel an ache or pain.
Far too many times we see patients that have finished this race only to have nagging aches and pains turn into full blown injuries. At CSCM we give a nod to our runners that have been training and decide to embark on this journey. The training for this race is no small feat. No matter what stage you are at- whether this is your first race year, your personal record(PR) year, recovery year, or you just got injured we want to encourage you and remember this quote:
“We are the sum total of our experiences. Those experiences – be they positive or negative – make us the person we are, at any given point in our lives. And, like a flowing river, those same experiences, and those yet to come, continue to influence and reshape the person we are, and the person we become. None of us are the same as we were yesterday, nor will be tomorrow.
—B.J. Neblett
