Live. Give. Run. Blog
To Inspire and Move the Human Spirt, One Sole at a Time
Let me throw some numbers at you – I mean, runners love numbers, right?
During a 5k, your feet strike the ground an average of 4800 times.
For a 10k, this number jumps to 9500.
And, for a marathon, there are an average of over 39,000 foot contacts. (Much more if you’re running at a below average pace).
When you look at these numbers, it’s clear that there’s a lot of stress that needs to be absorbed through the knees, hips, lower back, spine, and ego.
As a Physical Therapist and Running Program Specialist for MedStar Health, I spend the majority of my clinical hours working with injured runners. Virtually all of them want to return to comfortable and healthy running ASAP; preferably sooner. Every injured runner wants to find out what went wrong and how to fix it. And if we can help make them a better runner in addition, all the better.
Running is an excellent way to improve your health, both mental and physical. It is recommended that adults living with type 1 and type 2 diabetes spend at least 150 minutes participating in activities such as running. Running increases heart health, increases muscle and bone strength, decreases adipose (fat) tissue, and increases insulin sensitivity.
Welcome to MedStar Health in Federal Hill! I’m Becca Schwender, physical therapist and member of the race medicine team. For those who ran the 2019 Marine Corps Marathon, you are well aware how hot weather can change your race day plan. Training through hot and humid summer months requires planning ahead to make the most of your run.
here is this ugly statistic out there that 70% of runners in a given year are injured. That is a crazy statistic! If you are running with a group of your friends that means 70% of you are going to get injured this year. Let’s also not forget the definition of an injury “ Being unable to do the thing you love”….. I don’t mean to beat a dead horse but what this statistic is saying is that 70% of runners will have so much pain that they can’t run and train the way they want to. That is INSANE!
Picture it: a beautiful day in Colorado, skiing under clear blue skies when out of nowhere: BOOM! I was hit by an out-of-control skier. The aftermath of the accident was a complete tear of my left ACL as well as a partially torn meniscus.
The pain of the injury was intense, but short-lived. By the time I had made it to the emergency center at the mountain base, I had only minimal physical discomfort. However, after learning of my diagnosis and the long road of recovery ahead of me, the mental discomfort was real…and not short lived.
Training to become a better runner is an arduous journey. You dedicate hours per week to logging miles; each stride over the pavement bringing you closer to shaving seconds – or minutes – from your race times. Tempo runs, hills, sprints, and intervals all cycle in and out of your arsenal. Your nutrition is dialed in, and your recovery habits are on point. Though the process is challenging, you’ve been here before, and you know exactly what to do to get the needle to move. Well, until the needle slows. Or stops.
I put off working with a nutritionist until it was the last thing I could think of to improve my running. Charm City Run Nutrition Program Coach and Sports Dietitian Sarah Schlichter and I actually exchanged emails months before I decided to move forward. I wasn’t sure, at that time, I could change. I’m pretty stubborn about certain things, and food has always been one of them. My friends and family actually used to call me “Picky Nicky” because of how particular I was about what I would eat growing up.
