As someone who’s been exercising and racing for almost my entire life, it’ll come as no surprise that I’ve had my fair share of injuries.
And while you can (and should) reduce your chance of hurting yourself by taking a measured approach to your training volume, recovery, and nutrition…
Sometimes things can still go wrong!
And that’s exactly what happened when I went flying over the top of my (oblivious) spaniel last week.
(Photo at the end for the less squeamish).
It might not have been quite so bad, had I not been running (fairly fast) downhill and off-road.
The gravel rash isn’t too bad (saved by my long legged shorts) but the bruising and tenderness isn’t great.
Even as I write this email 9 days later, I’m still walking like I’ve just finished a record breaking time on the Tour De France. Not a chance of me running yet.
Fortunately, I’ve been able to get Jack (our in-house Sports Therapist) to check me over, and it shouldn’t be too long before I am lacing up my shoes again – plus the taping job he did has hugely reduced the bruising.
Now, hopefully you won’t be in the same position as me (ie stupid), but there are a couple of things to think about if you do have an accident or injury.
Step #1 – The first step is to get yourself properly assessed as soon as possible.
Even if something doesn’t seem “too bad”, early diagnosis and an appropriate treatment course (if needed) can dramatically reduce recovery time.
As an aside, I met someone the other day who had a bicep injury, but in typical ‘man style’ went 4 months before he got it assessed.
He told me “when I did it just felt like a sharp electric shock and after that I had no pain.”
The result?
He had to wait another few months for the surgical repair it needed, and then the rehab process had him out of sport for nearly a year!
By which stage the fitness he had lost and the weight means he’s unlikely to ever return to playing the sport he loved (although he’s still coaching).
Step #2 – Then BEFORE you make a return to training, ensure you’ve fully recovered.
I know it’s frustrating, but training with a slight niggle might place strain on another area of your body and lead to further issues.
Likewise returning to training when not fully recovered from illness can prolong your recovery time, and lead to recurrent illness or overtraining syndrome.
Step #3 – Finally, when you do start training again, remember you need to start back from a lower level than you left off.
That will include both intensity of the sessions you were doing, and total training volume.
If you’re unfortunate enough to have any injury or illness issues, and want to make the best and quickest return to training, please get in touch by calling us on 0333 900 3330 or replying to this email.
We’ll see how our experienced multidisciplinary team will be able to assist you in your return to exercise.
P.S. Nick, one of my long term coaching clients is a great example of what happens when you take recovery and rehabilitation seriously.
When he first started with me a year and a half ago, he could barely move for debilitating back pain from a recurring injury.
Since then, off the back of regular visits to Jack and a measured approach to his training and racing, he’s remained entirely injury free – despite increasing his training volume and intensity.
Or, in his own words:
“Before I started working with Garry and the rest of the Sportstest team, I had a bit of a ‘it’ll work itself approach’ to injuries, which only led to them getting worse. Now, 18 or so months on, I’ve been able to train and compete consistently without having ANY time off for injuries!”
P.P.S. Here’s how my leg’s looking (a few days ago and this morning!).
