TO PREPARE FOR AN ACTIVE, COMPETITIVE, INJURY-FREE SUMMER, TAKE MAY OFF

New marina docks and kayak/paddleboard launch almost ready to welcome watercraft. Taken by PKSenagore April 2019. All rights reserved.

MAY 1, 2019: WITH THE SUMMER SEASON APPROACHING in the Northern hemisphere, runners, walkers, cyclists and fitness enthusiasts of all types are likely to be anticipating roughly 14 activity-packed weeks of fun. That’s the time period between the end of May and the beginning of September (in the USA it’s flanked by the Memorial Day and Labor Day Monday holidays).    
 
Regardless of the various athletic goals each of us will set for these three months, most will share one: to stay healthy!  An injury prevention article, “Ask Pete: Why Do I Keep Getting Injured?” from PodiumRunner.com provides information that can be used now to help set up the perfect summer.
 
The author, a 57-year old runner and self-proclaimed “physiological freak”, provides the insight of a high-performing athlete who’s struggled with injuries earlier in his career but seems to have left pain and suffering behind with smarter training.
 
To summarize very briefly, Magill advises: setting realistic expectations for improvement to avoid overtraining; balancing running workouts to build all three skeletal muscle types; performing lower body resistance training that prevents injury; taking adequate steps to heal all injured tissues; and patiently trusting that given sufficient time your body will recover. He explains each piece of advice in greater depth in the article.
 
One of the last paragraphs of Magill’s piece outlines his annual recovery formula for remaining injury free. “Nowdays, I take 3-4 weeks off every year, then return to running with a week of walking, followed by a couple weeks of walk-jogging, followed by the gradual introduction of all the above” identified as intervals, distance, and races.
 
The formula translates to taking 5-6 weeks away from purposeful training to rest, then progressively increase lower-intensity activity as a way to ease into higher intensity work.
 
[Recovery (5-6 weeks) = 3-4 weeks OFF + 1 week WALKING + 1 week WALKING/JOGGING]
 
Runners, walkers, cyclists and fitness freaks who are planning to train hard for and participate in one, several, or many races may wish to take the entire month of May for rest/recovery in advance of a competitive summer season.
 
RUN & MOVE HAPPY! 
 
https://www.podiumrunner.com/why-do-i-get-injured-ask-pete_177151
 
https://www.triathlete.com/2019/04/news/competitor-running-is-now-podiumrunner_372669