Going With The Flow

I am so glad you are feeling good. I don't really have any advice but I would just continue to listen to your body and build slowly. And eat more icecream. :)

Great to see you back running again:)

I think Rachelle's got it right: listen to your body; you know what works and you'll tune into your body better than anybody else.

Now, what was the qualifying time for the Olympic Trials?

Andrea will blow the OTQ standard to pieces and they'll probably have to lower it again after she's done w/ it

I'll trade you for your feedback on my post on quality miles!

No expert here, but it would be interesting to see how you respond with mileage around ~25 for a month and see how it holds up, then of course increase using the 10% percent rule each week with the third week backing off 30%.

I know everyone has their thoughts on when to add speed training, but It would also make sense to also hold off on that until you are certain your body is ready for that kind of impact. It seems that the focus should be on seeing if you can merely handle the mileage alone without the added stress and impact of speed.

I pulled this from a RW article . It talks about walking without pain for 60 mins before attempting to run..assuming this is for the average runner, the biomechanics and healing properties are similar for most.

"...Run only every third day or every other day to give your bones, ligaments, tendons and muscles time to adapt to the stresses of running. You can then progress to two consecutive days running and one day off.

The time required to return to full training generally ranges from six weeks to four months; in extreme cases it may take as long as a year. You must build up the distance, frequency and intensity of your runs very gradually. Continue with alternative activities such as water running and cycling. It will take several weeks before you are running far enough or hard enough to improve your cardiovascular fitness; during this time, your hard sessions will have to remain in the pool or on the bike.

Don't attempt to increase running distance, frequency and intensity all at once. Build up the distance and the frequency first while keeping the intensity moderate. After a month of this base work, gradually add higher-intensity workouts such as tempo runs and long intervals."

THE TAKEAWAY When you're returning to running, start with an easy workout. For example, if you used to run for an hour, run for 20 minutes instead. Slow your pace by a minute per mile, and take walk breaks as needed. Then, track how you feel in the next 24 hours. Feel great? Continue to build from where you started. Feel sore? Stick with the easy workout until it feels comfortable.

Also the link below has basic but tried and true practices coming back. I had to note a few myself!

http://www.runnersworld.com/health/safe-and-sound

Anyway, take it for what it's worth. I'm sure by now you are an expert on psoas and piriformis (sp?) injuries and comebacks. Glad to see you're starting to make improvements!!

Do the exact opposite of me and you'll be fine.

I like Tara's advice. I think the month at a sustained mileage (or 4 weeks) to see how you respond to the miles is probably a good starting point. It will probably drive you absolutely nuts (it would me), but like the article said will give your body a good adjustment period before adding. I really have no good advice and rarely listen to (well, put into practice) good advice when I'm given it :) The only time I was good about coming back was after my foot fracture. I followed the 'back to running' plan perfectly...and PRd just a few months later.

Listening to your body (and more ice cream) are probably the most fundamental parts of a come-back plan. I'm just happy to see you're running a good pace and feeling good!! You've definitely put in your time on this injury and deserve to have a pay-out for it!

Thanks for your input. Initially I thought I would try to work up to 40mpw by the end of January, but now I'm questioning whether that is not conservative enough. My hip started acting up this afternoon (after being out and about all day), so I have to be super careful not to cause regression.

I like the add-a-few-and-hold-it-there approach. So like 25 for 2-3 weeks, then 35 for 2-3 weeks, then 45 for 2-3 weeks. Kinda lets you assess for awhile before moving up.

Nice jon on the run.

Like everything else with running every individual is different with 'comebacks'. Some people bounce back extremely fast with no trace of their injury coming back, and others struggle for weeks and even months even with a conservative approach. I saw this so often with some of my teammates at BYU.

You know yourself the best so if you feel comfortable with your plan, go for it - I think you are smart enough to know when to back off. The key is not let a niggle turn into an injury, and I think you are tuned in to your body enough now to know the difference between the two. Good luck! I'm so glad you've been able to get out and run.

I find the 10% rule smart but conservative (I think it's less applicable to competitive rather than recreational runners. More applicable to new mileage territory I think). It's not a bad rule for injury comeback though. The idea of sitting for a few weeks at at a certain range seems sensible. You'll still make fitness gains and you'll do it safely. But ultimately I have to invoke the "that depends" and "listen to your body" rules. (All my advice is of course long-tested and based on years of experience in the field :) )

Happy to hear about your pain free run today at a dwcent pace! What i like best from all your rebuilding is the 9 to 10 hour sleeps!!! I inderstand your pain. You are jist too young to be feeling it. 25 is a nice start with light strength training.

Great running this week Andrea! Very glad you continue to improve. I don't think aiming for 40 mpw by the end of January is too much too soon (as long as your body holds up). I think it's a good idea to advance your mileage by about 5 miles per week (and then sometimes hold the miles the same for 2-3 weeks in a row). Most importantly, I wouldn't add speed for awhile -- just get your body used to running easy miles for awhile.

When I was out this morning I thought back to how I built up from scratch in Sept/Oct 2011 to 100mpw by June 2012.

Although I wasn't injured (apart from a hamstring niggle) I was 70lbs+ heavier than I am now.

I started by building up to 3.5 mile runs everyday. Once this was ok, I added in some doubles - rather than increasing distance: the logic was that you are recovering between the runs and lessening the chances off getting injured from being on your feet too long etc. 3.5 miles might not seem like a lot, but your muscles and, more importantly, tendons and ligaments need time to adapt.

Once I got up to 30 mpw, I increased one run (my long run to 5 miles) and added a mile each week up until I was 'running' 10.

When I hit the early 40's, I added 10 miles to the weekly amount (spread across all runs)and held it there for two weeks and then took a day off in the third week, before increasing by 10-15 miles for the next two weeks and so on... So every 3 weeks, I was increasing the mileage by 10-15 ( without running further than 8 miles -except my long run.

When I hit 60-70 miles a week things got a tad tougher, but once my body adapted, 70-100 was easy, in fact, up to 115 was easy.

Don't know if this helps but I'd suggest three week cycles with gradual increments. You've got a lifetime of running ahead of you - there's no hurry.

You already know my opinion on all of this, but I'll add something to the official record. I think the shorter doubles, like Bam said, are the way to go. Less stress, more time to recover/adapt between runs. Plus it feels like you are running more by getting out the door twice a day a lot of days, and that is good mentally.

I'm always a fan of big picture thinking, but this is a situation where you really have to think in shorter terms... a few days at a time. Think about what you are doing and how you are feeling in 3-5 days cycles. And you'll be surprised at where you'll be in 3-5 weeks, and then 3-5 months.