I consider myself a very resilient athlete. I also don't consider myself injury-prone. Although my recent injury lasted around 4 months, I was able to complete two Ironmans, I experienced huge improvements in my swim and bike fitness and I am now back running injury free. This was my first athletic setback in over 6 years.
Having said this, I know I am susceptible to injury. Whether it's my swimming (non-weight bearing) background or bad motor patterns or maybe my endurance and strength allows me to muscle my way through fatigue, me and running have a rocky relationship. I've never had a stress fracture or broken bone and no foot, ankle or knee issues. It's all been glute/hip/lower back related. I've learned that my body needs a certain amount of running frequency + strength based runs to keep my body happy.
Injuries are extremely frustrating to athletes. They force "us" to modify our lifestyle and remove us from doing what we love to do with our body. However, there's always a risk to getting injured when you are learning new skills, exercising at a high intensity, stretching your comfort zone, pushing your physical limits or training through fatigue.
So much of the rehab process requires time, patience and assistance from a medical profession (doctor, PT, strength coach, dietitian). However, it's important to get your mind in the right head space throughout the healing process.
Because many athletes fall victim to a vicious cycle of injury→rehab→return to sport→re-injury, here are my tips for how to help you go from injured to injury-free.
- Don't give yourself a deadline - There's never a "right" time for an injury. Most of the time, injuries come when you least expect it and in the mind of an athlete - at the worst time: close to a race or when you are feeling like you are in the best shape ever. Feeling like you need to be healed by a certain date can bring a lot of mental stress, anxiety and frustration. You can't predict the future so make peace with the situation and just focus on one day at a time.
- The race is not as important as you think - It may feel like your upcoming race is the most important race ever. You feel a tremendous amount of pressure to perform, you worry that you are letting others down, you've invested so much time, energy and money and you may never ever have this experience to race this race ever again. If you find yourself expending a lot of mental anguish on your upcoming race, remind yourself that it's just a race. And race day is when you get to showcase the best version of yourself. Be smart. Instead of wanting to make it to the start line of your next race, being able to live a healthy and active lifestyle in the long-term is more of a priority.
- Focus on what you can do - A setback doesn't mean that you have to throw in the towel. The worst thing you can do during an injury is be all or nothing. To expedite the injury healing process, keep yourself healthy, strong and active - within the confines of your physical limitation. While it's normal to feel frustrated, sad and dissapointed, you have a choice. You can wallow in self-pity or you can accept your new normal and be positive about what you can do. Above all, an injury doesn't mean that you have to give up your sport, be sedentary or that all of your hard work is now lost or was all for nothing. The body works in amazing ways. To see your body do something amazing, you can't give up on it.
- Don't take it out on your body - Athletes have a very unique relationship with their body. An injury can be a traumatic event for any athlete, particularly the body conscious athlete. During this stressful time, the incidence of disordered eating or eating disorder behaviors may increase. When you put so much into your sport, it can easily become your identity. When your normal daily activity level is diminished due to injury, you may find yourself wanting to cut out food groups, avoid carbs and significantly reduce your calorie intake. Remind yourself that the body needs nutrients to heal. Depending on the type of injury, you may actually need more nutrients than normal. While adjustements in your diet may be needed, an extreme change in your diet is not necessary. Understanding that the body may change, this doesn't mean that you are becoming any less of an athlete. Be kind to your body. The body that you are starving or poorly nourishing is the same body that you also want to heal so that it can perform well in training and on race day.
- Turn rehab into prehab - Throughout the injury healing process, you should surround yourself with a team of professionals. ART, chiro, PT, massage therapist. While some of these professionals will do the work for you, others will give you homework to improve muscle weaknesses, imbalances and to strengthen or mobilize an injured body part. It's a common mistake that athletes will forgo specific rehab exercises once training has resumed. To prevent a re-injury and to get more in-tune with your body, your rehab routine should turn into a consistent and evolving prehab regime. Don't wait until an injury occurs to address your limitations, niggles or imbalances.
- Don't get greedy - It feels great to get back to a structured training routine. The first rush of endorphins after a time away from sport can feel amazing. You may find yourself craving more of it, more often. As you ease yourself back into structured training, do so gradually and patiently. Avoid the tendency to get greedy and to load yourself up with intensity and volume too quickly. Depending on your current fitness level, time away from sport and the severity of your injury, give yourself more time than you think to return to normal training and racing. And avoid the tendency to try to pick back up with your training where you left off before you got injured or to sign up for a race before you've given your body a chance to absorb a good amount of training stress.
- A niggle doesn't mean another setback - Celebrate the small victories. Just because your injured has healed or you've been given the ok to resume physical activity, this doesn't mean that it will be smooth sailing. Understand that you may experience niggles, soreness and pain. This can also be a scary time as you fear re-injury. Learn to trust your body, understand what's normal vs. not normal and constantly listen to your body. During the return to training/exercise, it's better to be a little safe than very sorry.
- Avoid panic training - If you have a big event coming up, you may be tempted to make up missed workouts or cram in as much training as possible before the big day. Because this approach is for your ego and not your physiology, it regularly fails. Instead, be grateful for where you are now. Thank your body for the injury that you were able to overcome. Recognize your current fitness level. With these things in mind, you can approach your race with a smart mindset. Having no expectations is a lot better than low expectations. See this upcoming event as a stepping stone to future events.
- Tomorrow is just as important as today - Consistency is key to fitness improvements. If you put all of your energy into today's workout, you may compromise your ability to perform well tomorrow. After an injury, be realistic with your current level of fitness. A well designed plan has a mix of recovery and stress. While you may feel like you can do more or work harder, resist the urge. The continued goal is to always save a little something for tomorrow. There's no point celebrating an epic workout or leaving it all out there if you can't be consistent with training.
- Time heals - No two athletes are the same. Every athlete is on his/her own healing path. Knowing that most injuries are not career-ending, you must have confidence in yourself that you will heal. The sooner you accept the injury, get a diagnosis, take action and start resting (or recovering) from the injury, the quicker you will start healing. Training through pain, racing with an injury or returning to training too hard or too soon simply delays the process and increases your risk for a more devestating diagnosis - which may be career ending. Instead of fearing what you will lose when you are injured, stay focused on what you will gain when you return back to the sport that you love.