Running after a Break

When you start running again after a long break, it’s important to ease back into it. Otherwise, you could end up with muscle cramps – or worse – a knee or ankle injury. Instead, you’ve got to start out slow and build up slowly and steadily over a period of several weeks.

As you may be able to guess, I jumped right in. My calves and ankles were very unhappy with me – both because of jumping right in and because of lingering effects of a severe allergic reaction to an antibiotic medication. It reminded me of how important it is to build up. But I’m determined! I love running as a sport, and I’m looking forward to beating my old times.

It was excellent to get a ribbon after having a long break, but after my run today, I’m aware that I’ll need to build slowly in order to avoid a running injury. I tend to like the Cool Runnings Couch to 5K programs – but Runners’ World and Spark People also have good 5k training programs to get you re-started on a routine.  It’s really helpful to have a variety of programs to work with so that you can start exactly where you’re at when your feet hit the pavement.

If it’s been a while since you’ve run, what do you do to get yourself started again? Is there a program that you follow or do you do hit the pavement and let your body dictate the training program?