Coming back From Injury

[Esundby]

Hello, 

I am coming back from a back injury and wonder if anyone has any tips for how to start running again and personal stories that they have of how they got back on the horse for half marathon training. 

[DerrickS]

@Esundby I am currently recovering from a very bad ankle sprain and I've just begun my training for running a Ragnar relay race. Since my injury is different, my approach to recovery and training is most likely a little different than yours, but some good rules that I try to stick by include:

• If possible, starting out with pool workouts. This takes a lot of the weight off of an injury, while also getting a good workout.
• Running on grass or dirt whenever possible. Running on grass or dirt compared to running on concrete is way easier on your joints. A former coach would always make the analogy that your joints are like a golf ball: if you drop a golf ball on concrete it bounces all over the place; but if you drop it on grass or dirt, there usually is either a small bounce if any at all.
• Make sure you take ample amount of rest days. For me, I've been trying to run every other day and then take a rest day in between. Rest days are very important, especially if you are recovering from an injury.
• Listen to your body and don't try to run through the pain. There's big differences between running pains like cramps or fatigue and pains from an injury. 
• Make sure you rehab and take preventative injury measures. For me, I try to ankle stretches whenever I have a few minutes to spare and I also make a point of foam rolling after every run. I also make sure to wrap my ankle with an ace bandage before runs too.
  
  

Again, back and ankle injuries probably have a lot of differences when it comes to recovery and beginning to train again, but the steps above have definitely helped me out.

[emili]

I think its important to consult with your doctor before starting to run again. But I will tell you that a family member had back issues and wanted to start running. His trainer worked with him to ensure his back was strong before any running took place. They weight trained for weeks before starting very short jogs. Now he runs races all over our area- no problems.