We’re excited to partner with our friends at The Run Experience at this year’s Peak Ultra. They will be on site Friday night to offer a free clinic they’ve designed just for our race, and will offer a free mini-clinic for the 10-mile fun run participants on Saturday morning! Not only that, they are giving anyone who registers for the Peak Ultra a free 30-day subscription to their program.
At The Run Experience, we’re always coming up with new injury prevention exercises for YOU, our runners! In this post, we take a look at some of Coach Kirk’s favorite “go-to”s for the lower leg!
Just like the car that you depend on to operate properly day in and day out, your running body needs REGULAR maintenance.
When either of these breaks down, chances are that some preemptive investigation could’ve helped us avoid the setback altogether.
We believe in getting your injuries BEFORE they get you. Using 5-7 minutes of your day to help prevent months of injury/recovery/time on the couch is ALWAYS worth it.
The best part about all of our injury prevention exercises is that you can do them at home with easy to find objects!
So take a minute and go grab a broomstick.
Don’t worry, we’ll explain further.
Got it?
We’re going to use it to get deep into our calf (and soleus specifically) because I think we can all agree how tight these guys get during and after a run.
Here’s how the broomstick bash works:
Why do we love this one so much?
As runners, we take the brute of our daily workouts in our legs. And more specifically, in our lower legs.
Our achilles’ tendons always seem to be the most tender, but the reality here is that the problem starts with the top of the chain, the calf.
Regularly taking care of these muscles will help to lengthen and calm the impact on the achilles’ tendons.
All you’ll need for this one is a pair of lacrosse balls, or 2 balls of similar size and density.
We’re going to use them to get after your peroneals and the posterior side of your tibia (shin).
These muscles control your footstrike, pronation, supination, basically how and why your foot hits the ground the way it does.
Like the calves, they get tight QUICK!
Here’s how the inversion/eversion sandwich works:
Have a seat on the ground, with one leg bent “indian style” in front of you.
VISIT THE RUN EXPERIENCE TO SEE INJURY PREVENTION EXERCISES NUMBER THREE: THE LOADED PLANTAR FLEX!
We’re excited to announce that coaches Nate Helming and Kirk Warner from The Run Experience will be presenting two clinics at the 2017 Peak Ultra! Visit our event page for details.
No matter the distance, efficiency is key. In this video Nate Helming shares 4 do’s and don’ts of natural running form to help you begin to understand how to get your body to work for you on the trail.
We are all naturally inclined to run, it’s human. You did it without a second thought as a child. Remember – running is a natural thing.
When you notice an issue, don’t fix technique in a vacuum, ask why your body has adapted to move in a negative way. The Run Experience recommends a top-down approach. Posture and position are king (check out the quick posture drill in this video.)
Watch for: