Overtraining and injuries

[frogman]

After I realized I was going to apply to OCS, I hit the PT hard. Within 2 months I'd cut almost 2 minutes off of my run time. Unfortunately, I bit off more than I could chew before my body had a chance to catch up. I developed some knee pain and was diagnosed with some tendonitis in my knees. According to the doc it is a classic overtraining injury that could have been easily avoided. I've been left with some advice to stop running for a few weeks. I can bike and use the eliptical machine, but it is not the same. Very frustrating to say the least.

Two reasons I post this:

1. Who else has had to deal with injury in the months leading up to their PFT? (especially knee injuries)

2. For those who are looking for training advice and hearing the "run as hard and often as you can" line, make sure you increase your paces and distances in increments. Also listen to your body if it starts to tell you to let it recover a bit before pushing on. If you are not an experienced runner, I would suggest training with someone who is, or working with a running coach to come up with a program specific to you. If that is beyond your means, then take a look at 5k programs on the Runner's World website.

 

[TANGO 1]

Well said,
slow is fast, fast is smooth. Eventually you will get there, space out training over a period of time. Like frogman has said seek the advice of experienced runners and the likes. This also applies to unending shin-splins. I had one of those for a year. Finally got rid of them when i stopped running for about 6months (yeah long time). I rode the bike instead. The bike is good for the cradio work, but you still need to run. Take your time in building your body and you will be amazed at the beaten the human body can take.

 

[Mal731]

1) make sure you have good running shoes
2) good rule of thumb: increase your distances by about 10% per week. e.g. if you are running 3 miles at a time but want to increase, don't do more than 3.3 or so the next week.

Tendonitis sucks! I had it in my hip once and in my foot once.

 

[TargetInSight]

I hear that!

--Listening to your body.

Definitely man, I had a tingle jingle in my left ankle couple weeks back. I had just run a couple days in a row pretty hardcore... it didn't hurt, but my mind seemed to be translating it as "run on me right now and i'm gonna swell up on you man!" I skipped a 5k the next day, took it easy that week... working out still, but listening for the **** to act up.

---Killin' your body with mental steel.

I hear you on that. Seems like thats one of the things we all have in common here, we don't mind doing some pretty wacked S*** to reach our goals.

** Read a workout (Navy Seal Workout) from an e-book, that was like run x schedule week 1 and 2, but on 3 work out but DON'T run, then continue on the next week and so. It said that that third kickass week was your highest risk for stress fractures. Not quite your knee injury but along the same lines.

2 months into it I'm reaching the point where i can start beating myself up and my poor body is pretty used to it. (YEAHHH!)

Hey man don't let injuries like that bench you for good- so it takes you a good solid month to recover (let it recover, don't f-up your knee now) and say you miss this board.. get your app on the next and the next.

<--- I'm gonna keep applying until they let me in!

 

[USMCBebop]

1. Who else has had to deal with injury in the months leading up to their PFT?

I did. One day at work, I filled my ALICE pack and put it on along with my body armor for a speed hump around the MCAS Miramar golf course. I did well on the hump, but afterwards I developed tedonitus of the achilles. It screwed up my run time for the ship off PFT. So I had to wait for the next OCC class (I was scheduled for OCC 168. I had to go to 169 instead).

Moral of the story: train hard but SMART

 

[livefast]

I fractured the tibia in my left leg from running too much. I've been to a medical doctor and an orthopaedic doctor and they both said the same thing: REST! The pounding from running will delay your recovery significantly and you may do further damage. Also, compressing the injured area with sports tape while exersizing helps, as well as icing after workouts (for no more than 15 minutes). Crowbar's advice about swimming is good but unfortunately swimming will never improve your running time by any significant measure, though it does do a good job of maintaining your cardio levels.

 

[livefast]

P.S. to Crowbar: Strongbad's the man. I'm glad you realize that.

 

[vinny]

what happens to guys that get injured before heading to OCS? do they just get rolled back into a later class?

 

[Wolfpack]

The 10% rule is right on for building up muscular and connective tissue endurance along with a base cardio level. The problem I think a lot of people have is they try to run "fast" or speed train before they are ready. If you are running as fast as you can every time you run then you greatly increase your risk of injury. Elite runners vary their speeds when they train to avoid this. Someone who does not have a good "base" mileage underneath them is going to get hurt sooner or later if they go out and try to run a 5k at their max. Shoes are also very important because everyone lands on their feet differently and they make shoes to support these areas. Some support the inside of your foot (pronate) and some the outside (supinate) at different levels. Have someone look at you at a running store to get in the right shoes. Also, do not run on old worn out shoes. That is a sure way to get an overuse injury. Warm up is also very important. Jog an easy mile before you start your "running" and stretch AFTER you are done while your muscles are warm and the connective tissue has blood flow. Cross training is a good way to prevent injuries. Get on the bike once or twice a week. That strengthened my knees and caused me to feel stronger on my runs. Once you have an overuse injury though, the only way to heal is to stop the movement that caused it.

 

[contradickshon]

I am experiencing some pretty bad hip-flexer problems--so bad in fact sometimes my leg doesn't react through the gate and I nearly fall over. Fortunately I will be running the PFT this Saturday, ha ha (at least I'll get it over with). This thing developed, I think, from stepping up my exertion levels over the past six weeks, which included more sprinting than I had done for some years. It's a real pain in the ass and I'm sure my run time will suffer, but hey...I empathize. It's like my man snoop say, "If it ain't one thing its a mother f'ing nother."

Some injury's can be prevented. The info on correct training progressions, shoes, etc. is very accurate and useful, and 'listen to your body'. Unfortunately, some of us just aren't blessed with perfect biomechanics--in which case overuse injuries are something we learn to live with.

Question: What kind of numbers and how often are recruits accountable to the PFT after selection but before leaving for OCS?

 

[Broadsword2004]

No one has perfect biomechanics, especially in the feet.

The foot is a horribly designed thing for moving people around. I read an article about that. They say whoever designed the foot for humans didn't know what they were doing, because human feet are very badly engineered for running; humans are supposed to be born runners, but our feet aren't quite adapted for it.

 

[luscombepilot]

To avoid injuries...Well most of them.
STRETCH Properly and STRETCH all the time. Stretch when you wake up, and before you go to bed, also before and after you work out. Also don't just jump into a run, do a warmup run of a mile or so. Hope this helps.

 

[Bevo16]

I had shin splints all the way through high school and for my first couple of years in college. It was not until the fall semester of my soph year that I had a trainer fix them for me. The magic trick: ice, and lots of it. Our athletic trainers froze water in paper cups, you take the cup and tear the top off and rub the ice directly on your shin. I had used ice packs before, but this worked a lot better. I used this method for about 15-20 minutes on each leg every day for about 2 weeks and I was cured.

Shin splints, hip problems, foot pain, etc are all impact injuries. Cutting back on exercise may be one answer, but there are other things that may be causing the problem. You may need new running shoes or you may need help with your running form. "Running with a longer stride" may help, or it may not depending on your style. Distance running is not natural for everyone. If you are constantly hurting, swallow some pride and get some coaching.

 

[muc1]

I don't think anyone answered post #9
"what happens to guys that get injured before heading to OCS? do they just get rolled back into a later class?"

I think that anyone who misses a class (doesn't show up, or gets NPQ'd before or during) must reapply. The application process should be much easier. They just change the dates on you application and have you resign and do another PFT (I was told that PFT scores are good or 6 months and the physical 5 years).

Unlike the enlisted side, there are no conditioning units to recover. If your injury can't be 'managed' in a few days they will send you home to recover. You’re not 'in' until you graduate.

 

[frogman]

Just to follow up a bit on the issue of injuries and running...

In my numerous months of recovering from what turned out to be much more than tendonitis (won't bore you with the details), I received some very important advice from both my physical therapist and an experienced running coach - building strength in your lower body and core muscles is essential to minimizing the risk of stress injuries while building endurance and speed.

I've had incredible success in strengthening my core by doing numerous excercises with a stability ball (doing 200 crunches a day helps as well!). I also focus on lower (and often neglected) abs below the navel - this area stabilizes your midsection while you run. I don't do much work with the weights, but I do a lot of calisthenics using my own bodyweight for resistance to build strength in my quads, hamstrings, and calf muscles. Like others are saying, be sure to stretch thoroughly after you run!

Lastly, if you get hurt - stick with it. If you really want to be an Officer of Marines, it will be worth all of the hard work to prepare your body for OCS.