Hello! My name is Sofia and I am a clinical assistant here at Prehab NYC. This year, I am training for my first ever NYC Marathon, and I want to share what I’ve been learning training at Prehab so far in my first 4 weeks of training!
Also, please consider donating to my charity! Here is the link: https://donate.actionforhealthykids.org/fundraiser/5521243
Week 1: Running Analysis
3 things I’ve learned from my gait analysis:
- I have poor hip extension. This causes limited force production because I can’t reach my full range of motion or my full speed potential
- I have knee valgus. During running, my knees collapse inwards. This is potentially due to my weak hip abductors. Because of this, my knee falls inward, which puts a lot of strain on it. This increases my chance of getting injured
- Bad proprioception: Proprioception is the ability to sense movement and know my body is in space. Because I lack proprioception, it takes longer for my body to know that I am back on the ground, delaying my rebound time
Just because you can run doesn’t mean you’ve reached your full potential. Without coming to prehab and doing my gait analysis, I could have gotten injured during my training and not been able to achieve my dream of running the NYC marathon!
Week 2: Adding lifting into my training
Strength training is something runners often neglect during training, which is a big mistake. Cross-training is vital because it uses your muscles in different ways helping prevent injuries.
Before coming to Prehab, I would strength train, but not focus on the areas that needed it the most. After my gait analysis, Prehab gave me specific muscles that I needed to focus on and exercises that would strengthen those areas.
It’s only been week 1 of doing these exercises, but I can definitely say I am sore in the best way possible! Knowing that I have a plan specific to my body has allowed me to be way more confident in myself and my training!
Week 3: Introducing Plyometrics
I’d never heard of the importance of plyometrics until this past year, and I’ve tried to implement them in training blocks in the past, but I didn’t really know what I was doing until Dr. Gometz explained it to me during my running analysis.
Since I have bad proprioception, it’s hard for me to rebound quickly during my runs. The point of plyometrics is to produce the maximum amount of force in the shortest amount of time. So incorporating these plyometrics into my training allows me to work on producing more power when I run.
Week 4: What I focus on when I run
- During my easy runs I try to focus on where my foot is hitting the ground. Since I am going at an easy pace, I can think more about my foot placement instead of hoping for a red light
- On my hill repeats or tempo runs as they are shorter bursts, I try and focus on the push-off phase and try to explode on the back end
- For my long Sunday runs, I just try and think about having a good time and enjoying the runner’s high. For me, this is the time to remember why I love running and how lucky I am to be able to do what I love!
Thank you for reading, and check out the charity linked above! Many more weeks to come, stay tuned!
