Hurting

Been running for 4 months,3miles.. 4 times a week..with a few longer runs mostly on treadmills.I am 16st plus and ran the Great South run last sunday in 83 mins..although i am happy with my time....very unhappy my quads are still killing me four days later.I did alot of stretching before the race and a little afterwards.Anybody have any suggestions about how this can be avoided in the future?

As you train more, your muscles will become more accustomed to the bashing they get on a longer run, so you will feel the effects less afterwards. I have been running for nearly 4 years, and only today do I feel fully recovered from the half marathon I ran on Sunday, but my first ever half marathon took over a week to recover from.

A massage may help ease the worst of the pain, and I have read several reports that sitting in a cold bath with ice in it as soon after the race as possible is the best treatment, but I've never been brave enough to try it. I do find that going for a swim after a long run helps though, probably as the water is colder than a normal bath.

Well done on your GSR time - excellent result after such a short time running!

thanks Nessie,i was actually under the impression really hot bath for aching muscles rather than freezing...but willing to try..

Brave, very brave.

Let us know if it works...........

Wow Alistair, that's really good going (83 mins) - I've been running about 5 months and did the GSR in 99 mins (sound a bit better than 1:39) and I've been running between 3 & 6 miles 5 times a week! I'll be happy to get anywhere near your time next year! Must admit the quads were ok but my knees suffered... (just going to try and build up my muscles more so they don't hurt so much in the future - unless anyone else has any better suggestion for sore knees?)

I'm sure it doesn't help as much, but try getting into a hot/warm bath then gradually add cold water. Seems to work for me.

I think the idea is that the muscles heat up as you run, and there is some damage done (which causes the muscles to get stronger later) and micro tears in the muscles are what cause the pain. The cold wate/ice cools the legs and reduces the inflamation, allowing the muscles to heal quicker. This is best done within a couple of hours after the race.

Residual stiffness, caused by lactic acid hanging around in the muscles, can be helped by massage, warm bath or best of all by a gentle recovery run, to flush out the toxins (if you can get your legs to move!)

If you try the cold bath (brave, very brave), let us know if it works.

Going to run the stevenage half marathon in november....i ll let u know if the cold bath does the trick!

What you're experiencing is muscle damage - I believe that the cold bath theory is that it stimulates blood flow to your legs which helps the muscles to heal. Any or all of the following may also help...
1. concentrate on stretching after the event - this also stimulates blood flow which flushes lactic acid out of the muscles
2. rehydrate quickly and re-stock your muscles with glycogen quickly, ie eat something and drink something
3. Make sure you have sufficient protein in your meals after the event, or even try a protein supplement/ recovery drink
4. Massage helps (stimulates the blood flow again) try a peppery massage oil for a deep heat effect.
5. Keep moving after the event - running 13 miles then doing nothing at all is sure to stiffen up the muscles.
6. Change your running shoes - no insult intended but you're a heavier runner at 16st and you need the best cushioning you can get, your current shoes may not be up to it.

Hope this is helpful