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The Planted Runner

are you making this marathon mistake?

Published about 1 month ago • 3 min read

Most of us have been taught practice is perfect.

If you want to learn to play the flute, you practice your scales and your finger placement over and over again until you can do it without thinking.

If you're a singer, you practice your songs over and over again until they are perfect for the performance.

And when you have a presentation to give, you go over your notes and your Power Point until you are confident you've got the material nailed.

So it's not a surprise that most runners want to apply this same principle to running. If we want to run 9:00/mi for our marathon, for example, we should run as many 9:00 miles as we can to be sure we can do it.

Unfortunately, the "dress rehearsal" theory doesn't work very well in endurance training.

Here's why.

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ask me anything

Q:

My knee has a slight niggle only when I squat sometimes. It’s not a continuous pain and I’m not feeling it when I run.

As a preventative measure and to keep it strong for my marathon, if you have any specific exercises, stretches or techniques I can do daily on it that would be great.

A:

There's a video going around saying that athletes get knee pain when they work out too much. Weekend warriors get knee pain when they do too much too soon. And couch potatoes get knee pain because they don't exercise enough.

Seems like a design flaw, right?

I'm glad your knee issue is still mild and hope it stays that way.

Of course, I'm not a physical therapist or doctor and I can't diagnose exactly what's going on or exactly how to treat it.

But general principles for running injuries are to load the muscles/tendons surrounding the area to strengthen and bring blood flow, being sure to stay below the threshold of increasing pain.

So if a full squat hurts, see what you can do that does not hurt. Perhaps a half squat is doable without pain. And maybe you can add weight to a half squat so you are still challenging the muscles, but not aggravating the joint.

If a forward lunge hurts, see if you can do a backwards lunge without pain. And on, and on.

There is no "magic" set of exercises or stretches that can heal pain. You'll need to focus on what you can do that boosts mobility and strength in the calf, quads, hamstrings while still activating the knee joint.

Motion is lotion!

What you don't want to do is stop your strength or running. Modify to avoid increasing pain, of course, but keep it up and you'll make everything stronger and more resilient.

podcast

Most people think the sixth sense is about seeing dead people. But it’s actually balance which is critical to health, injury prevention, and longevity.

How’s your balance? Do you actively work on it? And what does balance have to do with running and performance?

Let’s find out.

In today's Planted Runner Podcast, we’re going to explore your real 6th sense, balance.

You’ll learn:

  • How balance training can prevent injury
  • How it can improve performance, and
  • Exactly what exercises you can do to improve your balance today.

This is one of the most underrated training practices that runners can do that is also super simple and effective.

If you know a runner that is missing out on balance training, now is a good time to go ahead and share this episode with them!

inspo

“When you align daily actions with long-term goals, progress becomes inevitable.”

— Allison Dunn

Have a great run today,

Coach Claire

P.S. Feeling stuck in your progress? Coaching with community is the key to breaking the plateau. (It was for me!)

Get a truly custom training solution with coaching, accountability, and a supportive team of runners just like you. No matter what your goal or ability, PR Team training can help you reach goals you never thought possible on your own. Learn more here.​

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My mission is to help runners just like you reach goals they never dreamed possible through science-backed training and plant-based nutrition.

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Since 2016, I've helped thousands of every day runners become fitter, faster, and stronger with truly customized training and coaching.

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I also love to share what I have learned from my own journey starting as a non-runner to a 2:58 marathoner at age 42, as well what I have learned coaching runners, completely FREE. I do that every week in this newsletter and on the Planted Runner Podcast.

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The Planted Runner

Claire Bartholic

Coach Claire has helped hundreds of real runners chase their dreams and conquer what they never thought possible. Her coaching philosophy combines science-based training, plant-based running nutrition, and proven mindset techniques to unlock every runner's true potential. She's a certified vegan running coach, sports nutrition specialist, mom, and borderline obsessive plant lover. As an athlete herself, she went from a 4:02 first marathon all the way to a 2:58 finishing time at the age of 42, entirely plant-based. She coaches vegan, plant-based, and plant-curious runners to achieve the same dramatic success, from those on a walk-run program, general fitness, up to high-level athletes

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