Eat For You Dietitian

For the past few months I put my strength training to one side due to sciatic pain on my right leg and I focused on regular stretching and yoga practice. I found a morning virtual yoga group on facebook where we do a shared Fiit yoga class at 6.05am on weekdays. Every morning wasn’t easy but the accountability was exactly what I needed at the time. Some days were easier than others. I almost managed the splits after one class and managed a headstand for about 5 seconds after another class. 

What I’ve learnt is essential alongside running regularly is DO NOT ignore strength training. As you run you are essentially putting all your body weight from one leg to the other, over and over again. Your glutes, legs, upper body and core must be able to cope. What I have learnt though is that high intensity training does not agree with my body. Alongside running, my body doesn’t like jumping around. Overall, my body finds it too much and I have had one too many injuries as a result from pushing training too much. 

What has come at a perfect time is the ‘Base Fiit’ 4-week training plan on virtual Fiit app this week. Last week I was a bit lost as to how to get back started. I tried using my dumbbells again and felt awkward. So I’m going back to the basics, starting with low impact cardio and strength 25 minute classes. Wow, was I sweating buckets! It felt amazing though, re-learning my form and making sure as I got tired correcting myself. 

Essentially that’s what you need to do when faced with a difficult challenge to get through. My example is getting to the finish line of a marathon race. 26.2 miles is a long way to not run correctly, you would be pretty sore by the end of it. When you feel that your legs can’t take another step, stand up tall and breathe. When our bodies are ready to give up, our mind can still take more. We just need to find it.  

So far, I’m one class down out of 4 this week so I will try to write to document my progress.