By Lisa Harris and Rosanna Wood
There is mounting research backing up what many health professionals, including us osteopaths, have been saying for years: Exercise is not only beneficial but crucial to your everyday health. Everybody should be doing some amount of exercise to keep both body and mind healthy.
Many of you know Lisa Harris. She is one of the marvellous osteopaths here at Oak Park Clinic and she has a special place in her heart for exercise since beginning Triathlon training just a few short years ago.
I sat down with Lisa to hear the story of what inspired her to get started, and how she maintained her interest in training all the way up to competing in Olympic length Triathlons.
Rosanna: What inspired you to start?
Lisa: I was recovering from pneumonia and started reflecting on how inactive I had been. Even exercising the dogs I was cheating, standing in a field and throwing a ball instead of actually going for a walk! So I decided, as I started to recover from pneumonia, I needed to do something about it.
Rosanna: How did you start training?
Lisa: I had heard people talk about Couch to 5k. I thought that might be a good way to start, so I looked on the NHS website and found an app and instructions to follow. It was good because it started with simple walking and running exercises which I could keep doing with the dogs. I knew that it would be a good idea to do some other activity mixed in with that though. I had a dusty old mountain bike that I hadn’t ridden in years, and I liked swimming from time to time, so I started adding in going out once a week on the bike with the dogs, and going swimming once a week.
I found I was really enjoying it. And once I was doing a bit more exercise I was much less inclined to want to eat loads of biscuits! I was feeling a bit more toned, and found myself really looking forward to those exercise sessions.
In the autumn I was watching TV and I saw mention of a triathlon, and thought “I could do that”. So I signed up for a spring triathlon, and immediately thought “Oh my goodness, what have I done?!”
Rosanna: How did your training change for this?
Lisa: I went on the Internet and found a sprint-triathlon training plan. This started with the swim, bike, and run, but also added in some strength training, yoga, and one or two rest days per week. I have found I really enjoy the variety. In thepast I found if I had done exercise classes I would get bored really easily and find an excuse not to do it, but this just really seemed fun.
Rosanna: Were any parts of the training tricky for you?
Lisa: I was enjoying the Triathlon side of things but didn’t enjoy the pure running. Bernie (from Oak Park Clinic), suggested that if I ran more through the winter I might learn to enjoy it more. I still don’t enjoy it (*laughs*), but I can run quite far now and feel really good when I’ve finished!
I entered Reading half marathon, which was a longer distance than the triathlons I had been doing, and meant increasing my training distances.
I got quite a few niggles if I increased the mileage too quickly though. More than an increase of half a kilometre a week and I would find I would definitely get a niggle. So it was a slow and steady training programme for the half marathon.
Rosanna: How do you prevent injury when training?
Lisa: This is a big area to talk about. Some of the ways I think about this are:
Always stretch after running. Obvious, but often skipped by many.
Sometimes running with the dogs can feel like I haven’t done much at all, but two days later I feel it. Regularly using a handheld massager or foam rolling, in between sports massages, really helps.
Yoga helps a lot.
I also use Epsom bath salts.
Making sure to ice if there’s something feeling sore. And if it hasn’t gone, visit an osteopath or book in for a sports massage.
Sleep is really important in the healing of tissue repair, which can be an overlooked aspect of training.
Rosanna: As an osteopath what problems do you see in patients doing similar exercise?
Lisa: Weak glutes, this is a common one. Often back pain, hip pain, and knee pain lead back to weak glutes. But this is not obvious to most people until they get checked out by an osteopath.
Not taking sufficient rest. All too common this is a problem, as the pressure on yourself to improve makes you think you must do more and more. Gains are made during rest when the body repairs to come back stronger, not during exercise.
Increasing distance too quickly. I mentioned earlier, I had to be careful about this myself. The body needs time to adapt to changes.
Only training in the gym and doing the event outside. Always do some of your training on the similar terrain to the event.
Rosanna: What targets did you set yourself?
Lisa: Well, I got a bit addicted to Triathlons and found it helpful to get the next one or two booked in to keep a target in my sights. Being realistic is important too though. No way could I have accomplished the Triathlons I have done without the time of gently building up to them. Now I feel strong and confident that these are possible.
My next big goal I’m working towards is doing a half-ironman next year for my 50th! Watch this space.
Rosanna: Finally, what are your key tips for anyone thinking about starting to increase exercise and maybe even train for an event?
Lisa: Training should be fun, it’s what we do lots of and the competition is a celebration of the training. People can get bogged down in getting miles done and forget the fun, it can help to vary where we train and what time of day; not always being in the gym.
Meeting up with like minded people so you are not doing all your training alone.
Don’t increase mileage too soon, but make sure you have time to train for any event you enter. I’ve seen injured people who have barely done any training for an event.
If you do get an injury, seek advice if it persists. Often seeing someone sooner may result in less treatment and rehabilitation than trying to work through pain and potentially doing more damage.
Rosanna: Thank you Lisa, that’s very useful. I hope others will be inspired to give themselves a challenge like you have done.
Useful links to useful people who have helped me in my journey!
Swim coaching with Jason Tait – www.southwestswim.co.uk
Personal trainer/training plans from Caroline Dendy – www.dendy.co.uk
Coaching psychology with Andre Daltrey – www.ardtrainingcamp.co.uk/the-coaching-team