14 years old - Suffering Leg Aches During 4 Mile Run

xAlanxEnglandx · #1 7th May 08, 03:33 PM

Hey guys, I'me actually 14 years old and took up running a while back (about 8 months ago).

I started to gradually build up to a constant 4 mile run, which i've been doing for about 4 months now and had no problems.

However in the last month my time has been decreasing and ime not enjoying my run anymore. This is because of this leg ache while I run and just get pain in my legs during my run which really slows me down.

Am i too young to do these kind of distances, I have the stamina and the breath, but maybe my legs arn't ready for it as ime still developing?

Maybe I should stick to a 2 mile run instead?

I Train about 4 times a week
I have running trainers
I run on hard ground(Road running)
Distance: 4 Miles

Thanks for the Help!

Revenged · #2 7th May 08, 03:52 PM

a good question to ask...

conditions such as Osgood-Schlatters are found almost exclusively in young athletes of your age group and they are common...

it looks like this :

http://www.zadeh.co.uk/paediatricort...chlatter_1.jpg

your growth plates close when you are approximately twenty and until then you should be aware that until then you can be under increase risk...

obviously though you know your own limits better than i do but as long as you are sensible with the distance you run then you should be fine...

*richardsimkiss* · #3 7th May 08, 03:59 PM

make sure all your runs aren't just flat out 4mile runs (though if you have trainers I'm sure you've got this covered already)... Personally I'd say work on your shorter distance speed as much as possible at a young age, as I believe this is hte best time to develop speed that will last you through your running career - endurance can more easily be obtained further down the line.

Isn't 5k about as far as schools compete in your age group? If so then it'd be much more worthwhile training for that than a distance you'd rarely/never race. I'd possibly stick to that distance as a max and then progress onto 10k when you turn 16 (or maybe late 15yrs)???

xAlanxEnglandx · #4 7th May 08, 04:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by richardsimkiss

make sure all your runs aren't just flat out 4mile runs (though if you have trainers I'm sure you've got this covered already)... Personally I'd say work on your shorter distance speed as much as possible at a young age, as I believe this is hte best time to develop speed that will last you through your running career - endurance can more easily be obtained further down the line.

Isn't 5k about as far as schools compete in your age group? If so then it'd be much more worthwhile training for that than a distance you'd rarely/never race. I'd possibly stick to that distance as a max and then progress onto 10k when you turn 16 (or maybe late 15yrs)???

So Basically what your trying to say is, somedays I could do shorter distances and maybe I could do that odd extra distance to See how i perform on the odd day?

Cause this leg ache is really putting me off and maybe cutting down on distance will take the pain off.

By the way, I kind of do running more for my generall fitness rather than competition.

*richardsimkiss* · #5 7th May 08, 04:13 PM

make sure you're getting enough rest days... and yes, some days you should be running shorter distances... try and find a park, a track or quiet place to run and run say 200m or 400m pretty hard... give yourself a minute to a minute and a half to recover, then do the same... start with doing it say 6 times (for 200m) or 4 times for (400m) and perhaps add a few as the weeks go on... these kind of speedwork sessions will improve your cadence (leg speed)... also try some runs of say 1.5-2miles hard (after warming up) followed by a cool down.

Running oyur target distance will have some benefit, but speedwork, tempo runs and slower longer runs will return results in a shorter space of time, and hopefully the variation of runs will alleviate hte boredom for you!

I think the leg ache is quite possibly through trying to do the same run, as fast as possible and just generally fatiguing the body!

xAlanxEnglandx · #6 7th May 08, 05:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by richardsimkiss

make sure you're getting enough rest days... and yes, some days you should be running shorter distances... try and find a park, a track or quiet place to run and run say 200m or 400m pretty hard... give yourself a minute to a minute and a half to recover, then do the same... start with doing it say 6 times (for 200m) or 4 times for (400m) and perhaps add a few as the weeks go on... these kind of speedwork sessions will improve your cadence (leg speed)... also try some runs of say 1.5-2miles hard (after warming up) followed by a cool down.

Running oyur target distance will have some benefit, but speedwork, tempo runs and slower longer runs will return results in a shorter space of time, and hopefully the variation of runs will alleviate hte boredom for you!

I think the leg ache is quite possibly through trying to do the same run, as fast as possible and just generally fatiguing the body!

Thanks for that, but training say like a 2 mile Distance, won't this loose my ability to run my 4 Mile run, Regurly doing short distances such as 200m or 400m sprints will decrease me in being able to run those longer distances.

Do you mean just variaty my week out, with a range of different runs? I think I might take your advice and try it, my first could be a sprint in a week, next a fast mile jog, then Ide build up to my 4 Mile run sometime in the week. Like you say, try other runs during a week?

*richardsimkiss* · #7 7th May 08, 06:13 PM

indeed! for variety is the spice of life

if you're running 2miles in training, your body doesn't forget how to run 4 miles... it teaches your body how to run faster making it easier to maintain a fast pace for longer. The reasoning is that you can't (realistically) run your full blown race pace for the full race distace in training... so by running at your intended race pace or quicker in some runs, and full race distance or longer but at a slower pace in other runs, your body in turn learns the best of both worlds which in theory come together in a race scenario.

It's arguably one of the best ways of improving without putting too much strain on the body (such as you might do with contstant all-out efforts).

Hope that helps a little!

xAlanxEnglandx · #8 7th May 08, 08:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by richardsimkiss

indeed! for variety is the spice of life

if you're running 2miles in training, your body doesn't forget how to run 4 miles... it teaches your body how to run faster making it easier to maintain a fast pace for longer. The reasoning is that you can't (realistically) run your full blown race pace for the full race distace in training... so by running at your intended race pace or quicker in some runs, and full race distance or longer but at a slower pace in other runs, your body in turn learns the best of both worlds which in theory come together in a race scenario.

It's arguably one of the best ways of improving without putting too much strain on the body (such as you might do with contstant all-out efforts).

Hope that helps a little!

Well this will be my last post to finish this topic off, but I'me a little worried what revenged (the first post in the topic) said about something to do with the plates on my leg not connecting till around twenty, Should I be aware of the possible conditions in running I can suffer at a early age?

Does it work like "If ime not in pain, ime okay"? Because ive heard conditions you can catch in later life from running.

Should I just take things steady, and like you said, get plenty of rest aswell to prevent injury? Also Should I try and keep of the road and do some runs on grass if possible?
Pounding on my legs of the road at my age could be a little dangerous over time? I might think in buying a treadmill, apprantly they also take impact of your legs

thanks though richardsimkiss you've gave alot of good advice and I think I might enjoy my run more with vaerity and improve my speed for covered distances.

*richardsimkiss* · #9 7th May 08, 09:37 PM

revenged is a fairly new member to the forum a few months ago, but always posts very useful and informative information - he certainly seems to know his stuff about physiology!

I can't comment much on growth in young adults as it's something i've really never looked into, though obviously your body will still be developing and it's something you should try and be sympathetic to - allowing yourself plenty of rest, running on softer surfaces where possible, and overall just not overloading your body with too much training... Part of me thinks this is probably why they have minimum age restrictions on races of certain distances!

Revenged · #10 8th May 08, 04:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by xAlanxEnglandx

Well this will be my last post to finish this topic off, but I'me a little worried what revenged (the first post in the topic) said about something to do with the plates on my leg not connecting till around twenty, Should I be aware of the possible conditions in running I can suffer at a early age?

Does it work like "If ime not in pain, ime okay"? Because ive heard conditions you can catch in later life from running.

I didn't mean to put you off !

I brought it up because you said that you had pains in the leg and you wanted to increase your distance - didn't sound like a good combination to me !...

As to what Osgood Schalters disease is...

It is caused by overuse of the quadraceps (the muscles that pull on your shin to straighten your leg)...

Often it is a mild condition that causes pain below the knee and is treated with mild pain killers...

However, what can happen is that your quads can pull part of your tibia ('shin bone') away from the rest of the bone and this causes a lump to appear under the knee...

http://www.zadeh.co.uk/paediatricort...chlatter_1.jpg

This is what was shown in that X-ray link I gave you... When the bone is fully formed and the growth plates fuse this doesn't occur...

My best advice would be don't try to "work through" injuries... There are people who run for years and have 'no injuries' and they may wrongly advise you and say that running through injuries is possible (pedestrian

)... Likewise, i've seen a thread on runnersworld or mapmyrun where teenagers were showing off at how young they run marathons and again apparently had 'no problem' but you should take things like this with a pinch of salt... A few people experience doesn't make a rule... All runners get injured eventually but it does happen a lot sooner in people who push themselves to run marathons when they are new and inexperienced... I've seen quite a few horrific injuries (and had a couple of broken bones) in my time and i'd always advise being sensible and alwayge be cautious if you are unsure... You are the best judge of how good you feel (not your coaches) and if you are comfortable with doing 3 miles then sure stick with it but do it if you want to... These type repetitive strain injuries are often found in people who are very good and try to keep up very difficult running schedules or people that are not very good and push too hard when they first start so if you have built up sensibly then it should not be a problem...

As for long term running effects - many people believe that it arthritis but i'm not convinced it is such a problem...

but here's some experts opinion :

'In summary, there does not appear to be an increased risk of the development of OA in recreational runners/joggers, which is welcome news as the potential benefits are manifold. There is, however, an increased risk in those who have sustained an injury to a joint and potentially those who pursue certain sports at an elite level.'

http://www.fims.org/default.asp?pageID=1027211458