Cardio/Jogging & Walking

Bigger Stronger Leaner Competitive Bodybuilding
1

Ok, so I added jogging/fast walking to my weekly workouts and have been experiencing pain in the chin area after the first lap on the track. I figure it is because of a combination of things, such as my age, my weight, and maybe even lack of proper or enough stretching to loosen and warm up the muscles. The pain does not cause me to stop till about a mile it starts getting so bad that I struggle to keep going. I have only went to the track 3 times so far, and the first time I had to stop after 3 laps, the second and third times I pushed myself to go 4 laps.

I start out with a walk for the first lap, then on the second lap, I walk the straights and jog the curves, and switch for the third lap, jog the staights walk the curves and on the 4th lap so far, I have only been able to jog 1 curve as the chins are hurting so bad by this time.

Any advice on how to get over this, or is it just something that will take time for my legs to get accustom to running.

Don’t know if it makes a difference, but the track is like a rubber material, it isn’t hard like asphault.

I am clueless here as running/jogging has never been my thing.

2

[quote]MoonDaug wrote:
Ok, so I added jogging/fast walking to my weekly workouts and have been experiencing pain in the chin area after the first lap on the track. I figure it is because of a combination of things, such as my age, my weight, and maybe even lack of proper or enough stretching to loosen and warm up the muscles. The pain does not cause me to stop till about a mile it starts getting so bad that I struggle to keep going. I have only went to the track 3 times so far, and the first time I had to stop after 3 laps, the second and third times I pushed myself to go 4 laps.

I start out with a walk for the first lap, then on the second lap, I walk the straights and jog the curves, and switch for the third lap, jog the staights walk the curves and on the 4th lap so far, I have only been able to jog 1 curve as the chins are hurting so bad by this time.

Any advice on how to get over this, or is it just something that will take time for my legs to get accustom to running.

Don’t know if it makes a difference, but the track is like a rubber material, it isn’t hard like asphault.

I am clueless here as running/jogging has never been my thing.[/quote]

You mean the shin area? Is it more of a sharp localized pain? Hurts more when you press it? Or a globalized aching? Shinplints typically bother you less as the workout goes on and start hurting again after. A stress fracture is more of a sharp, localized pain as I first described and get progressively worse while exercising. You should be stretching well. Ice the area. Make sure and strech your calves out well several times a day. Make sure you are working your calves in the gym. Walk around on your toes in the house.

Also on your heels. A good strech: sit on the ground with one leg estended, knee slightly bent and raised. Pull back on the sole of your foot. Do it for the other leg as well. Rest, take some time off, anti-inflammatories. When you go back, use grass fields as opposed to the track. But if there’s no real reason to run, don’t. If you’re just looking to get some cardio in and burn some extra calories, ride a bike for now. How much do you weigh?

3

Stop this jogging thing. If you want cardio lift heavier and faster with Olympic lifts. That will provide all the cardio you need. If you have to do this “cardio” stuff go to the local swimming pool. Swim hard for a length and recover repeat until 30 minutes have elapsed. Keep this up until you can stroke out a mile in 30 minutes.

4

[quote]jsbrook wrote:

You mean the shin area? [/quote]
Yes, I mean the shin.

[quote]

Is it more of a sharp localized pain? Hurts more when you press it? Or a globalized aching? Shinplints typically bother you less as the workout goes on and start hurting again after. A stress fracture is more of a sharp, localized pain as I first described and get progressively worse while exercising.[/quote]
The pain is like in the bone of the shin, it sorta feels like I would imagine a bone being split apart length wise, but it does hurt in the bone area and not the muscle around the bone and it gets worse the further I go. Last night, I only walked fast and I barely made it for a mile, and this morning the shins still hurt like hell.

I do stretch maybe not enough not sure there. I work my calves and have been since I started working out again. Have dropped weight from 310 down to between 281 and 286 is what I seem to range here lately.

When I first started lifting, people told me to Lift Big, Eat Big and Get Plenty of rest to Grow Big. These same people told me, that by increasing my lean mass (muscle) I would increase my metabolism thus burn more fat. So that is what I did. They said that by doing cardio, you burn lean mass and therefore I should not do cardio.

Anyway, I hope this answers your questions and thanks for the feedback.

5

Sounds like shinsplints. Stretching is one of the best ways to get over this, but mostly it just takes time. I used to get them at the beginning of every football season. They would go away about mid season. If you’re really hurting and still wanting to run, you can decrease a little bit of the pain by tightly wrapping your lower legs in tape or an ace bandage.

6

Moon, I suggest taking some off from impact cardio. If you wish to do cardio apart from weight training, stick to the bike for awhile. Ice and stretch. And if you want to move back to jogging after taking some time off, proceed very slowly.

7

Thanks for the advice, I guess its time to go buy a bike then, cause I need the cardio to help get rid of this spare tire around the mid section and the discomfort from running is getting starting to get irritating. Anyway, thanks again for the advice.

8

[quote]jamej wrote:
Stop this jogging thing. If you want cardio lift heavier and faster with Olympic lifts. That will provide all the cardio you need. If you have to do this “cardio” stuff go to the local swimming pool. Swim hard for a length and recover repeat until 30 minutes have elapsed. Keep this up until you can stroke out a mile in 30 minutes.[/quote]

Jogging sucks. Replace it with walking or running (fast).

The olympic lifts are not a replacement energy system work.

Picking the proper type of cardio depends on your goals.

9

[quote]
Jogging sucks. Replace it with walking or running (fast).

Picking the proper type of cardio depends on your goals.[/quote]

My goal is to lose excess body fat, I know it cant be spot reduced so I wont say where, but overall, I want to drop body fat more than I want to get huge muscles.

So, what would you recommend other than jogging? Running fast, well for me atleast, that would look like jogging, and although I cant even jog fast, some might even call it a fast walk, either way, I still get the pain in the shins. I am open for suggestions.

10

Get orthotics made by a podiatrist. It will help your foot mechanics and reduce tibial rotational stress. Your shins will thank you.

11

[quote]MoonDaug wrote:
Thanks for the advice, I guess its time to go buy a bike then, cause I need the cardio to help get rid of this spare tire around the mid section and the discomfort from running is getting starting to get irritating. Anyway, thanks again for the advice.[/quote]

Sure. I do not recommend sprinting either given the troubles you’re having. Stick to low impact work for now. Moderate intensity cardio or sprint intervals if you wish on an exercise bike. If you belong to a gym that has one, you could do it there rather then buying one if it’s easier for you.

12

It sounds like you may be too heavy for jogging/running. I know that when I was at 250, running greatly hurt my ankle, so much so that I had to visit a PT, after only a couple of weeks of trying. She basically said my lower legs couldn’t take that much pounding. Now that I am lighter, I am finding that I can run pain free again.

Until you get down to a reasonable weight, only do lower impact cardio, such as biking and swimming.

Jeff

13

Would sled-dragging be appropriate here?

-FC

14

Jogging REALLY isn’t the way to go to change body composition for a guy your size. You say you used to lift big and all, so you’ve probably got a good bit of lean mass in there. Those people who told you your lean mass will help you keep fat off were right - though you have to clean up your diet too. Instead of “eat big” they should have said “eat big and clean.” What does your diet look like right now?

You don’t need to do long-duration “cardio” to improve heart health and lose fat. It’s actually much more efficient and safe on your joints to do higher-volume resistance training. Sled work, like the other guy mentioned, would be great. Starting with 3 or 4 50 foot pulls would be good, eventually moving up in weight and distance.

High rep squats, circuit training (not nansy pansy crap, but doing a circuit like bent over rows for 6 followed by squats for 6-8 followed by bench for 6-8 etc. for the major motions), simple high-volume training in the 10-15 rep range on a basic compound movement, complexes, all would work well. This is all assuming your heart is healthy now, of course - if not, you’ll want to take it lighter and build up volume and intensity.

I agree with orthotics if your insurace covers them. Poor foot mechanics will hold you back more than many realize. Just got a pair myself, and I feel 10x better under a heavy squat.

-Dan

15

[quote]buffalokilla wrote:
Jogging REALLY isn’t the way to go to change body composition for a guy your size. You say you used to lift big and all, so you’ve probably got a good bit of lean mass in there. Those people who told you your lean mass will help you keep fat off were right - though you have to clean up your diet too. Instead of “eat big” they should have said “eat big and clean.” What does your diet look like right now?

You don’t need to do long-duration “cardio” to improve heart health and lose fat. It’s actually much more efficient and safe on your joints to do higher-volume resistance training. Sled work, like the other guy mentioned, would be great. Starting with 3 or 4 50 foot pulls would be good, eventually moving up in weight and distance.

High rep squats, circuit training (not nansy pansy crap, but doing a circuit like bent over rows for 6 followed by squats for 6-8 followed by bench for 6-8 etc. for the major motions), simple high-volume training in the 10-15 rep range on a basic compound movement, complexes, all would work well. This is all assuming your heart is healthy now, of course - if not, you’ll want to take it lighter and build up volume and intensity.

I agree with orthotics if your insurace covers them. Poor foot mechanics will hold you back more than many realize. Just got a pair myself, and I feel 10x better under a heavy squat.

-Dan[/quote]

I would have to say my diet although I feel it is more in order than any other time in my life, could most likely use some tweaking. I am going to cut completely all carbs after 5pm and only have my carb intake in the AM and after workout. My fat intake is moderately low, without the Fish Oil and Flax Oil I take, maybe I should remove one or both of them.

I do have a sled, my daughters boyfriend welded together for me, I am just having a dificult time working out the straps part of it, currently just using a large rope and chain.

I am going to try just walking, at a normal walking pace today and see what happens, I will refrain from any jogging or quick walking motion and only use my normal pace. I will post how the shins feel afterwards. If I still have the pains, I am going to contact the Dr. and find out about those shoes someone mentioned. If today I have no pains from walking I might run up and down the bleachers to get the heart pumping.

Anyway, thanks all for the advice.

Moon

16

These seem like normal aches and pains for a runner just starting out. In my experience, as long as you are sure you are wearing the right shoes for your foot type, you just have to tough it out for a while. I used to run quite a bit and completed the NYC Marathon in 2001. I’m 5’10", 190lbs and NOT Kenyan. I’ve had pain in my shins, knees, hip, lower back, you name it. You can usually decrease the intensity or distance of your runs to ease the pain. Guys like you and me are not built to be efficient runners, things are going to hurt from time to time.

Also, the track, while it is a soft surface to run on, wreaks havoc on your shins and ankles because of the constant turning in one direction. You may want to find a dirt trail for a better surface. Asphalt, believe it or not, is a pretty good surface to run on. Just alter the side of the street you run on because roads are crowned and get lower at the curbside for drainage. Never run on concrete.

Good luck and don’t give up so soon!

17

[quote]MoonDaug wrote:

Jogging sucks. Replace it with walking or running (fast).

Picking the proper type of cardio depends on your goals.

My goal is to lose excess body fat, I know it cant be spot reduced so I wont say where, but overall, I want to drop body fat more than I want to get huge muscles.

So, what would you recommend other than jogging? Running fast, well for me atleast, that would look like jogging, and although I cant even jog fast, some might even call it a fast walk, either way, I still get the pain in the shins. I am open for suggestions.[/quote]

At 6’1 286# In my opinion you should fix your diet and do a hell of a lot of walking.

Keep lifting heavy to maintain your muscle and walk, walk, walk to burn the fat. Jogging and running at your weight might just fuck up your legs.

Good luck.

18

Ok, so last night I walked the track for a mile then ran the bleachers. I experienced a slight tightness in the shins, nothing really major. I did notice that if I really concentrated on putting my heel down first and following through and pushing off from the toes, that the pain wasn’t as intense, maybe something to that or maybe not. Maybe I am just getting the legs used to the activity. Will keep it going. Anyway, the bleachers were a bitch, just as I remember from back in high school football practice, I ran up and walked back down 12 times. Going to work my way up to walking 3 miles and doing 36 - 40 bleacher runs, 3 times a week. So, basically I am just going to deal with it as long as it doesn’t get to bad to deal with.