Stitch
didds
Posts: 655
in General Chat
Question on behalf of my wife.
She's always been a sporty girl (nudge nudge wink wink for the benefit of MP fans :-) and was a county hockey (field!) player in her twenties. Slim build, 5'10".
Been running recently and wants to do a 10K at new year with me and a good friend.
She finds however that much above about 8.5kph (circa 5.3? mph) she gets stitch. It goes as soon as she has walked it off and stays below that 8.6, maybe 9kph.
any ideas why? or how to get over the problem?
didds
She's always been a sporty girl (nudge nudge wink wink for the benefit of MP fans :-) and was a county hockey (field!) player in her twenties. Slim build, 5'10".
Been running recently and wants to do a 10K at new year with me and a good friend.
She finds however that much above about 8.5kph (circa 5.3? mph) she gets stitch. It goes as soon as she has walked it off and stays below that 8.6, maybe 9kph.
any ideas why? or how to get over the problem?
didds
0
Comments
Is this not the case then?
There are many theories, some with more credibility than others.
The over-arching theory is due to the ligament pull on the diaphragm by the abdominal organs, causing cramp, this can be caused/worsened by having a full stomach as it is pulling down on these ligaments. However, most people tend to get a stitch more to the right side, this is due to the pulling of the liver.
Now, this is where it gets technical, as you breath out your diaphragm goes up, as your foot hits the floor (particularly your right) your liver goes down. So if these two things happen together you are more likely to stretch the ligaments and get a stitch.
So, all the theories pointing to increase distance etc. may actually be more related to a more laboured breathing pattern, causing further stretch on these ligaments. In more highly trained athletes its likely these ligaments get stronger/stretcher over time, so they are less likely to get a stitch.
If you get a stitch, stop and using your fingers press up under your ribs on the right side and relax your breathing, this should help.
FTR she doesn't eat beforehand, has done yoga for over a decade and has excellent core stability (her stomach is like rock!) and she does warm up well.
We are to try the alter-the-side-she-breaths-on thing this weekend...
cheers
didds
Perhaps this is the explanation; if, as TommiTri says, the pull of the breath combined with the foot going down can cause the problem, then breathing on a 3 or 5 count woulde share the load.
I started doing 3 steps in, 2 steps out. Then I changed to 2 in 3 out to try to improve my breath intake for swimming. When I get to hills I go to 1 in 2 out. After that it is completely asynchronous panting/sobbing/wondering why I do this stupid hobby. [:D]
Don't seem to get cramp very often anymore, unless I fall back to a 2/2 breathing pattern. When I do, it is more likely to be on my left ribs, or occasionaly a sharp pain up in my left shoulder (weird?).