So he got a side cramp...why he gotta call it a diaphragm spasm
As someone who has experienced both, they are very different things. Side stitch is a slightly painful annoyance that you can run through to a degree and usually stops occurring altogether in the moderately trained. A diaphragm spasm feels very specifically like you're being stabbed in the upper right abdomen and if you attempt to run through it without slowing down it gets progressively worse until it feels like an organ has ruptured.
Not a spasm of diaphragm, just more likely some over-breathing mistimed and abript return from altitude.
How does a coach prevent a side stitch or whatever it was? I guess it Dellinger’s fault when Salazar DNFed at the 1976 NCAA XC championships. What would you do as a coach to prevent what happened to Kincaid?
There was a time when I was improving very rapidly in workouts but would get the side stitch on the right side that I came to see was the diaphragm spasm. It was holding me back. I read a thread about it here on this website and it was hard to believe, but I tried it out--take in a few deep breaths and hold them a bit and then slowly exhale--and it worked wonders and I ran by far my best ever workouts--pr'ing in workouts without too much strain--after that. They usually had happened when I was going hard on a tempo. The breathing technique really works. Once or twice only the spasm was so painful that I had to stop and work it out, but that again was before the breathing technique.
Well first of all, thanks to Woody for transparently explaining what happened. The BTC haters on the message board would be far less rampant if the athletes and coaches were more forthcoming.
Woody takes on Marc Scott in the Portland Track Festival 5,000. If he's competitive there or wins, you'd have to like his chances at USAs. One interesting wrinkle is that this figures to be a loaded 5,000 at USAs if Hocker and Teare opt to double back. In that case, I wonder how the race plays out. Fisher would be foolish to let it come down to the last 200 again vs. those two, Woody and Chelimo (and let's toss in Beadlescomb and Nur too). Fisher's best move would be to take it from 1,000 out, which might not be the most favorable to Woody.
Fisher should've moved with a 1000 to go last week. He'd be the 10k champ if he had.
Qualifying for the WC team with minimal effort sounds like a good outcome to me.
A side stitch could absolutely take you out of a race. It's bs when it happens because you could be in the shape of your life with the lead pack and it takes you right out of focus and off pace. Then it takes some sport psychology to make sure it doesn't become a mental thing after. I had it happen a few times in high school and it's ruined some big meets for me. Since haven't it yet
A side stitch could absolutely take you out of a race. It's bs when it happens because you could be in the shape of your life with the lead pack and it takes you right out of focus and off pace. Then it takes some sport psychology to make sure it doesn't become a mental thing after. I had it happen a few times in high school and it's ruined some big meets for me. Since haven't it yet
10k is definitely the worst distance to run if you get a side stitch. 5k is fine, you can usually tough it out. Anything over 10k, you're usually starting slow enough where breathing won't be too erratic and you're going slow enough to work it out if you do get one. But yeah, getting one like two miles or so into a 10k is just killer. Especially at that level in a championship race where you need to be covering moves and such and not worried about trying to work out your stitch.
There was a time when I was improving very rapidly in workouts but would get the side stitch on the right side that I came to see was the diaphragm spasm. It was holding me back. I read a thread about it here on this website and it was hard to believe, but I tried it out--take in a few deep breaths and hold them a bit and then slowly exhale--and it worked wonders and I ran by far my best ever workouts--pr'ing in workouts without too much strain--after that. They usually had happened when I was going hard on a tempo. The breathing technique really works. Once or twice only the spasm was so painful that I had to stop and work it out, but that again was before the breathing technique.
Yes, this does work but unfortunately it's hard to do properly if you're running at any pace faster than tempo. I sometimes get this type of cramp/spasm, usually seems to be associated with doing a tight turn and/or wind (ie. some kind of abrupt transition). If it's in a workout I can usually hack it until the next rest and then fix it, or if it's a longer tempo slow down a bit for a minute or two to get it under control.
But if in a 10k? Game over.
I don't like to push through it too much since a few times it's resulted in a sort of injury (diaphragm continued to hurt for a few days, even during normal breathing when not running).
So he got a side cramp...why he gotta call it a diaphragm spasm
Big difference, Hugh. If you have never had it happen to you before then you don't know how bad it can hurt. It's no side cramp . Lucky for me it has never happened in a race but it has happened a few times just after. I have also had them several times when I wake up in the morning. Go ahead and hit the down arrow now. It's ok I promise I won't mind.
And he reminds himself to spend "literally zero time on the message boards of letsrun."
Hey about Friday night, this is awkward... During the US 10k trials last week I got a stitch under my right ribs, it was a diaphragm spasm I can safely assume. With about 10 laps to go I was fit, relaxed and ready to focus, looked up and glanced to my left to see the clock tick closer to 20 minutes, and with it I snapped out of my inner self talk and saw it time to engage with the race. It was then the stitch came on and took me out of it entirely. I was just as confused as the fans were as it felt surreal watching the runners from lane eight on the homestrech on the track. (See image)
Today, Tuesday, I feel better about my racing going forward, it feels like this bad thing happened and then that was it. The first night was utter devastation don't get me wrong, but I remember the dozens of people that asked how I was, my family took me out to brunch, and even a fan asked for my autograph because they like my vibe here on instagram. I strangly feel reset by the moment and am ready to go after the win in the 5k next month.
Meanwhile... I got to watch Sean and Grant go on to make the world team. It stung to not make the squad but I was proud to see their dreams come true. Bigger dream is to mob together for world champs in Eugene next month. Either way we are mobbin.
The whole experience was a reminder to spend time with people and fans in person and literally zero time on the message boards of letsrun. All love to the people that came up and spoke to me after the race it helped keep my head screwed on if just by one notch at that moment.
PS. In our talk about the race on the podcast today, I mentioned how if he hadn't got the cramp, he likely would have won the 10,000 as a slow race like that plays into his kick perfectly.
I find it hilarious that every pro hates on your site and then you re-post it because hey... All press is good press, am I right? You're so stoic Rojo. I dream one day of the pros accepting you, even though you probably don't care.
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