Side Stitches

His_Kelly
His_Kelly Posts: 248
edited September 18 in Fitness and Exercise
I have recently developed side stitches whenever I run. Does anyone know what causes these or how to help/prevent them?

On a better note, this week is my 6th week in the "Couch to 5k" running program. Today I ran for a whole 25 minutes WITHOUT walking! Woohoo! I have sure come a long way. When I first started out, my routine was "run for 1 minute, walk for three. repeat" I think I can safely call myself a runner now!:bigsmile:

Replies

  • His_Kelly
    His_Kelly Posts: 248
    I have recently developed side stitches whenever I run. Does anyone know what causes these or how to help/prevent them?

    On a better note, this week is my 6th week in the "Couch to 5k" running program. Today I ran for a whole 25 minutes WITHOUT walking! Woohoo! I have sure come a long way. When I first started out, my routine was "run for 1 minute, walk for three. repeat" I think I can safely call myself a runner now!:bigsmile:
  • yoginimary
    yoginimary Posts: 6,788 Member
    Good for you! I used to get them all the time when I smoked - any chance you're a smoker?

    I still get them occasionally on the elliptical, but I don't know what causes them.
  • His_Kelly
    His_Kelly Posts: 248
    Good for you! I used to get them all the time when I smoked - any chance you're a smoker?

    I still get them occasionally on the elliptical, but I don't know what causes them.

    Nope, not a smoker. But good for you for quitting! I hear it is one of the hardest things to do. If you can do that, losing weight may seem like a "breeze" to you.:flowerforyou:
  • jlohern
    jlohern Posts: 52 Member
    I used to get these when I was training for a 7 mile run. I did some research and one of the suggestions was to inhale and exhale as you land on your left foot. It sounds weird, but it worked for me.
  • rheston
    rheston Posts: 638
    When my wife and were training for some of the longer runs we were doing she would complain of stitches in the side as well and she just ran through them but I know they were a constant problem. She found out from the doctor that this was caused by shallow breathing while running and when the right foot hits the ground jars the liver (located on the right side) although jlohern's solution is one of the possible ones I would suggest that you read through the article located at this site to try to understand more about the issue: http://sportsmedicine.about.com/cs/injuries/a/aa053100a.htm

    Good luck. Bob
  • julie737
    julie737 Posts: 406 Member
    I get them too and there are a couple of things that work for me. It helps if I run on an empty stomach, first thing in the morning. (I like that best anyway.) But on long runs you can't always have an empty stomach. That's when I have to work on my breathing. I've never heard of the left foot thing, but just breathing deeper and slower works well for me.

    I haven't read the article that Bob posted, but it probably has some good info in it!

    Congrats on improving your running!
  • laxgirl
    laxgirl Posts: 27
    It could also be from drinking too much water too fast. I know that I get bad cramps when I'm playing sports and I chug too much water, so maybe you could focus on taking little sips of water more often, instead of gulps
  • His_Kelly
    His_Kelly Posts: 248
    http://sportsmedicine.about.com/cs/injuries/a/aa053100a.htm

    This was really helpful. Thanks, Bob.... your answers are always so insightful:smile:
  • lotusfromthemud
    lotusfromthemud Posts: 5,335 Member
    This is so bizarre, I just got back from the gym and was going to ask the exact same question. I think I may be drinking too much.

    Water! I mean water!:tongue:

    anyway, thanks for the answers.
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