One of the biggest running events on the KZN race calendar, the Deloitte Challenge, hosted by the Dolphin Coast Striders running club, takes place this month. In the lead up to this massive event, we met up with two passionate runners who are determined to help others avoid injuries and take their running to the next level.
It’s hard not to be inspired to lace up and hit the tar when you meet Ballito running couple Leah Gindra and Nic Acampora. Their enthusiasm for the sport they both love is infectious and their determination to help others achieve their goals, admirable.
Through their shared passion for running, highly qualified biokineticist Nic and personal trainer Leah created a two-day RunEx Basics and Beyond running workshop aimed at educating runners about their bodies and helping them to optimize their training while remaining injury free.
Leah moved to Ballito from Pretoria in May 2017 and started working as a personal trainer at the IMF gym. The 25-year-old discovered her passion for running when she met Nic at the gym (where he also works) and they started dating. “I’ve always been sporty, but after school I struggled to find a way to stay involved in competitive sports. I took to running quite easily, but got injured just as I was starting to really enjoy it.” Leah’s injury, she says, happened purely because she didn’t have sufficient knowledge about how to train properly. “I was so frustrated, especially because I was watching Nic do so well and I couldn’t find the cause of my pain and injury. When my knee started to heal, I slowly started getting back into running and joined the Striders’ Jump Start programme, which helps you go from 0km to 10km in 12 weeks.”
Nic is the head biokineticist and one of four partners of SA Biokinetics, which has eight practices on the North Coast. He has an honours degree in biokinetics and a masters in sports medicine and works part-time as a tutor and masters supervisor. His running career started a few years back, when he was running 5km-10km on his own. That changed when a friend convinced him to run the Paris marathon in 2018. He joined the Striders club and ran his first Comrades marathon last year. He is now the club captain, which means he is responsible for designing the training programmes for the team.
Through his work as a biokineticist, Nic says he frequently sees the same injuries and niggles amongst runners. “I see the same injuries and issues over and over with my patients who are runners, and often it is due to a lack of knowledge about what a ‘running body’ needs.”
That’s why he and Leah (who are engaged to be married) decided to collaborate and combine their knowledge to put together the running workshop. “Runners need to understand how to listen to their bodies and make the right decisions in terms of training for themselves, rather than just blindly following in a programme that may not suit them. Cross training and rest days are also of utmost importance,” he says.
Some of the topics they cover in their workshop include understanding the most common injuries, what to do if you are injured (whether you can self-manage it or need to see someone) and most importantly how to avoid getting injured in the first place.
The two-day workshop starts at 4pm on a Friday with an individual running analysis. They only take eight participants per workshop and each person is video-recorded while they run both on the road and on a treadmill, to see where the issues may lie.
“We teach you how to do a quick warm up, cover some running anatomy and lingo and analyse your running video to see where you’re going wrong and identify where you might need to do strength training,” says Leah.
On the second day of the workshop the group goes on another short video-recorded run, now using the knowledge they have to try and self-correct their problem areas. The rest of the day includes a more in-depth anatomy breakdown and tips on how to strength train as a runner. The programme ends with looking at each person’s individual needs and helping them put together a running programme.
“We have seen a major upward trend in health and fitness in general and running has grown in popularity, especially on the North Coast where the climate is good all year round. You just have to run in Joburg in winter to realise how lucky we are,” laughs Nic.
“I think we need to change the ‘old-school’ way of thinking about our approach to running, in that you have to literally run yourself into the ground. It’s a slow process and it’s a hard sport, which is easier for some people to adapt to than others. It’s important that you look after yourself, learn to celebrate the small victories and don’t compare yourself to anyone else.”
The next RunEx Basics & Beyond workshop (R1200 per person) is on 6 and 7 March.
Details: Leah: 072 526 3672
Text: Leah Shone
