<img height="1" width="1" style="display:none" src="https://www.facebook.com/tr?id=1514203202045471&ev=PageView&noscript=1"/> Reiki for Runners — Improve Your Performance, Decrease Injury and Recover Faster | Core Spirit

Reiki for Runners — Improve Your Performance, Decrease Injury and Recover Faster
May 18, 2018

Core Spirit member since Dec 24, 2020
Reading time 5 min.

Did you know that about 80 percent of runners get injured yearly, due to poor footwear, weak and tight muscles, inadequate core strength and overtraining? Every runner should apply the “10 Percent Rule,” which is to never increase the mileage more than 10 percent week after week. A small mileage increase will help to decrease injuries.

As a Certified Personal Trainer and former runner, I know first-hand the importance of strengthening, stretching and progressing slowly to avoid injuries while running. As a Reiki master, I encourage clients to schedule weekly Reiki treatments to aid performance and recovery and avoid injuries. I also recommend an anti-inflammatory diet and natural anti-inflammatories, such as deep blue essential oil, peppermint oil, eucalyptus oil and White Fir essential oil.

There are many injuries that most runners experience due to inflammation (anytime “itis” is at the end of a word, it means there is inflammation), poor foot wear, overtraining and weak and tight muscles. I will discuss three:

Plantar Fascitis

Inflammation of a thick band of tissues that connects the heel bone to the toes.

Cause: Over training, over use or improper or worn out foot wear. The root of the problem is tight or weakened muscles.

Fix: Avoid walking barefoot, stretching and strengthening the calves and rolling your foot around on a handball and icing the inflamed area.

IT Band Syndrome

Feels like someone is stabbing you in the side of the knee while running, especially while going downhill.

Cause: Running down hill and running on the same side of the road.

Fix: Massaging the quadriceps and hamstring muscles. Using a foam roller on the injured area will help loosen things up.

Once you have the pain under control, focus on strengthening hips, quadriceps, hamstrings and glutes.

Shin Splints

Experiencing pain in the shins, when left untreated can result in stress fractures.

Cause: Increasing intensity or duration to soon. Shin splints are common for new runners.

Fix: Rest, ice and apply natural anti-inflammatory. As you ease back into your running plan by running on soft surfaces, such as grass or running tracks, pay attention to the mileage you put on your running shoes.

Applying Reiki

Reiki is an Ancient alternative healing therapy that brings alignment, balance, health and well-being to the recipient’s body.

Reiki brings your natural healing ability to fruition. It boosts the overall positive wellness of body and mind, restoring and rebalancing the person’s energy.

Reiki is not just a tool for healing; it also brings about personal growth.

As you progress along your journey with Reiki, you will naturally come up against obstacles and setbacks in your life. However, with Reiki you will have the strength and awareness to deal with them.

You may also perform Reiki to recharge your energy every day, not just when problems, or injuries happen. Daily self-treatment is key for it to be effective.

Reiki addresses the root cause of the pain or injury. Once the root cause of the issue is resolved, the body eliminates the imbalance and heals the body and mind naturally. Reiki helps releases energetic blockages, tension and toxins from the body and is deeply restorative.

Reiki helps in recovering from sports injury, post workout recovery and performance in the following ways:

  • Reiki can help prevent severe injuries by administering Reiki before and after activity

  • Boost memory

  • Relieve muscle soreness and stiffness

  • Improve post workout recovery and speeding up the healing of old and new injuries

Reiki may look like a massage, yet is not. It encourages the healing of all the recipients, not just the muscles.

How to Perform Reiki Self-Treatment

Set aside a little time each day for a self-treatment.

Performing Reiki first thing in the morning will give you a positive boost for the day ahead. Also, a self-treatment last thing at night will relax and unwind you, leading to a good night of rest.

There is no correct way to work with Reiki when performing it on yourself.

As you become more experienced, you will intuitively move your hands to wherever it feels right. However, if you are aware of a specific problem — such as an injury or pain — place your hands directly over that area to begin with, and follow up with a full self-treatment.

In the beginning, you will find it helpful to use the positions listed below. When you have mastered those hand positions you can then allow your intuition to guide your self-treatments.

You may wish to play music during your self-treatments. Try to perform your self-treatments in a place where you will not be disturbed. Generally try to spend a minimum of 3–5 minutes in each position.

A little Reiki is better than none at all so if your time is limited, do what you can.

After self-treatment, drink a glass of water. Water is an amplifier and allows energy to flow more freely. It also helps with grounding.

Close your eyes and go inside and pay attention to the thoughts and emotions that you experienced during the session.

If you feel light headed, the need to rest or sit down, please do so. If you feel you need to continue to work on a specific area of your body, even if you have completed a full self-treatment, listen to your body and do so.

Self-Treatment Hand Positions

There is not an exact number of hand positions for Reiki self-treatments. Depending on the style of Reiki, the number of hand positions vary from 10-15. Ultimately, the key is to trust Reiki and your intuition.

You may find that completing your treatment by placing your hands on each chakra starting at your root chakra and ending with your crown chakra beneficial.

Consistent Self-Treatment

As time goes by, your commitment to performing Reiki on yourself may wane. This is common and natural but in order to heal others, you must begin with yourself.

Reiki is not only a tool for balancing but also for increasing awareness. Healing and growth can occur spontaneously but more often they require dedicated focus and consistency in order to shift.

As with everything in life, the amount and type of energy you put into something is in direct proportion to what you will receive in return.

By dedicating time for yourself and your well-being every day, you’ll experience the benefits of Reiki.

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