Side stitches are ruining my life!

[lostintranslatn]

OK, y'all, I'm training for a 5K on Dec. 3. I've been doing the Couch to 5K plan for the past four weeks (in addition to lifting weights and doing interval training at the gym three other days per week), but the stitches in my side are out of control. I think I've gotten one every single time I've run. I usually soldier on by trying various tricks I've come across--breathing in when the foot on the same side as the stitch hits the ground, belly breathing, not drinking or eating before a jog--but today it was so bad I had to quit early. Can anyone help me? This problem is driving me nuts!!

Bonus info: I don't get the stitches when I do other types of cardio, like the bike or elliptical at the gym. Also, the stitch is on my right side, just under the bottom of the rib cage, about 99% of the time. Everything I've read says the problem will improve as I get fitter, but instead it seems to be getting worse! I've lost 25 lb. total and am in the "normal" weight range for my height.

Thank you!!!

[Alethea]

I hear you're supposed to inhale/exhale when your left foot hits the ground. I've done that whenever I get a stitch and it goes away very quickly.

[mcdrew]

Try and exhale as much air as possible. Never heard the left foot business haha but whatever works

[161803398874989]

Breathe half as fast for as long as you can. If you can't anymore, take a few quick breaths, then go back to breathing half as fast. Hold this for a mile or so, then soldier on.

Works for me, every time. And I get killer stitches.

[Orpheus]

Breathe half as fast for as long as you can. If you can't anymore, take a few quick breaths, then go back to breathing half as fast. Hold this for a mile or so, then soldier on.

Works for me, every time. And I get killer stitches.

I use this same method, but usually pound my side at same time but that there is just my frustration lol

[67alecto]

Don't know anything about breathing on certain steps, but what made an instant change for me was breathing in very deeply right from the start.

I was having the same problem - I could not run very far without having to stop to walk so I could catch my breath or work out a stitch. I was able to complete a very painful and slow half-mile. After being frustrated with this for a few sessions, I sat down and thought about it. I realized that the problem was that I was getting too far behind in my oxygen intake and I couldn't catch up. I would breath normally until I was out of breath, at which point it was too late.

The very next night, I focused on taking deep, steady breaths right from the start. It felt weird - I wasn't out of breath, yet I was taking big lungfuls of air, but it worked. I ran a mile without stopping that night...one day after only being able to manage half a mile. That was the breakthrough for me.

[andygates]

Alas, adaptation comes with time. But hey, that means that adaptation comes with time, yay!

I suffered like hell in the first chunk of My First Big Run training. No tricks helped, to be honest. It just got better and one day I noticed I wasn't complaining about my goddamn stitches any more.

*broscience alert* I think it's just your innards working out how to hold themselves in place.

[Rick]

*broscience alert* I think it's just your innards working out how to hold themselves in place.

Totally correct!

Don't know anything about breathing on certain steps, but what made an instant change for me was breathing in very deeply right from the start.

I was having the same problem - I could not run very far without having to stop to walk so I could catch my breath or work out a stitch. I was able to complete a very painful and slow half-mile. After being frustrated with this for a few sessions, I sat down and thought about it. I realized that the problem was that I was getting too far behind in my oxygen intake and I couldn't catch up. I would breath normally until I was out of breath, at which point it was too late.

The very next night, I focused on taking deep, steady breaths right from the start. It felt weird - I wasn't out of breath, yet I was taking big lungfuls of air, but it worked. I ran a mile without stopping that night...one day after only being able to manage half a mile. That was the breakthrough for me.

I think this is going to help me a lot. I'm only just getting into running and today when I did my short run I was doing this (I was emulating a post I saw the other day recommending exhaling completely so as to increase the amount of oxygen in your lungs) and it wasn't hardly even that bad. Last week I did the run but didn't focus on my breathing and it was killer.

[lostintranslatn]

Thanks for all the replies! I had a sneaking suspicion it was to do with breathing. I usually run with my husband and we talk as we go...I think chatting might be messing with my breathing. It DEFINITELY keeps me from breathing deeply and evenly. I'll tell him we're playing the quiet game next time and see how it goes using y'all's tips. Thank you thank you!!!

[161803398874989]

It's amazing what chatting can do to your running capabilities.

I sometimes run with a buddy, and he likes to talk. A lot. He usually ends up giving out if he's talked so much. If he shuts up, however, he is able to keep up with me.

That's why I don't ever talk when I run.

[andygates]

Flipside: Run At The Speed Of Chat is a real thing: it's a running group for people who want to run gently. Very popular with your mum.

[mcdrew]

Yep. A lot of people say, if you can't talk and run, your running too fast. A lot of people also say, if you can run and talk, your running too slow.

For me, it's about enjoying running. So a conversational pace is good. Also as you progress, your conversational pace increases.

[lostintranslatn]

OK, everyone, I'm cured! Thank you SO MUCH for all the wonderful tips! Y'all are awesome!

This, especially, made all the difference:

Don't know anything about breathing on certain steps, but what made an instant change for me was breathing in very deeply right from the start.

I did exactly that--breathing steadily and deeply, even during my warm-up--and it made all the difference in the world. For the first time in my life, I made it through my entire run with no cramps at all! Woohoo!

As 67alecto warned, it was really weird because I felt like I was breathing way too much at the beginning, and way not enough at the end. In fact, when I was really winded, it felt like suffocating to wait until I had had a nice, long exhale before I took the next breath, but I stuck with it–and boy did it pay off! I'm a new woman!

Thanks again!

P.S. Here's the trail where I had my first non-stitch run. I'll remember it forever!

[67alecto]

great job!

[mcdrew]

Awesome work!

[KillerGriller]

Being able to talk and run is a fantastic indicator of pace (called conversation pace). Most of your runs in the base building phase or on recovery runs should be easy/slow enough that you can maintain a conversation while putting in your miles. This is heart rate Zone 2.

Faster runs should be strategically placed to maximize their benefit i.e. - They shouldn't be sandwiched against other hard workouts unless you want have a higher risk of injury and don't mind losing some of the potential benefit of a hard run gains in speed/conditioning etc. Zone 3 is where you have trouble maintaining a conversation, but can hold your pace (like 161803398874989's buddy). If you run in Zone 3 all the time you won't be able to reap the benefits of your runs effectively, and risk over training/burning out.

Remember, alternate slow and fast workouts for optimal gains, and reduced risk of injury.