Running Injuries

Do you have a running injury? Have you been feeling pain in your legs, knees, ankles, feet, joints or other lower body aches and pains? If you do one of the first things you need to do is stop running to help heal the injury.In some cases you may need to see a health care professional.

Because running is so high-impact in nature a lot of  injuries are may come with running and running related actives. Running injuries that are most common include but are not limited to runner’s knee (you know you have this when you have pain in the knee), shin splints (when you have pain in your shins), pulled hamstring, twisted ankles, Achilles tendinitis injuries, and stress fractures of bones in the legs. Repetitive stress on the same tissues without enough time for recovery or running with improper form can lead to many of the injuries listed above. Check out this great info graphic Running Injuries Causes & Symptoms.

By stretching before you run, stretching after you run, and getting warmed up one can prevent a lot of these injuries. Performing strength training exercises to build the muscles that help you run can also protect against an injury. Eating a well balanced diet will give your body the the proper nutrition to rebuild broken down muscles and keep you body running well. Most runner get very serious about their running. Missing a day for some runners is a fear they don’t want to face. The fear is if they miss one day they might never run again or they will get behind in their training. The truth is that allowing time for recovery is key for your body to stay in the best shape and to keep from getting injured.

Proper running technique is one of the best ways to lower the risk of running injuries and to keep you getting the most out of each run. Engaging the hips, driving the thigh or knee, pushing off with the ankles and not the hamstrings, pawing your legs back, and erect posture are some of the key actions in proper running technique. Running injuries can be from a lack of strength and stride length and pushing off with the hamstrings and not the ankle. The hamstrings and gluteus maximus are not involved in the push off phase of running, contrary to popular belief. Check out this great news cast that shows your the proper way to run.

 Check out a previous blog; Advatages to Running inside here. I can’t stress this enough, if you are running you are getting more healthy. So take the first step to start working out today. Let me know if you have had any of these running injuries or if you think you have the proper running form on Twitter. Tweet me @FunFitnessFrank Happy running everyone and remember buying treadmills with a “Coupon” is cheaper than not.