Running Injuries And How Not To Get Them During Covid 19

Everyone is out running at the moment which is awesome however running injuries aren’t.

I’ve always used running as a form of de-stressing as opposed to getting fit. It’s a place where a lot of my problems are solved. If i’m stuck on a problem quite often the answer comes when i’m running. And during uncertain times such as these there’s no wonder everyone is calling our Bondi Physio clinic saying ‘help. I've injured myself running.’

I get it there are no other forms of cardio available for many, and it can be pretty addictive once you start (wait until you enter a race!).

I wanted to go through the main 3 reasons you are getting injured. I’ve tried to give examples that relate to a few scenarios but for each point try and relate back to your own situation. 

The number one cause that accounts for around 60% of all running injuries would be running training errors.

There are a few different variations of the classic training error.

1. You did “too much too soon”. 

With new runners, the running injuries we have seen lately have been due to the amount of mileage increasing per run too quickly. For example a patient we saw two weeks ago, had just run for the first time in 2 years. Now that’s a long time between runs and by day 5 unfortunately an injury had developed !  

A good range is probably a maximum of 20% load change in your first week under 10kms of running. So I’d probably have gone for a 5km run and perhaps a 6 or 7km max after that in the first week. Ideally with a rest day between runs to let your body adapt. If you didn’t feel great with a 5km run I'd stick to 5kms or even go to 4. If you look at this example there was a 100% increase in running distance in the first week. So think 20% per week for the first few weeks so your body can adapt.

Dealing with triathletes and runners from amateur to professional there aren’t many (I can’t think of one) that run 7 days a week. Have rest days or active recovery (think cycling, swimming, or walking) instead of running 7 days per week. 3-4 if you are getting back into it is more than enough.

There’s another common “too much too soon” mistake we runners make. That’s too much intensity too soon.

Got addicted to hill sprints (really?), trying to beat your run course every time you run? Yeah I’m guilty of it as well. It’s a great challenge and can make running for some a little more fun. 

The reality is that research suggests that 80% of our running should be recovery running. Simply turning over the legs. 20% should be tempo running of a higher intensity. 

If you are stuck with figuring out a program after everything I’ve just said keep it simple!

Change one of the above per week only and don’t increase the above by more than 20%. If you're running over 10kms I'd make that 10% increase per week. Now the school kids are heading back to school after sitting on their backsides for a few weeks. We will see quite a few that are going straight into a very rushed preseason training. Unfortunately the above pattern will occur.

If you’ve been injured in the past 12 months re read the first part of this a few times until it sinks in!

If you want to check your program is right for you, then to shoot me an email HERE.

What else can cause running injuries?

Technique

NOW if you have never been injured running and are loving your running please don’t try and change your technique to toe running, mid foot strike, chi running, pose running or whatever is fashionable at the moment. Enjoy not being injured and read the “too much too soon” bit a few times.

HOWEVER if you are sick of recurring injuries despite running less mileage, technique or biomechanics could be your problem.

Some common ones we see are people that over stride or have a long stride length which leads to excessive pressure on the knee and subsequent front knee pain (patellofemoral syndrome). 

Another common pattern is people getting knee or hip pain that run with what looks like their knees banging together. 

The opposite can also be true for people that appear to be mimicking a duck with their feet turned out when they run.

Our bones, muscles and tendons aren’t accustomed to the party going on around them and can get injured as a result.

If you suspect or your “friends” have commented on your unorthodox running style and you’ve been injured a bit, come and make an appointment. We tend to film you so you can see for yourself what is wrong. By waking up a few muscles that aren’t working, changing the amount of steps you take per minute and finally giving you some cues to think about when running we can change that unique style of running fairly quickly. If we can’t we know people that can. 

The final cause of running injuries is that you are simply weak!. The one hard cold piece of evidence for preventing running injuries is being stronger!

Now I've had many arguments with triathletes that are essentially training for 3 sports in one week about adding a few more sessions of strength training and some yoga (they love me).

However sometimes prioritising that strength session over your 6th run isn’t a bad idea. Want to know where to start? 

James has constructed a couple of strength circuits designed specifically for people who want to be stronger runners. Check them out HERE.

So if we all followed the above advice we wouldn't get injured but let's be honest. It is addictive, our families at home are driving us crazy and we have times to beat. So if you need some help we are here and still open in our Bondi Physio or Sydney CBD Physio clinics. If you live on Waiheke Island NZ and want some help with figuring out why you keep getting injured running, we are now also open there. Hit the contact button and talk to me about what’s going wrong. Stay safe and happy running!