Running & Injury Prevention
Running & Injury prevention is an important topic. There are two types of factors that can contribute to an injury,
1. Extrinsic – this group includes external factors like running surface, training schedule and footwear
2. Intrinsic – this group includes internal factors like muscle imbalances, previous injuries and running biomechanics.
When you have an injury go see a chiropractor or another health care professional they will be able to identify internal and external factors that are contributing to your condition and help you correct them. This article will focus on how to prefect your running biomechanics. Faulty running biomechanics are a common cause of injury.
Let’s go through the gait cycle and discuss what your stride should look like. When your foot hits the ground where do you think it should land? On your heel, mid foot or on the ball of your foot?
Your foot should strike mid-foot or on the ball of the foot depending on your running speed. If you are a sprinter going short distances you should be running on the balls of your feet, because your foot is more rigid in that position you can move faster. However you can’t sustain running on the balls of your feet for long distances it puts a lot of strain on your Achilles tendon, calf and plantar fascia. If your running even 5km you should be running with a mid-foot strike. Heel strike should never occur, even at slow running speeds. Heel strike results in a higher breaking force and increased foot ground contact both slow you down and increase the amount of force going through your knee, hip and low back. Heel striking is probably the most common mistake leading to pain and injury. Heel striking also increases the vertical distance you travel when running and you expel more energy.
Okay, so now where should the foot hit the ground in relation to the body? In front of the body or in line with the body? Your foot should hit the ground in line with your hip, again that helps to minimize the breaking force we talked about. In order to land your foot in line with your hip you have to lean forward slightly from the ankle. Try not to lean forward from your hips this will cause low back and hip flexor problems.
Where does the power in your stride come from? Your hip! The bigger muscles of your body produce the most power. When you extend your hip back its like pulling back a sling shot when you release your leg that is where your power will come from. (stretch reflex). There is no point to doing a second push of from your toes, it will result in little force and you may get plantar fasciitis.
Now let’s talk about the upper body. There should be a simple pendulum like forward and backward motion in your shoulder, however you shouldn’t cross the arms over the midline. On the backswing your hand should swing back to just above and behind your hip joint for most running speeds. As the running speed increases, the arm will swing back more. Breath from the abdominal muscles, you will get a fuller breathe and your shoulders will be less tense. Try not to flex the abs too much when running it will prevent a full deep breath.
If you have any other questions or would like help treating or preventing an injury contact Dr. Jen at 289-926-0026