Sports Injuries – they’re such a pain!

Spring has arrived, the sun is out and the trees and plants are blossoming.

My running shoes are out of their long hibernation and I’m training for a Spring race.

It’s that time of year when people up and down the country are getting ready for exercise again, we’ve survived the cold, dark winter months and our good moods and motivation are back.

You might be a person that has not run since Primary School and you’ve set yourself a goal of running 5km and that’s great, 5km is a long way. Or, you might have set yourself the challenge of doing the London Marathon, so your training plan will be starting now. Or you entered a Spring Marathon braving the cold, dark evenings and the wind and rain to get ready to stand on that start line; you’ve put yourself through all of this as you want to support a cause that is dear to your heart.

You put your trainers on and off you go, you’re feeling good and then it happens, you get injured. You’re then out of action and you have no idea how long it will take to recover; It’s frustrating, disheartening and you might feel that it’s all over and that there is nothing you can do.

Don’t worry, that’s not necessarily the case. You can do something about it. You can come to our Sports Injury Clinic in Maidstone or in Sittingbourne to see one of our friendly Physiotherapists. They will talk you through your injury and the treatment plan that you should follow to be back in form as soon as possible.

But, what if you took steps before your sessions to stay injury free?

There are a number of things that can be done to minimise the risk of injury.

• Do you have the right shoes? If your shoes are not adapted to your feet, then you are setting yourself up for failure.
  When you are just starting out on your running journey, you will often make do with the trainers that you already have, because running shoes are an investment and you’re not sure that you will like running. Fair enough.
  If you run in a pair of shoes that are not built to withstand a running version of you, then you will quickly find that your ankles, hips, knees or shins will start to hurt (where it hurts depends on the cushioning on the shoes and how you run), you won’t last long running in these shoes, you may give up and decide that running isn’t for you.
  Or you will dig out a really old pair of trainers that have been in the cupboard since the early 2010’s that you were saving for a day when you decide to go out for a run, but if these shoes are showing any signs of wear on the sole, then it means that the shoes are worn out and you should avoid using them for your run. Usually you can tell this because the sole looks worn and the rubber that is under the surface layer of the sole is starting to show, it will generally be of a different colour so it is quite simple to spot.
  Finally, go and see a shoe fitting specialist for sports shoes, often they will ask you to get on a treadmill and look at your gait (the way that you run), from this they can recommend a pair of shoes that will suit your running style and support you to minimise the risk of injury.
• Start off gently and build up the intensity.
  If you are just starting off your running career, your only reference to how fast you can run is how fast you used to be in the playground when you were a child. Who didn’t win the race on Sports Day and was faster and better than everybody else? I know I certainly was! When you start any session of running, no matter how experienced you are, your body is cold and needs time to warm up. If you start off too quickly, then you are increasing the risk of injuring yourself significantly. The risk here is muscular and your hamstrings (it’s usually the hamstrings) can go really quickly.
  If you watch someone like Mo Farah running, he seems like he is sprinting from the first seconds of his race, but what they haven’t shown you is that Mo has probably spent at least 45 minutes to 2 hours warming up so that he is ready for this!
  If you start off too quickly, you reduce your endurance. If your plan is to do a 10km run and you start off at the pace you would usually run 5km, then you are going to struggle (lots of personal experience for this one!)
  When you hit the wall (which will happen), you’ll either push yourself harder than you wanted to, increasing the likelihood of injury (been there, done that) or you will have to slow down, be overtaken by Big Ben or Super Mario (also done that one) and finish at a speed much slower than the one you wanted.
• Warm up properly!
  Many of us don’t warm up properly as we either can’t be bothered or don’t see the point. Some really simple stretches can help to prevent injury, even a few minutes before starting can greatly reduce the chances of getting injured. A slow jog can get the blood pumping and warm up those muscles that will be needed in just a few moments.
• Don’t build your distance too quickly
  Generally, your longest run should not be more than 10% longer than your previous longest run. If you don’t obey this rule, then you are setting yourself up for injury, you will find that your muscles and your joints get more fatigued and it’s harder to get going in your non-longer sessions.
  Your body needs the time to recover and if it doesn’t have this time, then the strain and stress on your body increases the more tired you and your body become.
  You may not notice it creeping up on you at the beginning, but eventually the inevitable injury will come and you will be set back, you will either carry on running and try to run through the pain (runners love to do this), or you will see a Sports Injury Physiotherapist who will help you and then suddenly your 16 week plan has effectively become a 12 week plan and you try to do too much, you get injured and the cycle starts again…
• Taper
  This is the most underrated tool that a runner has in their bag. When you’ve spent such a long time preparing for a race or to run a distance, this is the time that you give your body to recover so that you are ready for the big day. Many people worry that having a couple of lighter weeks will mean that they lose their edge, but actually the reverse is true. A taper, if it is done well, will actually enhance your performance on the day.
  If you decide not to taper, your body will arrive at the big day tired and not completely rested, you might get lucky and come out without an injury, but if you don’t rest, then you are greatly increasing the chances of getting injured.
  Sports Injuries come in all shapes and sizes and our Specialist Sports Physiotherapists at our Maidstone and Sittingbourne clinics are able to help you recover, but if you are careful and look after yourself you can reduce the risk of getting injured in the first place. If your body is telling you that something is not quite right, then you need to listen to it as there is probably something that is not quite right!
  The tips that I have given are not guaranteed to keep you injury free, but if you follow the advice, you minimise the chances of this happening.
  Running injuries are not the only Sports Injuries that you can get and we are able to treat any injuries, no matter where they occur and what you were doing. If you need advice or are not sure what you have done, we do offer a FREE 15 minute session with a Physiotherapist and there is no obligation to take treatment after this. For more information about the FREE 15 minute session, please click here.
  But, a word of warning: you need to be realistic about your recovery from injury. If a professional athlete injures a hamstring, they might have physiotherapy/ ice baths/ massage 3 times a day for about 3 weeks (depending on the severity of the injury). That’s about 60 sessions! If you have injured yourself, it’s unlikely that you will be cured in a couple of 30 minute sessions, so the key is to always listen to the advice you are given and to your body. If you choose not to follow this, then you do risk getting injured again…