How to Avoid Running Injuries? Move Better

How to avoid running injuries? Recently I received this question on the Art of Fitness Facebook page:

I run. I run for a lot of reasons. I know that physically speaking, it can/will wear on your body like any repetitive movement. So, if, you’re like me, and are unwilling to give up regular runs, what is the joint-saving balance? I have a regular yoga practice (equally important) but is there something else I should be doing? I run 20-30 miles a week (3-4, 6-8 mile runs); yoga twice a week; Pilates once a week; and if I make my way into an actual gym, I swing kettlebells, pick up heavy things, and wander around pretending I know what I’m doing. Any suggestions to avoid running injuries?

Since this is a question I hear often, I decided to share my thoughts here on the blog as well.

How to Avoid Running Injuries?

First, I don’t believe that running will wear down your joints. Running is a natural human movement. If done well, I believe we should be able to run well into old age. Our body should not break down until after we die. I believe that our joints wear down early simply because we don’t move the way our human bodies were designed to move. We move unnaturally and this causes us to run and move poorly.  The problem isn’t that running is bad. It’s that we don’t move well; and if we don’t move well, we won’t run well either. Just as if you drive your car poorly, it will break down faster.

So with that said, I think your question on finding balance is a very good one. In response, I’ll pose another question and answer.

How do you become a very good human mover so that you can become a very good human runner?

To become a very good mover, you must first focus on exploring and restoring all that is lost in your natural human movement.

Running as Part of a Bigger Picture

Humans are movers. We run, balance, jump, crawl, climb, manipulate objects, and so much more. It is a part of our design. Movement, at its essence, is intricately tied to our evolutionary prowess. We were not designed to be still, stagnant, rigid, or immobile. But through our technological advancements, we have created an environment in which we go through our day and hardly move at all!

To avoid running injuries and become a better runner, you may need to change the focus away from running and look at your bigger movement picture. Essentially, if you want to become a good runner, become a skillful mover (i.e. running, balancing, jumping, crawling, climbing, lifting & carrying, throwing & catching, and most importantly playing). This is where modalities such as MovNat can be incredibly beneficial, which is why I am a MovNat coach.

A New Movement Paradigm

It is tempting to choose exercises that focus on conditioning, to work on running further and faster or simply as an outlet to release the stress of life. This is what feels good, and it’s how we’ve been taught we’re supposed to exercise–that more is better, harder is better, no pain no gain, etc.  However, this is a mistake that leads to injury.

By being hyper focused on aggressive conditioning, you’re teaching your body to move in small specific patterns over and over again at the expense of larger less specific movement patterns. This develops overuse of certain muscles and joints and underuse of others, leading to the imbalances you’ve mentioned in your question. Our bodies adapt specifically to the movements that we feed them. So if we are constantly moving in one way–sitting in front of the computer, for example–then our bodies adapt. We develop rounded shoulders and forward head posture and neck pain and back pain comes with it. When we don’t move in counter directions, we eventually lose the ability to move in counter directions. In other words, when movements are under-utilized, they eventually become unavailable to us. If you don’t use it, you literally lose it. This is the injury to your body, well before any pain sets in.

More Patterns Of Movement

While it feels like a drastic departure to our sedentary existence, running is a movement pattern that actually mimics sitting (lots of hip flexion with a forward head posture). If you’re sitting all day in front of a computer, then you go out running, and that’s your only source of consciously practiced movement, then you are unwittingly reinforcing the same movement pattern that you’ve been in all day. If you want to find balance, strength, posture, ability, then you have to explore the movement patterns that counter your current movements. You must restore the movements that you’re not already doing.

Yoga can be a very good restorative movement practice. Much of what I teach if very Yoga-ish. However, the benefits from Yoga will depend upon the teacher, the practice, the student, and ultimately by itself is incomplete. Also, I see quite a few Yoga related injuries in my practice and I speak about that here.

Movement Restoration

This is where I begin with every new client, restoring movement.

Movement restoration is the exploration, re-establishing, rewiring, remapping, and reconfiguring of holistic movement. Through Movement Restoration, we find what is lost and work to bring them back into your movement abilities: can you lift your arms over your head, squat down to the floor, unstrap your bra, get up off the floor without using your hands, crawl, and climb. And can you do these things without pain? Can you do them well? With mastery?

This is our single minded focus for the first phase of developing a new movement practice. Here is a glimpse of the beginning movement restoration exercises. I will go a little deeper into what Movement Restoration means in my next update.

Want to learn more about how Movement Therapy can help you? We offer in person coaching and online coaching.

 

Click here to schedule a free consultation.

 

 

Is there an optimal way to heal and recover from injury? The short answer is YES. But what does that look like? Here is a great example in Part Two of How to Recover from an Injury by Heidi Armstrong of Injured Athlete’s Toolbox.

 

How to Recover from an Injury: Hint…Don’t Try it Without a Movement Therapist (Part 2)

Guest blog by Heidi Armstrong of The Injured Athlete’s Toolbox

This is the second in a 4-part series where I’ll share why, after injury, working with a Movement Therapist is a must. You can read part 1 here.

I’ll share what prompted me to see Jesse, what happens to your nervous system after an injury, and how Movement Therapy helps. I’ll also share how Jesse is helping me unlearn 5 years of constrained (or unnatural) movement.

No, Jesse isn’t paying me to write this. That’s not my style or his. My hope is that my experience will motivate you to recapture the movements that injury has greedily taken.

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If you haven’t read part 1 of this series, read that first, then come back.

After years of injury recovery I knew I wasn’t moving with my former fluidity or balance. I just didn’t realize the depth of my brain’s dysfunctional rut until I saw Jesse. Since even minor injuries result in altered movement, I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised to discover how much of my normal mobility I had lost.

Normally, muscles are supposed to react and respond to movement, but when we’re injured, the body cannot get into the right space (because it’s lacking range of motion) for muscles to work properly. The result: we feel tightness followed by pain.

Despite lots of daily stretching, I felt my body getting more and more restricted on the side opposite of my injury, specifically my hip and back. I learned why from Jesse. Note: It’s very common for second injuries to happen on a part of the body diagonal from the first injury.

Jesse said, “Traditional static stretching isn’t great for movement restoration because it doesn’t challenge the nervous system in gravity. Static stretching has its place, but I consider it like salting your food. A little goes a long way.”

Click here to read more…

It’s been a little over a week since I heard the big “pop” in my knee and damaged my meniscus. Here is my week one injury update.

I am in the process of getting an appointment with the orthopedic doctor. I had x-rays last Friday. You can’t see meniscus damage in an x-ray, but the Ortho docs won’t even see you until you’ve had them done. All they could see was swelling in the knee. I’m not in a huge hurry to see the docs. I’m more curious as to what type of tear I have. I won’t even consider surgery for 6-12 months, so if it takes a few weeks to get an appointment, I’m good with that.

I am grateful for the work I do for a living and to have the knowledge about physical therapy that I have. I know the protocol well. I have been actively engaged in keeping my body moving as well as possible over the past week beginning the day of the injury. The big challenge is to focus on exploring what I “can do” not the “can’t do’s”

Pain has been significant and pretty consistent. Some days worse than others. Yesterday was a good day. Today has been rough. It doesn’t so much hurt to move. It hurts more when I don’t move. Sitting is the worst. Up and down hills and stairs are tough because of pain. Hand foot crawls are impossible at the moment. I’m starting to get some compensation discomfort in my left calf and right side low back.

Week One Knee Injury Update:The Can Do’s:

Even though pain has been significant, I’ve seen some substantial improvement in knee function.
-I have 95+% range of motion of the knee, which bodes well for recovery. I can do a full deep assisted squat without pain. The primary range I don’t have is foot loaded tibial rotation.
-I’ve quickly gone from 10 minutes on the stationary bike at level 0 to 4 sets of 10 minutes at level 3. Hoping to get on a real bike in a week or so.
-I can now transition side to side shin box without my hands on the floor without pain. It took 4-5 days to get that function back.
-I can swim. Kicking feels good, although pushing off the wall can be painful. So I have to go super slow. It feels good to have some kind of movement I can focus on.
-climbing and floor work. Push-ups, pull ups, parallette bar work. Upper body is going to be beast by the end of this.

Emotionally:

This is the toughest part of a big injury. Toughest to feel and definitely toughest to express. I find myself putting on the straight face with most people, including myself. But the reality is that I feel this injury even more emotionally than I do physically.

It sucks. Movement is a big part of my life. Feeling capable is where I feel strong. The first few days I was constantly seeing all the things I could not do. They started adding up. Emotionally, I was feeling hurt, sadness, uncertainty, and fear. Over the past few days, it’s been anger. I’m basically a big ball of swirling emotions.

This is the hardest part of getting injured. The last thing I want to do is to push these emotions down. I don’t want to suppress. I don’t want to hold onto it. I am willing to feel, even if feeling sometimes feels uncomfortable.

At the same time, I don’t want these feelings to rule my thoughts and choices. It’s easy to spin into a deep dark place and give up. Giving up will not help me heal. Giving up will not teach me about myself. Giving up will not put me in a better place on the other side of this injury. Giving up is not an option. Surrendering to the fact that I am an emotional human being going through a challenging experience; and allowing myself to be ok, is the only choice I see. I will cry when I feel tears come up and I will continue to step, or at times limp, forward.

I am grateful for this opportunity to learn something about myself. I look forward to the person I meet on the other side.

Injury! A setback or an opportunity?

It’s a very simple yet profound choice. Do you see an injury as a setback? Or can you find the opportunity it brings you? Which one you choose will play a major role in the type of progress you make during your recovery. I now get to make this choice once again for myself.

A couple days ago, on Wednesday August 3rd,  I felt a pop in my knee (my good knee) standing out of a deep pistol squat position. This is a movement I’ve performed countless times. I was showing a client what a pistol squat was, but my body was not prepared properly to make it. All signs turn towards a torn meniscus. A significant injury.

Shoes Matter

It’s summertime, and the thing I love about the summer is that I get to spend so much more time barefoot. As many of you know by now, I am an enthusiastic barefoot advocate. I believe that a barefoot lifestyle is important for health, wellness, and a lifetime of pain-free movement. Which is why I’m offering my summer shoe review for 2016.

Going barefoot is not without risk. There are times, based upon terrain or circumstance, when shoes are necessary. These circumstances may include the Hill Country’s unforgivingly rocky hiking trails combined with lurking thorns and thistles … and, of course, the need to walk into “No Shirt No Shoes No Service” businesses.

Funny thing: Prior to transitioning into a barefoot lifestyle, I basically owned two pairs of shoes — basketball shoes and non-basketball shoes. Over the past six-plus years that I have embraced a barefoot lifestyle (I am completely barefoot 90% of the time), my shoe wardrobe has greatly expanded.

Like tools, my shoes have taken on functional purposes. I have a tool for every job. I have trail sandals for most running, climbing, jumping, sprinting, and just overall challenging movement; casual sandals for comfortable wear, such as going to the grocery store; dressier shoes; cold weather wet shoes; cold weather dry shoes; and more. For someone who is barefoot as much as I am, I have quite the shoe collection!

FLIPPIN’ AND FLOPPIN’

This time of year, most people reach for their trusted flip-flops. These are, in my opinion, one of the worst shoe choices you can make. The lack of a simple heel strap to keep the shoe attached to your foot means that with every step you take you must grip your toes just to keep the shoe on your foot. This creates an unnatural gait pattern.

For short durations, if you have no significant movement dysfunctions, this may not be a big deal. However, if you already have a history of poor gait mechanics (which most people do), wearing flip-flops for extended periods can create problems. This is especially true in the spring as you are transitioning away from heavy supportive winter boots or shoes which weaken the muscles of the foot. This not only can manifest in foot pain, but can also show up as knee, back, hip, and neck injuries.

DITCH THE FLIP-FLOPS AND OPT FOR QUALITY SANDALS

Summer Shoe Review

In the interest of full disclosure, I am an affiliate for many of these products. This means that if you purchase one after clicking one of these links, I will get a small commission. That said, the only reason I am an affiliate for these products is because I believe in them 100%.

Luna Sandals

I do most of my hiking and running on rocky Texas trails. I haven’t built my barefoot ability to be able to go through miles and miles of gnarly rocks and cactus. Nor do I feel it necessary to become that hardcore barefoot. I need something to protect my feet. When I do need to wear shoes, I want it to be the least amount of shoe possible. That is why I love Luna sandals.

The Luna sandals are my go-to for the trails. I own the Leadville model, and I love them because they are incredibly secure on my feet. The nylon strap on them is perfect for regular running, trail running, climbing, tracking, traversing. The last thing I want when I’m bounding through rocky terrain is for the shoe to slip and to lose traction between the shoe and myself. The strap doesn’t stretch or give, so I keep the shoe fairly tight on my foot. I wear these shoes 6-7 months a year for more extreme movement.

The downside of this sandal is that the strap and buckle system aren’t super comfortable. They bite into the top of my foot a bit, not something I want in casual footwear for restaurants and grocery stores where shoes are required. In addition, I am not a fan of their Monkey Grip Technology (MGT) footbed. The MGT took a long time to break in and creates hot spots under my feet. I prefer the leather footbed option.

Earth Runner Sandals

Earth Runners Sandals are my go-to for everything else. These are plush comfortable sandals, and the soft leather strap and buckle system feels super comfy on my foot. They also look nice, so you can get away with wearing them to casual events. I get tons of compliments on these sandals. When you need a shoe that looks good, feels good, and is comfortable, these are great sandals.

Overall, I don’t have any major complaints when it comes to these shoes. I did find that the super thin sole took a very long time to break in. Since I don’t wear shoes much, it took even longer. With daily wear, I’d expect it to take between 2-4 weeks to fully break these shoes in.

Also these sandals are exclusively casual wear for me. Because the leather has a “stretch” to it, I don’t wear them for outdoor activities. If I’m running, climbing, or jumping, the sole has a tendency to slide out from under my foot. I need the sole to remain solid under my foot.

Earth Runners also make children’s sandals, custom-made based on a tracing of your child’s foot.

SOMETIMES YOU NEED A FULL SHOE

Even in Austin, you occasionally need a full shoe for more formal occasions.

Soft Star Shoes

I have the Soft Star Shoes Rogue model, and I love them. They have a Vibram TM rubber sole, and a sheepskin-lined footbed. Basically a moccasin style shoe, these are easy to slip on and off, and they keep my feet warm for chilly Texas winters and relatively dry when it’s wet. They’re not super fancy or stylish; they are just nice comfortable shoes.

These are also incredible for kids. Early walkers need shoes on their feet to keep them warm (and of course, shoes are required for school), but you especially want children to really feel the ground and interact with it as they’re learning. If a shoe interferes with your child’s development as they learn how to walk, the effects will last into adulthood.

Vivobarefoot Shoes

I have several different pairs of Vivobarefoot shoes, and my son has their rainboots and daily wear shoes. These are really comfortable shoes, and they carry a number of styles, from more casual to dressier shoes. These are shoes you can really live in. I have their running, casual, and dress shoes. Honestly, the only downside is that they are pretty pricey. But they do hold up well and give you the options you need.

Do you have a barefoot/minimalist style summer shoe review that you love. I’d love to hear about it. Please share and tag me through social media.

Natural Movement is a lifestyle

How much do you think about your movement? Every movement you make or don’t make throughout the day is an opportunity to make a choice. What that movement or lack of movement looks like is a valuable opportunity. Why? Because Natural Movement is a lifestyle choice. Which has parallels into our physical as well as intellectual, emotional, and spiritual body. 

I like to think about movement the same as nutrition. How you move is how you feed your body movement. When you sit in front of a computer for eight hours per day, it is the equivalent of feeding your body McDonald’s. That one hour workout after work isn’t going to make up for eight hours of Micky D’s. 

Your body needs more throughout the day. It needs more macronutrients. It needs more micronutrients. You need to feed your body more kale! Your body needs little movement snacks fed to it throughout the day. As a MovNat coach not only do I teach natural human movement, I am also a consultant. I help my clients see where resistance exists and provide them with the tools to move past whatever is holding them back.

As a lifestyle, it’s not just about how you move during your hour long training session, but how you integrate movement practices throughout your day and life. It’s developing new habits of movement. To create new habits, change must happen, and with change comes resistance.

Through making better movement choices, developing new habits around movement, and overcoming resistance from change, my clients grow and evolve their movement lifestyle. They get to feel and experience growth in all aspects of their life, intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually.

This is where movement can facilitate life change.

Ready to begin your movement practice? Try going through these movements twice a day for the next week and share your progress with me on The Art of Fitness Facebook page.