How To Better Protect Your Knees When Running?
When you run, it can cause high compression forces in the knee cap that lower the cartilage water content. The cartilage is what absorbs the load and protects the joints. You might think that this means running over time will lead to something like arthritis or joint damage, but knees are a lot quicker to recover than people realise. In fact, any healthy Aussie out for an intense run will recover within just a day or two. So why do a lot of new physio Leederville clients have runner’s knee? That is often from temporary swelling under the knee cap caused by various factors such as poor muscle control, poor strength, poor form an overload in training and some other genetic considerations. Here is a look at how runners can best manage their knees when they become painful.
Five tips to better give your knees protection:
You do not have to completely give up running if you want to run with less pain. Here are five of the actions you can take to give your knees some better protection;
- Keep your running steady and manageable - Unless you are an elite competitor you should only run 3 to 4 times a week so your body has time to recover. When looking at increasing your distance it should happen steadily so that you do not overload your muscles, tendons and joints. A physio Wembley will often see runners push too hard past what their body can handle.
- Listen as you run - If you notice you are stomping hard as you run then that indicates you are putting more impact and force on your joints than you need to. Try to optimise your form and aim to land your feet more softly.
- Step more regularly (increase your cadence) – This reduces the length of your stride and reduces the force on your knees. Boosting your cadence by 7.5% can reduce the impact of running by as much as 18 to 20%!
- Strengthening sessions - The stronger your muscle system the more able it is to absorb load as you run. Be sure to add in a couple of lower limb/trunk strengthening sessions along with your usual runs. A physio Leederville would suggest working on your core, quads, hamstrings, calf complex and glutes.
- Run on flat surfaces first - Flat surfaces are easier to run on and easier on your knees. Choosing something flat but not hard is best, grass, trails, or treadmill for example.
In summary:
Whether you are quickly becoming an elite athlete or you are a beginner or you are somewhere in between when you run with a clear plan, you can avoid a lot of overload to the knees. You can also talk to your physio Wembley about how to specifically strengthen so you can prevent injury and improve performance.
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