Warm Up And Cool Down
It’s essential to warm up properly before you start running. Five to 10 minutes of brisk walking or gentle jogging before you start will warm your muscles up and help prevent injury.
To cool down, carry on running at an easier pace or walk for 5 to 10 minutes. This will help your body recover after your run.
See Tips for new runners for more information about warming up and cooling down, as well as running technique.
How To Prevent The 4 Most Common Knee Injuries
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- How to Prevent the 4 Most Common Knee Injuries
Knee injuries are extremely common and oftentimes preventable. In this article, well go over the most common knee injuries and explain some easy ways to avoid them.
First, you need to know a little bit about the knee. The knee is the largest joint in the body and is responsible for bearing weight and facilitating movement. Its made up of three bones , meniscus , ligaments , muscles , and tendons .
How To Prevent Knee Injuries From Running
If youre a runner, its good to know how to prevent knee injuries from running! Did you know that approximately 4 times your body weight passes through a knee with each foot strike? Its no surprise that knee injuries and knee pain are a common problem with runners.
Before we get into preventing running knee injuries from your running, though, encountering some knee pain could be a good thing?
Why? Because if you realize youre having knee pain early enough, you might make some changes and prevent worse knee injuries.
There are more serious injuries from running, but the majority of knee injuries from running start with overuse. These injuries are due to the constant and repeated stress on the joint itself along with the surrounding soft tissues.
If you are dealing with overuse issues, and youre not wearing knee support, that would be my first and immediate move.
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How To Prevent Knee Injuries
Knees wear down. Regardless of how well you care for your knees, they do wear out. Surgeons are now seeing people in their 40s in addition to older patients needing knee replacements.
So don’t worry when you experience something like . This just means your knees are revealing your age.
You can do specific things to keep your knees healthier for longer, though, and avoid the pain of knee injury recovery.
Whether You’re Active Or Not Stretching Is Good For The Knees
Stretches that focus on the calf, hamstring and quadriceps muscles take pressure off of the knees and kneecaps. “Many people often say there is no aerobic value in stretching, so they see it as a waste of time,” says Bush-Joseph. “But a well-conditioned, flexible body is less likely to develop overuse problems in the knees.”
Some good stretches to protect the knees include step-ups, hamstring curls and straight-leg lifts. Additionally, stretches that focus on building flexibility in the hips, including a butterfly stretch and a standing hip flexor with a resistance band, can help alleviate knee pain.
People who do not like to stretch before a workout can still protect their knees by slowly ramping up to top speed rather than jumping full speed into their workout.
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Prevent Knee Pain From Running 1 Wear The Right Shoes
The foot is a very complex part of the human anatomy.
Its made up of 19 muscles, 26 bones, 107 ligaments, and 33 jointsand these take the brunt of a foot strike when running.
Since running is a high impact sport that places a great deal of stress on the knees, wearing the right trainers not only helps you to run faster and longer, but may also reduce risks of pain and injury.
A good running shoe is designed specifically to diffuse the load shooting up the rest of your leg.
Just dont get me wrong.
Im not suggesting that proper shoes are the ultimate solution to your knee issues.
But its a start, and an important part of an overall prevention and treatment and plan.
That said, I should also point outand this may surprise some of youthat the current research on the effectiveness of running shoes in improving performance and preventing overuse injury is, at best, mixed.
This link provides you with more insight on the subject at hand.
Yet, in my experience, a proper pair is non-negotiableregardless.
Therefore, to stay safe, you got to find a shoe that fits your feet properly.
More importantly, go for a pair that supports your natural foot typewhether youre neutral, high arched , or flat-footed runner.
To find a suitable pair, head to your local running store and ask for a foot type and gait analysis, which will help you find what best matches your physiological and training needs.
Also, be sure to replace your trainers regularly.
Shoulder Pain And Injury
Since the shoulders are the place point of the barbell, if you try to increase the weight too soon, the traps may not be able to handle it. The compression of the shoulder muscles from too much weight that your body is not accustomed to can cause tightness, bruising, and strain.
Whats more, excessive weight can cause a number of other issues. It can negatively impact your form. The more unstable you are during your squat, the higher the risk of getting seriously hurt. Your knees in particular are at great risk as excessive weight presents a dual dilemma of too much stress and a highly unstable forward lean.
Low bar placement can also cause shoulder issues. Low bar placement is an effective and safe technique when performed correctly. It suits some people better than others, especially those with a natural forward lean, as we mentioned above. However, when the bar is too low, it pulls down and back on the shoulder muscles that are already struggling to hold the weight steady.
HOW TO FIX IT?
Increase the weight used in a responsible way that is in line with your ability. If youre currently squatting 100 pounds, for example, and you attempt to squat 200 pounds, youre going to have a mess on your hands. Try increasing the weight by between 5% and 10%.
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Acl Injuries Are Common Among Athletes Learn About Prevention Methods
If you can prevent ACL injury, you can bypass physical trauma, an interrupted sports season, and the intensive processes of treatment. According to ACL injury statistics, sprains or tears of the anterior cruciate ligament affect approximately 150,000 people annually, the majority of whom are athletes. This is a notably high sports injury incidence rate but the good news is that the majority of these injuries can be effectively mitigated by implementing ACL injury prevention methods.
As firm proponents of preventative Sports Medicine, the orthopaedic experts at Rothman Orthopaedic Institute have compiled the following five methods for preventing ACL injuries.
Stand Up Straight To Feel Better
“When you slouch you are leaning forward and walking bent over at the waist and that posture will lead to knee pain,” says Bush-Joseph. “You want your head centered over your shoulders and your shoulders centered over your abdomen and pelvis. The more your body is off-center, the more you have to compensate for that with muscle activity. Those muscles eventually fatigue, causing strain on your joints.”
Having strong core muscles in your abdomen and lower back helps promote good posture and, ultimately, lessens the pressure on your knees. Exercises such as planks, back extensions, yoga and Pilates can help strengthen the core.
Heres how to do these exercises:
- Planks: Lie face down with your toes pointed to the floor. Put your forearms on the floor with your elbows at 90-degree angles. Tighten your abdominal and gluteal muscles and lift your body off the floor. Keep your back straight and hold for 15 to 45 seconds.
- Back extensions: Lie face down with elbows bent and hands on the floor. Keeping your hips on the floor, lift your head and shoulders up with your arms. Hold for 5 to 10 seconds and repeat five to 10 times.
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How To Prevent Knee Pain When Running
A study from the British Journal of Sports Medicine says that your knees are predominantly where your legs will get injured when you run. This, of course, can hurt. However, how to prevent knee pain when running, regardless of the type of injury, all boils down to a lot of the same things:
- Getting stronger
- Using better shoes, and
- Proper training
I will describe all these in better detail below. But, Ill also tell you about a few possible reasons why youre knees are hurting, as well as give you a timetable for recovery. Lets get to it!
What Knee Injuries Are Most Difficult To Prevent
Knee injuries such as fractures, dislocations, and ligament tears are the hardest to prevent. This is because most of these occur from one-off acute trauma incidents.
This, opposed to conditions such as osteoarthritis, are the hardest to prepare for. Arthritis, meniscus tears, and tendonitis are injuries that occur from repeated motion over time and you can take precautions to avoid them.
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Stretch Your Joints Gently Before Working Out
Stretching before working out helps prevent injuries not only to your knees, but also your entire body.
Gently stretching your knee joints before going out on the court slowly releases synovial fluid in the joints, which helps lubricate them and keeps them working well. Stretching your thigh muscles lessens stress on the tendons and consequently reduces pressure on your knees. Stretching the muscles and tendons in the hips, legs, and ankles also protects your knees.
Common Soccer Knee Injuries And How To Prevent Them
It should be no surprise that the majority of injuries seen in soccer players involve the lower body.
Unless you are a goalkeeper, the main movements include using the legs to kick, jump, run and do slide tackles.
Knees are central to all this movement, and as players enter teenage years, knees overcome ankles as the most common joint injury in soccer players.
Read on for expert sports medicine tips to protect knees to keep yourself or your favorite soccer player on the field.
RELATED TOPIC: Im not trying to discount the risk of head injuries in soccer or unique injury risks of goalkeepers. Click here to learn more about soccer concussions and how to protect goalkeepers.
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Work On Your Strength Flexibility And Balance
These are things you can work on at your local gym or even at home if you wanted. My point is that if all you do right now for exercise is run, thats the problem.
Running, in and of itself, can create muscle imbalances around your hips and ankles which, in turn, can affect the biomechanics of your knee.
As a matter of fact, Dr. Steve Gonser himself a physical therapist, a marathoner, and an Ironman finisher essentially says running creates a physical bias for your quads and calves. And, the more miles you put on your legs, the more you steer yourself towards that bias.
However, its not just about strength. Flexibility and balance, especially around the hips and ankles, are also crucial for injury prevention because these 2 joints control much of your dynamic adjustments.
In summary, heres a short list of things you should be working on at the gym:
There are 2 types of stretching you need to know about:
An example of static stretching is touching your toes for 20 seconds whereas dynamic stretching is doing arm circles.
Now, you might be asking: Why cant I do both?
Heres an example of a warm-up drill you can do:
And, here are a few stretches you can do after your run:
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The causes of ACL injury have recently been the subject of study. Ground hardness, grass type, and cleat type are all factors that contribute to ACL injuries. However, one of the most significant findings is that women are nearly three times more likely than men to sustain ACL injuries. According to some statistics, a female soccer player is eight times more likely than a male soccer player to injure her ACL. Womens basketball and soccer players are statistically more likely to tear an ACL. Because women are more likely to be injured while participating in sports, it is even more critical that they obtain some form of affordable health insurance.
There are numerous theories as to why females are more vulnerable to this injury. Among them are the following:
- A narrower notch width of the femoral head
- The relative strength and muscle recruitment pattern of the hamstring muscles in comparison to the quads and differences in hormone levels on ligament strength and stiffness.
- High levels of estrogen, neuromuscular control.
- A lack of proper training at a young age
There is a difference in neuromuscular control between men and women when landing jumps, according to the findings . Most experts believe that instituting some simple changes in the training of all athletes, not just female athletes, can reduce the incidence of ACL tears.
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Should I Exercise If My Knee Hurts
It depends. If you are experiencing sharp pains or unbearable pain, then I would avoid it. However, if you just feel stiff and maybe have some aches the exercising might actually help loosen it up and reduce your pain. Things like riding a recumbent bike, walking, swimming are all forms of exercise that is easy on the knees. Try those out to get your blood flowing and if your knee pain gets worse, then you probably need to visit your Doctor. You will know if your knee pain is serious if it doesnt get better, it gets worse or its so bad you need pain medicine.
Ways To Prevent Knee Problems Before They Begin
As the largest joint in your body, the knee is a common source of pain and injury. Protect yourknees now, and theyll keep you stepping strong for years to come. Here are some tips to helpyou keep your knees in tip-top shape:
1. StretchStretch before and after physical exercise, sports or recreational activities to warm up yourmuscles. To keep your knees healthy, target your calves, hips, quads and hamstrings.
2. Be cautious with stairsBounding up and down stairs puts serious stress on your kneecaps. Even if youre runninglate, walk up and down stairs and hold onto the railing for added support.
3. Use proper formWhen doing squats and lunges, dont bend your leg beyond a 90-degree angle, and makesure your knee stays directly over your foot. If you play sports, consider taking lessons tolearn the proper technique to help avoid injury.
4. Work your inner thighsStrong hip adductor muscles absorb stress while you walk,which in turn helps keep knees healthy. A simple way to start: try squeezing your kneestogether when youre sitting down.
5. Make safety a priorityMake it a habit to follow simple safety procedures at home and at work. Dont carry objectsthat are too heavy, dont stand on chairs or other unsteady objects, and use equipmentappropriate to your size, strength and ability.
6. Lose weightThe No. 1 secret for happy knees? Stay at a healthy weight. Every extra pound you pack onputs about 4 extra pounds of pressure on your knees when you walk or take the stairs.
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What Is Runner’s Knee
Runner’s knee also known as patellofemoral pain syndrome is an overuse injury that affects as many as 30% of female runners and 25% of male runners. That makes it the most common running-related injury.
In runner’s knee, the cartilage in your kneecap gets irritated. This causes pain while you’re running, squatting, bending or even sitting for awhile. I often see patients come in with runner’s knee after they start running at an incline or increase miles or speed.
Exercising To Protect Your Knees
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How To Avoid Knee Injuries
Knee injuries can happen to anyone at any time. It is considered one of the most common injuries in the US today. From the elderly to the young many suffer from a variety of knee problems. Roughly 6,600,000 knee injuries occur each year in a variety of age groups. There are times when an injury is not correctly diagnosed and increases the risk of further injury. Its incredibly important to find a doctor that can correctly diagnose you for your wellbeing. We know how aggravating knee pain and injuries can be. Whether your knee pain is the result of arthritis or temporary injury, there are steps you can take to avoid and protect against it.
Its important to understand the structure of your knees. This can help in recovery and avoiding injury. Altogether, the ligaments, tendons, and muscles support and stabilize your knee joint. Any weakness in them increases the likelihood of an injury to the joint. Strengthening your knee as a whole will decrease the chance of severe injury.
How to Prevent Knee Injuries and Pain
Injury Prevention for Athletes
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