Top 3 tips to see if your body is ready to run
Running is a fantastic sport, one which requires nothing more than adequate footwear and somewhere to go; whether that be outside in natural scenery or on the treadmill in a gym setting. But unfortunately for all of us as runners, there is one downside – injury. As a runner myself, I know firsthand the feeling of being in a good groove prior to a race and then a niggle appears – there is nothing worse than having an injury that stops us dead in our tracks.
A common question I hear a lot from TPM Fitness clients and one I ask myself is, how do I know if I am suffering an early sign of an injury or just a niggle or tweak that I can run through?
At TPM, Runners are our passion and speciality of ours and fortunately as an Exercise Physiologist I do see runners before they are injured through either gait training or strengthening, but often they come to us because they have an issue that is either causing them pain or has stopped their running.
So here are my 3 tips to see if you should run or not run. This checklist will not cover everything but at TPM Fitness we find it useful in giving our clients direction.
- 24 hr pain pattern
- Increase on pain
- Hop test
24hr pain pattern – If the pain is lingering around for longer than 24 hours and it is significant (4/10), this would warrant an appointment with a Physiotherapist or Chiropractor.
Increases in pain – sounds obvious but if running is making it worse, stop running. A common pattern of pain with running injuries begins with a little pain at the beginning, leading to pain during the run, pain after a run, to pain all the time. So, try and keep an eye on the pain, is it sticking around for longer? or does it take longer for it to fade?
Hop test – if you can’t get through 9 hops both left or right without getting your pain, running is most likely going to aggravate this issue as the hop test is a quick way to mimic the load forces during a run
Where to now?
So you have tested positive to a hop test and the pain is lingering or getting worse, what now? If you are doing these test on the day of your run, the answer is don’t run and rest your body. Rest may be all the body needs to reduce the pain, the timeframe of how much rest is better estimated by seeing a health professional. At TPM while we do our best to keep our patients pain free we also understand the importance of running to many individuals, so while yes the answer may be no more running, we will do the best we can to work around your injury and your desire to run.
We are Townsville’s running professionals and are here to get you back to what you love most – Running.
