Preventing injuries in long-distance runners

to build up mileage and muscular endurance.

It is not uncommon to experience injury while training, which can delay achieving weekly goals or even prevent you from running the race entirely.

Ensuring a training program is effective and specific to you can help reduce the risk of injuries.

Here are a few points which may help:

Warm-up

It is very tempting to just ‘go for a run’ but a warm-up will increase your heart rate and respiratory rate, which in turn allows muscles to take up more oxygen, contract and relax efficiently.

It helps activate the connections between your muscles and nervous system to improve the efficiency of movement as well as encouraging mobility in the body.

A good warm-up should involve a variety of dynamic, slow and fast exercises which target all the muscle groups needed for the run.

Most injured runners we see as physiotherapists warm up with a slower-paced run for a few minutes before gradually building up to their desired pace, which does not target the full function of the muscle groups to be used in the run and can in turn increase the risk of injury.

Endurance Training

Endurance is the ability of the body to withstand exercise over a prolonged period of time.

A gradual increase in running mileage over a number of weeks should allow your body to adapt to running longer distances, with appropriate rest to allow time for muscle recovery.

The rate of increase should depend on your previous running experience and how much time you can devote to preparing for the marathon.

Strength and conditioning

Resistance-based training can help improve muscular strength, allowing muscles to work more efficiently, improving running economy and performance without increasing body mass.

Strength training can be done at home or in a gym and should be performed twice weekly.

Rest and Recovery

Muscle fatigue is normal in longdistance running and causes a change in strength, muscle function and running technique, all of which can result in an injury.

Overtraining syndrome is a common risk when it comes to training for marathons.

Rest days are essential for muscle recovery and should be given the same importance as reaching the desired mileage.

Long distance running is a challenging but rewarding experience. I wish you all the best in your preparation and with the right regimen, you will seize the day.