Posted on July 22, 2016 by Jenny Cromack
The world of running opens us up a vast list of common injuries that can be hugely debilitating on not only our training but also our lives in general. Many of these injuries tend to be progressive and chronic such as medial tibial stress syndrome (shin splints). Often these injuries have some ties to running gait, posture, or some imbalances in muscular strength and activity.
From my experience muscles that are often imbalanced are the gluteals, vastus medialis oblique (lower inner quadricep muscle), rotational core muscles, upper back muscles (e.g. rhomboids, rotator cuff). An imbalance in these muscles will have knock on effects on our general posture that will be exacerbated during our running gait. This will not only make our running style less efficient but also place unnecessary stress upon our joints and soft tissues of the body. If we are then clocking up mile after mile over time placing this stress on these joints and tissues we increase of likelihood of picking up an injury.
So to help, here are our top five exercises for exercises for running injuries.
By including these exercises into your warm ups or training routines we can help activate and strengthen these often imbalanced muscles and click a better posture into place.
1. Hip Thrusts – 3 sets x 15 reps
2. Clams – 3 sets x 15 reps –
3. Single Leg Squats – 3 sets 10 Each Leg
4. Half Kneeling Pallof Press – 3 sets x 12 Each Side
5. Y’s, T’s, and W’s – 2 sets of 15 Each Variation
Adding these into your warm ups, or as a separate part of your training sessions will activate the muscles that tend to be weaker or underactive such as those mentioned earlier. These exercises should be included into a well designed plan that includes strength and conditioning elements as well as your running. This will ensure your muscular strength and endurance is optimal to improve your running efficiency. Should you suffer with any running related injuries these exercises will be beneficial but always seek medical advice before engaging in any activities.