Running is one of the most accessible ways to stay fit, but it also comes with a high rate of repetitive impact. Lately, at our Bodyreform studio on 1 Schofield Street, Grey Lynn, we have seen an influx of local runners coming in with persistent aches and pains.
Most running injuries don’t happen because of a single, dramatic fall. Instead, they fall under the category of overuse injuries, often referred to as “too much, too soon.” This simply means the repetitive stress of hitting the pavement exceeds your body’s current capacity to heal and adapt.
If you are currently training for an event or just hitting the Auckland paths, here is what you need to know about keeping your body injury-free.
The Most Common Running Injuries
When running volume outweighs recovery, tissues become overloaded. The most common conditions we assess and treat include:
- Runner’s Knee (Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome / Anterior Knee Pain)
- Shin Splints (Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome)
- Achilles Tendinopathy
- ITB Syndrome (Iliotibial Band Syndrome)
- Muscle Strains (particularly the calves and hamstrings)
- Stress Fractures (bony overuse injuries)
Why Do Runners Get Injured?
Understanding why the tissue overloaded is the first step to a successful recovery. Our clinical team generally traces running injuries back to four main culprits:
- Sudden Training Spikes: This is the classic “too much, too soon” scenario. Rapidly increasing your weekly running distance, adding intense hill sessions too quickly, or running too fast on designated “easy” days pushes tissues past their breaking point.
- Inadequate Rest: Running places immense continuous stress on your muscles, bones, and tendons. Without dedicated recovery time, the micro-tears that naturally occur during exercise cannot heal, eventually leading to structural inflammation and pain.
- Muscle Weakness and Biomechanical Imbalances: Running requires exceptional deep core and hip stability to absorb repetitive shock.
- Weak hip stabilizers can cause your knees and ankles to collapse inward, leading straight to Runner’s Knee or ITB friction.
- Ineffective foot biomechanics change how shock is absorbed, shifting an inappropriate amount of load directly onto your calves and Achilles tendon.
- Training Variables: Running exclusively on hard, uneven surfaces or wearing worn-out running shoes that have lost their structural support.
What Should You Do If Pain Develops?
If you feel a nagging ache starting to develop during or after your runs, your response in the first few weeks dictates how long you will be sidelined.
- Don’t Ignore Persistent Symptoms: Running through pain rarely works. Pain is a clear feedback loop from your nervous system signaling an overload.
- Modify, Don’t Always Stop: For many soft-tissue issues, we prefer to modify your training volume rather than stopping completely, keeping you moving safely. Note: Complete rest is essential if a bony stress injury (like a stress fracture) is suspected.
- Seek Early Clinical Assessment: Addressing a minor tendon tweak early is much easier than treating chronic tendinopathy months down the track.
The Bodyreform Verdict: Most running injuries can be managed highly effectively when they are identified and addressed early. Our Grey Lynn team specializes in analyzing your running biomechanics, strengthening your hip stabilizers, and safely structuring your training load.
Experiencing pain during or after your runs? Early physiotherapy advice can help keep you active and drastically reduce your recovery time. Book a comprehensive running assessment with Emma or Sarah today.