Running Online

Injury Treatment Approaches

By
Art Liberman
of State of the Art Marathon Training

It is beyond the scope of this website to discuss in detail the nature and treatment of most running injuries. It is also difficult to provide detailed information about the treatment of specific injuries without knowing the symptoms. However, I have included below some helpful pointers to consider when you think you may be injured. Of course, the best approach is to train intelligently to reduce the possibility of injuries from occurring. Refer to the sections on Getting Started - The Basics and How to Avoid an Injury for more information. Unfortunately, there are times when even the most prudent runner who follows all of the training advice still incurs an injury. By following some of the suggestions below, minor injuries can be treated with no further damage occurring.

General Guidelines

Should you run with an injury? Perhaps . . . as long as you can run at a level of intensity below the threshold of pain while at the same time, not altering your normal running stride to avoid discomfort. When an injury occurs, reduce your mileage and intensity until you can resume running without pain. However, do not take medications or ice an injury before testing whether or not you can run. If it hurts no matter what, do not run; Instead, choose a

cross-training activity to maintain cardio-vascular fitness. The following sports are generally safe for most running injuries: Walking, cycling, swimming, deep water-running, rowing, stair-master, and cross-country ski machines. See the section on The Do's and Don'ts of Cross-training for more information. If you must stop running altogether for more than a week, ease back into your running slowly. See Mileage Buildup section for more information.

Recognize the difference between fatigue and pain due to an injury. Unfortunately, endorphins (the chemicals the body produces from aerobic exercise that make you feel good . . . runner's high) mask pain. Listen to your body and respect what it is telling you. Some minor discomforts go away once the muscles warm up. Be very cautious in this situation as you don't want to cause more serious damage to the injury site. Above all, if pain becomes more intense while running, do not continue . . . walk and begin treatment. DO NOT become a slave to your training schedule! If you continue to train and delay treatment, the injury will almost assuredly become more serious, thus jeopardizing the possibility of even being able to participate in the marathon.

Treatment

Inflammation (characterized by pain, swelling, redness, and warmth) is often the by-product of many injuries. If inflammation occurs in an injury site, treat the area with ice (see icing guidelines below). Above all, do not treat the area with heat of any kind (wet or dry) for several days.

Consider taking several days off from running along with other types of sports that cause shock to the injured area. Try using some anti-inflammatory medication (e.g., ibuprofen) for injuries that are inflamed. Be careful not to take too much of these products as they can cause a variety of internal problems. Heat is a good therapeutic/relaxation measure after inflammation of the injury site has been reduced significantly or eliminated. If, after these approaches listed above fail, consider visiting a physician (who is very familiar with a variety of sports injuries and has experience treating runners) for both an assessment of the injury and treatment advice. The most important information a physician can provide is whether: (1) you can continue to run without modification of your training schedule, (2) continue to run with a reduced workload, (3) rest the injury site (e.g., no running), and/or (4) add some cross-training activities to both maintain cardio-vascular fitness and to strengthen the injury site.

Icing Guidelines

Use an ice cup - Fill a paper cup with water and then place it in the freezer. When completely frozen, the top of the paper cup can be peeled away to expose the ice. Massage the injured area with the ice cup for approximately 10 minutes or

until the area is numb. It does little good to continue icing the area after that time; Rather, ice the area again two to three hours later (or as often as possible).

If you are unable to create a frozen ice cup, use an ice pack or a package of frozen vegetables to treat the injured area.

Information on Specific Running Injuries and Treatment Options

Check out this great website Dr. Pribut's Running Injuries Page for detailed information regarding the description, cause(s) and treatment options for a variety of common running injuries.