The time has finally come! The weather is improving, Spring is here, and that means all the runners that have been cooped up inside all winter are making their way back out on the road.  Some people love it, some people hate it; but you can't argue that running is an easy and accessible exercise.

But wait... now you have this nagging foot pain every time you run. Or maybe you get through your runs just fine, but the rest of the day you have a searing knee pain that makes you limp everywhere!  Now what do you do? You looked up some things online, and you're trying some stretches and exercises that Instagram and TikTok told you, but you don't get any relief.  You're hurting, you can't run like you want, and now you're worried that everything you do is making it even worse! 

Unfortunately this is a vicious cycle that we see many runners encounter. The good news is that there is hope! Running injuries are very common, but also VERY treatable.  We have helped hundreds of Columbus runners get out of pain and get back on the road or the trail so they can continue running without injury. If you have ever had any injuries with running, keep reading to determine the best things you can do now!

Keep reading as we review the 6 most common running related injuries we see, and how they can affect your training!

1) Plantar Fasciitis

Perhaps the most prevalent running injury we help people with.  Plantar fasciitis is an irritation to the tissues on the bottom of the foot.  If you've ever dealt with this condition you know how terrible it can be.  The pain can range anywhere from mild to excruciating, achy and dull to sharp and stabby, and infrequent to constantly throughout the day.  This one can really affect your running tolerance, and will probably even force you to be limping around. Every patient will have different needs, but most treatment plans include pain relieving techniques such as dry needling and ankle/foot joint mobilization, mobility training of the big toe and ankle joint, strengthening of the foot, ankle, and calf muscles, retraining to a more efficient running pattern, and strengthening of the hip and knee.  These are the most common symptoms we see with plantar fasciitis

• usually only one foot
• pain first thing in morning when stepping out of bed
• tenderness in sole of foot at the base of heel
• worse when standing prolonged periods
  

2) IT Band Syndrome

Easily the 2nd most common running injury we help people with.  The IT band is a thick layer of fascia (connective tissue) that runs from the lateral/anterior part of the hip to the side of the knee.  While it is not a muscle that contracts, it is heavily influenced by the muscles around it and the forces that these muscles place on this area.  When there is not a good balance of these muscles acting together, we can start to see IT band syndrome show up.  Every patient will have different needs, but most treatment plans include pain relieving techniques such as dry needling, mobility training for the hips, strength training for the hip and knee, and retraining to a more efficient running pattern.  These are the most common symptoms we see with IT band syndrome.

• pain on outside of the knee
• usually one sided
• sharp pain that increases with more activity
• difficulty bending knee for such activities as squats, lunges, stairs
• potentially painful popping at the outside of the knee

3) Patellofemoral Pain (anterior knee pain)

This one can be tricky, and symptoms are more often than not mild and manageable, still allowing you to run.  But once it flares up, it can be hard to calm down.  This most often occurs due to irritation between the knee cap and the knee joint (tibiofemoral). It used to be thought that the kneecap wasn't "tracking" well as it moved through this groove in the joint, but now it it understood more as an imbalance between the forces applied to the knee and how much stress is put on this area.  So what can we do? We find what is causing this imbalance! Every patient will have different needs, but most treatment plans include pain relieving techniques such as dry needling, stability training for the hips, strength training for the hip and knee, and retraining to a more efficient running pattern to offload excessive stress to the knee. These are the most common symptoms we see with patellofemoral pain (anterior knee pain).

• females more likely than males
• pain surrounding the knee cap
• stiffness, decreased knee range of motion, potential swelling
• pain that gets worse the more you run
• clicking/popping in the front of the knee
• tenderness around the kneecap
  

4) Achilles Tendinopathy

The achilles tendon is very strong, but when we overload that tendon compared to what it can handle, we can develop pain.  We use the achilles every time we take a step to push off as we prepare our next step, and running amplifies that even further.  Every patient will have different needs, but most treatment plans include pain relieving techniques such as dry needling, mobility training for the foot and ankle, strength training for the hip, calf muscles, and foot, and retraining to a more efficient running pattern to reduce excessive force on the achilles. These are the most common symptoms we see with achilles tendinopathy.

• pain on the back of your heel,  can even travel up about 4 inches
• pain after before and after running, usually feels better during a run
• tenderness at base of heel
• pain when you point your toes down
• pain when you stretch your calves
• might feel thicker or swollen compared to non painful side

5) Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome (MTSS)

Now we're getting to less common injuries, but still very impactful!  MTSS (or shin splints) are a direct result on excessive stress placed onto the shin bone (tibia) and muscles during running.  The bone itself becomes irritated, and the muscles that attach on the tibia can even start to tear from the bone... ouch! This is one injury where regulating running volume is very important to prevent continued development of this condition, as the worse it gets the longer it takes to get better.  Every patient will have different needs, but most treatment plans include stability training for the hips, strength training for the hip, ankle, and foot, and retraining to a more efficient running pattern to reduce excessive impact and distribute force more evenly. These are the most common symptoms we see with MTSS.

• pain mostly during runs initially
• pain that continues to progress to all day pain
• achy pain, progressing to sharp and constant
• tenderness on the inside of your shin bone
  
• collapsed arches

6) Bone Stress Injuries (BSI)

Bone Stress Injuries present on a very wide spectrum, and the causes and the list of contributing factors is long, so we have to look at everything to make the best clinical decision for each athlete.  To explain it simply, BSI are an overload to the bone and cortical tissue that causes inflammation, irritation, and even fractures in more severe cases.  Some terms you may have heard referring to BSI are stress reaction and stress fracture.  Symptoms can be a very mild achy type pain and only present during a run, all the way to excruciating pain when standing and even pain when sitting and laying down that prevents you from running at all.  There are so many factors to consider when assessing and treating BSI, and many of them are listed below.  Every patient will have different needs, but most treatment plans include rest from running or reduction in mileage, implementation of cross training, nutrition and recovery counseling, stability training for the hips, strength training for the hip, knee, ankle, and foot, and retraining of their running pattern to  These are the most common symptoms we see with bone stress injuries.

• typically in high mileage athletes
• dietary deficiencies
• low BMI, typically females
• local tenderness
• poor or inefficient running form
• progresses from mild pain during runs, to pain after runs, to pain standing and walking, to pain at night when very advanced

Conclusion

While running injuries may seem scary, they are usually very easy to treat.  With a thorough assessment, we can determine the root cause, then develop a plan to get you out of pain to get you running better than before without worrying about future injuries. If you've been dealing with any injuries, and you live in Columbus Ohio, I would urge you to book a free phone consultation so we can determine if we would be a good fit. Just click the button below!