Injury Poll - since January 1, 2012

[Dstew]

Curious as to injury and the reasons why.


To answer my own question: Left leg shin splints that was followed by a right hip injury, not sure if the too were related. Too many miles and not enough weights and cross training.

[DougG]

Right calf & Achilles pain that has been constant for months. I have torn them (at sperate times) in the past and when I over do it the pain and stiffness returns. I took most of the spring and summer off, and cycled as my method of keeping fit. I have been lifting weights this fall to build overall strength, with a focus on my legs. Recently I have started back running, very slowly (literally. lol) and am working on rebuilding my base.

[ultraslacker]

not injured, but I certainly haven't been feeling 100% physically... have been a little bit "off" all year. I don't know if it's fitness or something else.

[marymac442]

Low grade Achilles issues, haven't prevented me from running but have definitely limited volume and intensity of training.
Fingers crossed that issues are slowly improving.
Not really sure why, I more or less know when but don't really know why that evening long run caused issues. Definitely did have tight calves leading up to that time.

[getfit]

I pulled my hamstring 3 weeks before ATB and had to pull out of the race. Resumed running after a few weeks but limited any hill training or speed work. Hamstring started to feel better and I joined a boot camp in the spring. I loved it, but the constant stopping and starting, with running, squats and lunges messed up my knee. Since June I have had to really baby my knee and only in recent months have increased the mileage enough to attempt a 1/2 marathon next weekend. I am doing physio and taping my knee when I run. I probably shouldn't be doing the race but I'm determined to do at least one 1/2 this year and the taping seems to be helping.

[Jwolf]

Shouldn't this be in the Injury forum?

My story: sidelined with Achilles tendonitis at the beginning of June. It had bugged me off and on for years, so I didn't realize how serious it was at first. It seems it was just more aggravated, possibly even a partial tear, from a couple weeks of more hard workouts without enough recovery time. That included a hard hill run including downhill work. I should not that my mileage was NOT very high at this time, maybe 50K/week, and I've done much higher during marathon training. It was the intensity that did me in, and also being deceived by what felt like more "normal" pain and not a new injury.

I was off running completely for about a month, after which (beginning of July) I introduced a small amount of run/walk. I was doing pretty well at the end of August, but probably pushed a bit too hard in September and had a bit of a relapse. Only now, at the end of October, do I feel that it's mostly behind me (although I still have to be really careful).

[Irongirl]

I started the year side lined from a hip/lower back injury, but, have come out of it!

Since adding in crossfit in September, my hips and lower back feel better than ever!

[chunkymonkeymelonhed]

2

[Engmomma]

Been dealing with hip issues. Spent a couple of months of no running and have slowly come back only to be sidelined again. I am stubborn.

[Dstew]

Shouldn't this be in the Injury forum?

If in the injury section, two potential responses of not injured or not affected by an injury, may not have the correct number of responses given the people that fit into those categories may not visit the injury section.


Which leads me to a question that may be impossible to answer objectively given the number of factors involved: That is do people who visit running internet sites suffer more injuries. One factor is that they tend to be more serious and hence either run harder and/or more than people who do not visit and hence are more prone to factors that lead to an injury. But could another factor be because they have been given advice not appropriate to their abilities and/or because their mileage and race results are now public, they push themselves too hard to reach those arbitrary goals?

[Jwolf]

I know lots of runners, many of whom are not active in online forums. Some more "serious" than others (similar to the range on these forums). The ones who aren't active online get injured with just as much frequency as the rest of us.

[Dstew]

I know lots of runners, many of whom are not active in online forums. Some more "serious" than others (similar to the range on these forums). The ones who aren't active online get injured with just as much frequency as the rest of us.

I suppose one can set unrealistic goals and attempt to reach those goals no matter what, with or without the net. And how does one measure good advice that meant someone was not hurt or less injured.

Cannot sleep and trying to occupy my mind with issues not related to what will be a very busy week at work rather than trying to make some big statement. The original question resulted in me bored, reading an injury study and so just curious as to if this site had more or less injuries than the report suggested one would find.

[Jwolf]

I think your assumption that injuries result from unrealistic goals is also flawed. Ask any family doctor, physiotherapist, or chiropractor and they'll tell you about countless patients that get injured from recreational running or other activities. Usually it comes from some form of doing too much before the body has adapted.

When I first started running for fitness many years ago, I was constantly battling shin splints which would stop me from running for long periods of time. I got them simply by pushing too hard for my ability (and maybe a bit of bad form resulting from pushing too hard). This was before I know anything about training plans or intervals or tempo runs. Running forums didn't exist in the 80s. At the same time, kids I knew on the track team were suffering from various types of acute and chronic injuries.

[Tori]

Sprained big toe that stopped me from planting my foot properly for months and a fibula that keeps slipping forward and jamming the ankle. Add that to a bad round of bronchitis that had me on big doses of puffers and my race season was a right off.

[trixiee]

Haven't been able to run for 2 years - will never run again. However, still visit this forum, as I am biking, and still have many running/triathlete friends...

[Robinandamelia]

I had a bit of plantar fasciitis but didn't really lose any training over it. Caught it pretty early, treated it and switched shoes. Have still be dealing with calf tightness and some discomfort since shoe switch but it's almost gone.

[HCcD]

How timely is this poll ... after 4 years of NYC Lottery and training specifically for almost the past 11 months for this race, I had to pull out and cancellation my registration on the weekend and will defer it until 2013 ...

Not sure if it was PF, over compensation over the past month due to issues with my right foot, a bit of a ankle strain/sprain now, from the former .. and, from where the discomfort is now, while even walking, sure hope that it is not the "S" word ...

Forunately, however, when I called for an appointment to see a Sports Medical Doctor, this morning, I was informed that there was a cancellation for this afternoon ... Hopefully, it will be a positive prognosis, of just a strain/sprain or whatever and I can start my road to recovery sooner than later ... afterall Goofy Challenge is less than 11 weeks away now ....

[erinmcd]

Trouble with left Achilles tendon and right hip flexor. Hip flexor trouble started after 2011 Toronto Waterfront Marathon, and had me sideline for about 8 weeks. Just as that was starting to get sorted out, the achilles tendon trouble started- probably related.
After lots of ART sessions, I'm back in business, but I still have to be very vigilant in stretching those 2 areas well.

[Dr. S]

Hip issues bothering me this summer, lots about 4 weeks of training for the Chicago marathon. Now, training for Philly marathon and it is starting to act again, so I will need a break after this race. I have nothing planned until April... which is a big deal for me!

[NewFinnLoper]

I severely pulled a calf muscle while training for the Winnipeg Police Services Half last spring. I tried to take two weeks off to let it heal so I could run the race, but 4 miles into it I had to pull out. (First DNF ever... ) The calf is still tight from time to time, but I am now back to running for an hour straight. 2012 has been the first year in the last 7 that I have not raced a half marathon...(or two or three)

[FishPants]

I have had to stop running, but I am pretty sure my condition doesn't count as an "injury".

I was making huge progressions in my running with speed/distance up until July when I discovered I am pregnant. I tried to keep up with my running, but had brutal, horrible nausea for all of August and half of September. Round ligament pain/hip pain at 16 weeks put a stop to my running for now.

Still doing workouts (on my own, sort of a bootcamp style with squats/lunges/weights) and swimming.

[runJrun]

Been suffering for last few months with pain in my hips and tight IT band. Have had lots of ART, need to stretch more and also working on hip strengthening exercises. Still suffer with pain after a run and hope it will just continue to get better. I want to get back on the race train next year! I have not run a race for over a year now and I miss it...a lot.

[Jogger Barbie]

I developed patella femoral syndrome in my left knee at the beginning of April, and ended up having to cancel my entry into Boston. After three weeks of not running a single step, and lots of targeted exercises, the pain was gone and I started to slowly build back up. At this point I'm still not in as good as shape as I was pre-injury (ran a PB at Around the Bay that I couldn't begin to run now), but (knock wood) the pain has never returned.

[Miss*Smiles]

ITB issues (both sides), Patella Femoral Syndrome (both knees), Fibula on the left side, asthma.... Will run again. Just not running currently.

[Dstew]

I think your assumption that injuries result from unrealistic goals is also flawed. Ask any family doctor, physiotherapist, or chiropractor and they'll tell you about countless patients that get injured from recreational running or other activities. Usually it comes from some form of doing too much before the body has adapted.

Semantics in my opinion. When I started to run on a regular basis to maintain the gym acquired weight loss, I had no idea about road races for weekend warriors. But I still had a goal and what I thought I needed to do to achieve that goal and in my case it was to stay under 190 pounds. One is doing too much because they have an unrealistic goal such as run around the block or to that park or ... my thought is that if one sets this goal in a public forum, will they push past a point where they would have stopped if it were a whisper goal to themselves. To be specific, if in my mind I want to "jog" in order to stay under 190 pounds but I start to get tired and sore from running and I go up to 191 pounds when I take a break, will I have the same approach if I have put in a public forum that I will run a race in under "X" number of minutes? There is nothing inherently wrong with goals if one can tell the difference between hurt versus harm and that person also has the discipline to stop when they are going over that line. Of course, there are those that would go over regardless so all of this is merely some mental gymnastics and not trying to discover any deeper truths. From the meta studies I have read, the only conclusion that can be reached is that about 50% of all runners in any given year will suffer an injury that stops them from running, about 75% are going to have an injury that negatively impacts their running, you are more likely to get hurt if you had a previous injury and running causes running injuries and there are too many variables and individual differences to find just one common cause.