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Mend Physical Therapy Blog and Injury Information
Can Running Overuse Injuries Be Prevented?

In our Lafayette Physical Therapy and Boulder Physical Therapy clinics we commonly examine and treat runners with overuse injuries. The article “Risk factors for overuse injuries in short- and long-distance running: A systematic review” examines the risk factors associated with overuse injuries in both short and long-distance running. The study involved a systematic review of...

Running is one of the most popular forms of exercise due to its’ accessibility, low equipment cost, and health benefits.  As running popularity continues to grow, unfortunately so do the number of runners who miss a training session or competition due to injury.  These runners are not alone; as research has reported up to 90%...

In prior posts we have described the importance of running economy.  Runners with improved economy, similar to miles per gallon in a car, will be able to run at lower percentage of their VO2 max at a given intensity compared to a less economical runner.  Economical runners demonstrate improved performance in both training and competition....

In our previous posts on running shoes we have described the limitations of orthotics and shoe wear to alter foot, ankle, or knee mechanics during gait.  Despite the hype and claims shoes have been unable to significantly improve running mechanics compared to proximal interventions including hip strengthening and gait retraining by a Physical Therapist.  The...