7 Ways to Avoid Injury

My recent pain with my foot and "not this again" aggravation led me to do some research on how to prevent these injuries.

I know how to treat it: wrap it during the day, ice morning and night, and no running for three weeks.

But I wanted to know how to keep it from happening. And I figured my other running (and non-running) friends could use some advice as well.

And if you're wondering why this is a list of seven and not five or 10, then you don't know me very well. I'm a forward thinker people!

8. Get a great support system. Ok so that won't really help
you with avoiding injury, I just love this photo.

1. Get the right gear. We're talking about your feet here. You need them. Why not treat them well? You need kicks that are built to fit your specific feet -- high arch, no arch, pronation, width, extra toes, etc. Get them from a local running store -- Virginia Runner is a great one for those of you in the D.C. area. These stores have professionals that will do an analysis of the way you run and will help you pick the correct type of shoe. Some people, like me, will need inserts. Treat your feet like a lady, and wine and dine them with the proper, albeit expensive, shoes.

2. Don't run every day. I used to be guilty of this myself, so don't beat yourself up! Basically, running takes a hell of a high-impact toll on your body, so it's good to take some days off from running and schedule in the occasional (*gasp*) rest day. God took a rest day, you should too.

3. Do non-running things. That's right, leave the stop-watch at home and go for a hike, or do some yoga.  Even swimming is a great option - it lets your joints stretch out and breathe a little. Or maybe you just hop on the elliptical and watch some trashy TV. Cross-training is an excellent way for you to work out other muscles that running doesn't hit, while giving your knees a break.

4. Warm up and cool down. I hate this one, because I detest the warm up and I'm too busy for the cool down. I almost never do it, but we all should. Warming up your muscles before a run lets them get loose and pliable - less likely to tear. You don't need to stretch before, just hop around a little and work out the kinks. You should stretch after you run, while your muscles are super-warm, to improve flexibility and to help with soreness.

5. Change up where you run. If you're a road runner (beep, beep), try hitting some dirt trails. Is there a high school in running distance of your house? Head on over and do some laps on the track. The bottom line is: the harder the surface, the harder the recoil when your foot hits it. You'd rather punch grass than concrete, right? Your feet would, too.

6. Gradually increase mileage. We have all done it. You're building for a race and you're feeling good on your long run and you tack on another mile and a half just because. It's ok. Just don't make it a habit. As a rule, increase mileage by no more than 10-15% a week. Jumps any higher than that can be a shock to your system. You marathon trainers, pay attention to this one.

7. If you don't use it, you lose it. If you haven't trained in, oh I don't know, 8 months or so, don't hit the road trying to run the same distances and pace you used to do. I made that mistake two months ago, and I now have the lovely nagging foot injury to thank for it. Start slow, rebuild. My coach in high school used to tell us that it takes your body two weeks to forget what you spent months teaching it. I'm all for the hiatus, I took one myself, just be realistic about getting back into the swing of things.

There you have it! Read them, learn them, love them. Also, rule of thumb (or foot?), if it hurts, don't ignore it. My brother was training for a half marathon last year and his knee was killing him from an old soccer injury. And he kept running on it. I tried to tell him to see a doctor, but he spent months in pain trying to push through.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have a foot to wrap.