Pain when running is one of the most common injuries we see at Solutions Physical Therapy & Sports Medicine. Pain in the knees, hips, and ankles are usually the biggest complaints. Some people only experience pain running, but other times the pain carries over into everyday tasks like walking, getting out of a chair, and going up and downstairs.
A lot of running injuries are caused by a lack of strength and motor control in the trunk, hips, knees, and ankles. The good news is there are simple exercises you can do to strengthen the weak muscles, improve your movement quality, and have pain-free running Our highly trained physical therapist at Solutions Physical Therapy will create a therapy treatment plan that is best for you.
Plank
This exercise increases the strength and endurance of your abs and hip muscles as well as some shoulder endurance.
Keep your pelvis and ribs in the same position throughout the plank. If your hips start to sag toward the floor, you’ve lost control in your abs and you should stop the exercise. A lot of people tend to stick their butt up in the air a bit when doing this. You really want to avoid this. Keep your body in a nice straight line. Start with shorter holds and more reps if you need to. 3 rounds of 30 seconds can be a good place to start. Try to work up to holding this position for 2 rounds of 1 minute. Do this 2-3 times a week and you will see it get a lot easier.
Step Down
The goal of this exercise is to control the position of your hips and your knee. It will also build strength in your glutes and your quads.
Your hips and pelvis should stay parallel to each other. The knee of your foot that is on the step should stay lined up with the middle of that same foot.
Start with 2 sets of 10 and work up to 3 sets. Start with a lower step (4 inches or less) and work up to a higher step as it gets easier. Do this 2 to 3 times a week.
Once you can do these for 3 sets of 10 with good technique, it’s time to increase the speed. Download a free metronome app for your phone and set it to 50 beats per minute. Try to perform the step-downs at a 50 beat per minute pace and maintain the same quality of technique. Start with 30-second rounds and work up to 1 minute. Your ultimate goal is to work up to 1-minute rounds and increase the rate to 60 beats per minute.
Lateral Line Hops
In addition to strength in the above areas, running also requires your ankles to be strong and fast. Being able to “pop” off the ground allows you to run at a higher step rate and decrease the load on your knees. Hopping in place can work, but some research suggests adding side-to-side movements into your exercise routine can decrease your injury risk as well.
Notice in the video above that the hopping movement is really coming from the ankles. The knees stay flexed at about the same position throughout the hop. You can start with a smaller line to hop across. The goal is to move quickly. Use a metronome app as you did for the step exercise. Start it at about 140 beats per minute for this exercise. As you get faster, try to increase it to 160 beats per minute.
None of the exercises above should make you hurt more. If you’ve tried these and you’re still hurting, we can help you!
At Solutions Physical Therapy & Sports Medicine, we’re experts at treating running pain and will develop a plan for you to get back to pain-free running.
Call us at 703-299-3111, or click here and a member of our team will schedule an evaluation with one of our expert physical therapists.
Working to keep you living your best life,
The Solutions Physical Therapy & Sports Medicine Team
