Please help - running but concerned about injuries

W

whiskeytangofox

New member
Hi,

I've been on the weight loss wagon for 11 days so far and I'm really happy with most of it. I'm losing weight and I feel great. The diet part is fine as well. I'm trying to do my exercise through jogging. Part of the reason previous initiatives failed is because they weren't sustainable in the long run - unrealistically low calories, complicated exercises. So I'm getting up in the morning to jog before work. I'm not that fast (about 4 miles ph) but my aim was to try for 2hrs a day. Now I have only hit this once in 10 days, but it's more like 1 - 1.5 hrs. I feel energized and it's great for me because I can just zone out and enjoy it. The problem is that while my upper body is fine, I am concerned that I am going to screw up my ankles or something and then not be able to exercise ever.

I've felt a bit unsteady on my feet since I started running and have had tightness at various times in my right knee. I've stopped for a day and this has gone away. I'm doing a bunch of things that will hopefully mitigate this - can anyone comment on whether these will help, or on anything else I could be doing?

- taking a rest day whenever I get a niggling pain - aiming for 1 a week at least
- sleep more
- joined a pilates class - once a week
- take fish oil and vitamin supplements
- buy an ankle brace (?)
- Stop wearing completely flat shoes to work?
- get running shoes fitted (I bought some that are much better than my old ones but I will go and have my gait analysed)
- Stretching exercises, for my ankles as well

I know people are going to mention weight training but I am wary of doing things that I cannot sustain. I'm not close to a gym and I'm unlikely to continue something if it is just too inconvenient. I'm also scared that doing lots of advanced forms of exercise by myself will end up with me effing up my body even more by doing it wrong.

Do these sound like things that can prevent an injury? Is there anything else I am missing? Should I ice my ankles after every run? Try to run less frequently but further?

Please help!
 
I would say the two most imprortant things are .

1. Get good running shoes! (This makes a huge difference... When I started running at the gym I was using crappy old tennis shoes.... then I got a pair of running shoes for christmas and my whole lower body felt so much better and I was able to run faster and further)

2. Do NOT run if you are in pain.... If your legs/ankels are in pain it's your body telling you to slow down or stop... do not try to push through it... it will only make it worse... if you notice your in pain slowly build yourself back up or you will be sitting out for a lot longer. This happened to me and I really had to lay off running for two months... i think if I would have paid more attention to the initial discomfort instead of pushing myself I would have been back on my feet faster.


Also do you run on pavement? If so try to run on dirt or a school track... much better for the legs... Also if you are experiencing discomfort they say it's best to avoid peaks and valleys... and run on flat surfaces.

Hope that helped a bit.
 
I agree with the above
I had to quit for a few months because not only were my running shoes bad they weren't the right type of running shoes for me. I have flat feet (thanks genetics), so I needed something with high arches and a wide base, and I was using the opposite..So make sure you talk to someone at the shoe place and make sure the shoes are a good match for your feet as well.
 
Tamago said:
I agree with the above
I had to quit for a few months because not only were my running shoes bad they weren't the right type of running shoes for me. I have flat feet (thanks genetics), so I needed something with high arches and a wide base, and I was using the opposite..So make sure you talk to someone at the shoe place and make sure the shoes are a good match for your feet as well.
Click to expand...

According to me for jogging we require some right kind of shoes that are mainly for the purpose of jogging otherwise it may affect your feet and toes.

You can check reebok and adidas accordingly as you will get some good shoes from here as, this shoes is having cushioning in the heel and forefront for additional shock absorption which are very reliable for feet.

Thanks!
 
Thanks guys!

Knocked off running for two days and the pain has mostly gone so I think I was overdoing it. I am going to a running store on Saturday to get new trainers.

Ran again today and when it hurt a bit I stopped and then restarted and that stopped it. I also ran in tights and thick socks to give extra support to my ankles and started pilates on Wed to get my posture sorted.
 
I'm not expert.

I'm not an expert but

I would say you're right to be concerned about doing damage. A colleague at work has screwed up his knees -he's had the operation and docs have told him not to jog again. So whilst you can do something about your weight, you don't want to do something in the process of loosing weight that you can't undo.

So, I came at "exercise" from the same place you are. I recognised I needed to do it - but at the same time knew I needed NOT to do myself harm. I also recognised, that my weight was probably already stressing my skeleton beyond it's design limits - so to start hitting it with "high impact" exercise was probably not a wise move.

So, I started out just walking. Initially, walking was about all I could do. But, by walking every day - for about 40mins ( I got a dog) I reached a point where I could walk without any pain or discomfort anywhere.

So, my advice would be - stick to walking for now.

I've joined a gym, so I can see from the treadmill exactly how fast I'm walking. Initially, I could manage 3.8mph for 20mins. But now, I can walk at 4.5mph for 25mins. (In fact I have just started to walk/jog/walk )

So, if you're jogging at 4mph - I would say switch to walking at 4mph. It will feel funny - and maybe look a little odd - but what the heck. You'll greatly reducing the "impact" when your foot hits the deck whilst still doing beneficial exercise. Of course, all the other sensible things above should be applied too - suitable footwear, stopping when it hurts, etc etc

The main thing, as you've pointed out yourself, is to do something sustainable. Yes, it has to be "mentally" sustainable but it also has to be physically sustainable to, which means avoiding injury is key.

Glad to hear you've made a start - looking forward to reading your progress updates in the future.

All the best
 
I agree that the risk of injury should be considered, especially if you are very overweight. I have only recently started jogging, and I am almost at my goal weight. Previously I just did walking. You could also consider other low impact exercises like bicycling, swimming, rowing, elliptical machine, nordic track, etc.
 
I've felt a bit unsteady on my feet since I started running and have had tightness at various times in my right knee. I've stopped for a day and this has gone away. I'm doing a bunch of things that will hopefully mitigate this - can anyone comment on whether these will help, or on anything else I could be doing?

Hey, It is also important your mind-set, if for instance you do not like running you would not see much result. However, you can always switch to different exercise. I hope that's help

Alexandra
 
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thanks guys

I've sucked it up and joined a gym hopefully to start doing other exercises which are not so high impact. I'll still continue to do some jogging but I will try to protect my body throughout the process.

thank god for this board!
 
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