Impact load is one of the main causes of overuse injuries in runners. Stress fracture, shin splint, and plantar fasciitis are just a few examples.
When running, you load your joints, ligaments, muscles, and bones with up to 3 times your body weight of tension on every step you do. An average cadence (# of steps per minute) ranges from 150 – 180 steps per minute, times 30, 40, 60 minutes running. It is a lot of tension that your body has to deal with.
Of course, we have your shoes with a cushioning system that aims to help but it is not enough. The best shock absorption system you have is your own body.
Your feet and legs are like springs, not only helping to reduce the impact on your joints but also transferring the energy from the floor back to your body, pushing you forward as a result (propulsion).
Improving how your body deals with impact and effectively uses the ground force reaction to enhance performance is the key to run faster, longer, and reduce the risk of injuring your self.
The way to achieve that high performance is teaching your body how to move better overall, strengthening muscles, joints, and brain all together. I personally like better exercises out of machines (in general), where you have to engage your entire body to work together instead of isolating muscles.
The smarter your body, in terms of motor control, the better your movements! Move more, move better, move often.
There are a few other strategies to help you reducing that impact as well. I will talk more about this in the near future, stay tuned!
Let me know your thoughts and experiences as well,
MD Coach
(BA Ph.Ed, Certified Running Coach)