How many have you have stopped running due to injury?

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LotusCass
LotusCass Posts: 145 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Last year I worked my way up to running 5k using C25K. I almost got there and did a park run to see how far I could get. Throughout the whole run I felt a niggling little pain in my thigh & hip but kept going. I ran 4.2k then fast walked the rest. When I stopped & then walked slowly the pain was huge. After I'd stretched & sat down I couldn't get up again. Turned out I'd strained a ligament in my thigh. It took 6 weeks before I could even think about running again. I've now started to get back in it again (early weeks of C25K) but my hip still niggles. I really don't want to injure myself again.

When I've told others about this so many people tell me they've injured themselves running & say don't run, it's so bad for your joints. I've been to an osteo who says my pelvis is slightly twisted which may be contributing to it.

Tell me your running stories if you've decided not to go back to it after injury.
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Replies

  • roboliciousbob
    roboliciousbob Posts: 134 Member
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    I have a bad ankle that I have rolled COUNTLESS times in my lifetime. I have never injured it WHILE running. Usually it's when I step off of a step or two wrong. Because I have rolled it so many times my ligaments are trashed. The last time I injured it was halfway through my weight loss thus far) and I took 6 weeks off from running. I see a chiropractor who does a treatment to it to help it heal and also puts K tape on it to give it some support but also let it heal properly. It can take 6 weeks to 6 months. I've been told that I will probably always have an increased chance of injury. I still run (currently 3x a week and then the other 3X a week I do other cardio on machines) and I will probably always do some running. However, I want to widdle it down to very minimal running once I am in maintenance. I want to do a body recomp so I want to be doing more weight lifting. I also believe that running can be hard on a body and I should probably be doing minimal.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    edited June 2017
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    I'm injured at the moment, but will hopefully start running again in the next couple of weeks. No plans to stop - got a half marathon in September.

    If your hip still isn't right, see a physio. You don't need to just treat the injury, you need to stop it happening again.
  • rybo
    rybo Posts: 5,424 Member
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    I was relatively lucky, I never had a running injury sideline me longer than a week to rest up.

    Many times a "running injury" is nothing more than a pre-existing condition that has been exposed or made worse by running. I think with smart programming, proper precautions and some common sense, most running injuries can be avoided or minimized.
  • apullum
    apullum Posts: 4,838 Member
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    My guess is that most, if not all runners have had an injury at some point. I think all runners have been told some nonsense about how terrible running is for them.

    I injured my knee about three months after I started running. I did not have proper running shoes, and I wasn't doing any substantial strength training or massage/stretching. I developed a patellar tracking problem in which my right kneecap was rubbing against a tendon when I ran, which ultimately caused me a lot of knee pain. I did several months of physical therapy, went to a running store for good shoes, and basically learned how to take care of my body. I was also scared to run again for another year. When I did run again, I used compression gear to support my knee. I still wear capris or tights when I run--they probably provide only minimal knee support, but I think at this point the benefit is largely psychological.

    The point is that in any physical activity, injuries are possible, and if you do any physical activity for a length of time, your odds of getting injured increase. The goal is to learn to prevent injuries, and heal and rehab injuries that do happen. That may mean taking time off running while you heal, but it doesn't necessarily mean you have to stop running forever. If you like running, then unless you have been told by an ortho that you should stop running permanently, I wouldn't listen to the people who are telling you to stop. (And even then, I'd probably get a second opinion.)
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
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    LotusCass wrote: »
    Tell me your running stories if you've decided not to go back to it after injury.

    When someone says they've injured themselves running, and they don't run as a result is with digging into that a bit more.

    Did they get shin splints four weeks into a running plan, and never explore why they got injured, or did they suffer a more acute injury part way through a session?

    In my first half marathon I developed Illiotibial Band Syndrome in my right leg, which led me to six weeks off training. Once I'd diagnosed the cause and addressed it I did another HM six months later.

    In December of last year I trusted my ankle out in the woods and took about six weeks off. It meant I had to defer a planned Marathon in March but I did manage one in May instead.

    As with most runners I've had people who don't know what they're on about telling me that running is bad for the joints. The evidence doesn't support that. Runners have better bone density and stronger stabilisation around one and ankle joints than noon runners, albeit from small studies.

    Many runners cross train, to help mitigate injury risk and to improve running performance. Hip issues are generally, although not exclusively, related to core strength deficiencies. Resistance training helps to address that.

    Fwiw since that first HM I've done another seven, two marathons and two ultras without any issues.
  • neilhoopy
    neilhoopy Posts: 280 Member
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    Heel is giving me pain on push off
  • kpkitten
    kpkitten Posts: 164 Member
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    I twisted my ankle at parkrun this weekend because i didn't see a rabbit hole. Was gutted because it was my first parkrun and I was in course to run the whole thing!
    I'm not letting it put me off. I'll make sure it's healed properly before I run on it and I'm too worried about making myself unable to exercise for weeks to push through an injury.
  • ramskermfc
    ramskermfc Posts: 41 Member
    edited June 2017
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    Yup . . . no running for me as general exercise. Bad knees from various sports-related injuries over my life and I'm missing the lateral meniscus in one knee. Running kills that knee especially after a mile or so and the soreness and extra wear and tear just aren't worth it. I'll do some things that involve shorter bursts . . . like playing softball and things like that, but never the long, extended jogs/runs.

    I stick to the elliptical, the airdyne and jujitsu for conditioning.
  • spiriteagle99
    spiriteagle99 Posts: 3,675 Member
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    About 6 months after I started running, a week before my first half marathon in 2012, I developed a pelvic stress fracture from ramping up my miles too fast. I was off running for 7 months. I started again, built my mileage up fairly quickly in hopes of running a HM in the fall of 2013, and injured a different part of my pelvis. After reading about a similar injury on a running forum, I self-diagnosed it as Osteitis Pubis, but never saw a doctor since I knew he would just tell me to rest and I could do that without paying for his opinion. After about 5 months I was able to run normally again and once again I built up the miles. I finally was able to run my first HM in April 2014, two years after my first injury. About 6 months later, while doing speed-work with a group, I pulled a hamstring. It didn't stop my running, but was an intermittent pain for about 18 months. Eventually I went to a PT who started me on exercises for my hips. Turned out that was the likely cause of all three injuries. I was able to do my first marathon in April 2015, while still dealing with the hamstring injury. That was a little over 2 years ago and I have run two other marathons since without any serious issues. My only other injury was a shoulder that was damaged when I tripped and fell on it, twice in a month. It didn't stop me running, just meant I had to do PT to loosen it up again and help regain strength.

    Before I began running, I had knee issues I developed as a backpacker on the AT. They didn't bother me on day to day walking, just when hiking steep trails. They still complain when I hike steep sections, though they are fine on more gentle grades. My running has not bothered my knees at all. A lot of studies say that running is actually good for your joints.

    I know a lot of people don't go back to running after getting injured. It depends on how much it matters to you. I have issues with depression that are alleviated by hiking and running. Since I can't hike much anymore, thanks to family issues, I have to run. I need the time outdoors. I need the hard exercise. I need the challenge of signing up for long races and training for them. The times I was injured and unable to exercise were extremely hard on me mentally and emotionally. Which is why I went back to it as soon as I could, and probably sooner than I should.
  • N6314P
    N6314P Posts: 28 Member
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    Have been running for decades. Not until early 50's did I begin encountering injuries. Invested in a sports therapist who taught me strength exercises as well as the value of cross training. It was hard to accept that I am slowing down and can no longer tolerate distances beyond 7-9 miles but every day I can run is a gift.
  • Chieflrg
    Chieflrg Posts: 9,097 Member
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    Stop my training because of injury? Never.

    Changed my training? Probably 500 times over the years.

    I've run even played catcher at the age of 46 with broken toes & a broken foot.

    Set a state record for powerlifting with torn rib muscles.

    I have a joint disease that swells all my joints in my body where it takes me 10-30 minutes just to walk on the morning. Yet I ran every day for over a year averaging 8 miles.

    Injuries happen, there are ways around it. Just need on know what to do.
  • Alisonswim46
    Alisonswim46 Posts: 208 Member
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    Chieflrg wrote: »
    Stop my training because of injury? Never.

    Changed my training? Probably 500 times over the years.

    I've run even played catcher at the age of 46 with broken toes & a broken foot.

    Set a state record for powerlifting with torn rib muscles.

    I have a joint disease that swells all my joints in my body where it takes me 10-30 minutes just to walk on the morning. Yet I ran every day for over a year averaging 8 miles.

    Injuries happen, there are ways around it. Just need on know what to do.
    Huh. You ran with a broken foot?

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