Every client and patient I see is unique and has a different end goal to their treatment, rehab and training.

I might have two patients with the exact same injury but it's the end goal that makes the treatment plan different. My runner with a knee injury will want to return to training and racing as quickly as possible. While my over 70 year old grandmother with knee pain wants to be able to walk the stairs to prove to herself she still has her independance and ability.

Being in pain or injured is frustrating and can really get you down in the dumps. An end goal makes it easier to visualise your recovery and keep you motivated and on track. It drives the treatment plan and often I prescribe small progressive blocks of exercise to get you to that personal goal.

If you'd like to work with a caring therapist who will keep your spirits high, motivated and working towards YOUR goal then drop me a line for a chat.

A systematic review published in 2012 investigated the available scientific literature to identify what were the main causes of injury in runners.

The evidence suggested 60-70% of all injuries were a result of training errors. The main causes were

- Excessive mileage (total weekly mileage).

- Increased frequency of sessions (more sessions per week).

- Increases in speed (interva / tempol training / sprints / hills).

- Changes in terrain (changes from flat to hill work or cross country / off road).

An interesting comment caught my attention "In a review of the etiology and prevention of and intervention for overuse injuries in runners, Hreljac (2005) concluded that the causes of all overuse running injuries could be classified as trainiing errors, and thus, all overuse running injuries should be preventable". 

In simple terms the authors believe overuse injuries are completely preventable. This is an absolutely massive statement. 

A simple strategy that I’ve found helps is keeping a training diary and knowing how to analyse the weekly workload. Look for increases in the training errors above as well as cross referencing for any pain, aches or niggles. This is one of the most important tools in injury prevention for the average runner. 

References: 

Rasmus Oestergaard Nielsen, PT, Ida Buist, PhD,Henrik Sørensen, PhD, Martin Lind, PhD,Sten Rasmussen, MD.
Training Errors And Running Related Injuries: A Systematic Review. The International Journal of Sports Physical Therapy. Vol 7, No 1: 58-71. 

Hreljac A. Etiology, prevention, and early intervention of overuse injuries in runners: A biomechanical perspective. Phys Med Rehabil Clin N Am. 2005;16(3):651-67, vi.