Louise A. Roach
Last year I told an acquaintance that at the age of 46, I had usurped up running. The reply was, “Oh, that’s awfully hard on your knees.” At first I was taken aback. Yes, I knew if I didn’t stretch, warm-up or wear properly fitted shoes, I might experience pain or an injury. But the person telling me this was overweight, had borderline high blood pressure, and never worked out. I wondered if this friend complete by living a sedentary lifestyle, the odds of nonindustrial heart disease, osteoporosis, diabetes and whatsoever cancers had substantially increased. Not to mention that being overweight actually placed this person at a high risk than me for developing knee pain from osteoarthritis and heel pain as a result of plantar fasciitis.
I’m no spring cowardly and sometimes my running resembles a dawdling old hen. But I do know it’s necessary to take precautions at some age to guard against injury when participating in physiological activity such as running. Because the truth is, sometimes pain happens. When it does, you can either use pain as an excuse or you can use it as a diagnostic tool to help improve and go headfirst with your performance.
There are cardinal classifications of pain. In uncomplicated terms, these can be described as the following:
Nociceptive Pain: felt aft an injury to body tissues much as cuts, sprains, broken bones, bruising, surgery, and sometimes cancer. Most pain is of this type.
Neuropathic Pain: resulting from an injury to nerves, the spinal cord or the brain, examples being Phantom Limb Pain and shingles – which affects nerve tissue.
Psychogenic Pain: is related to a psychological disorder where the type, intensity or proportion of pain seasoned is greater than the injury. Some chronic ailments may be incidental to to this type of pain.
Pain can also be defined as acute (an close response to an injury) or degenerative (a pain eternal more than cardinal weeks). The majority of injuries from physical activity fall into the category of critical nociceptive pain. Although some overuse injuries such as Plantar Fasciitis or Runner’s Knee can become chronic if not properly dressed or allowed sufficient time to heal. Most injuries to body tissues are minor and can be dressed with nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAID), much as ibuprofen, and ice therapy or R.I.C.E. (rest, ice, compression and elevation) to decrease pain. Cuts, bruises, strains, sprains, swelling and inflammation can generally be dressed in this way. Severe critical injuries, such as fractured bones and ruptured tendons, should always be dressed by a medical professional, as is the case with injuries resulting in chronic, neuropathic and psychogenic pain. If you experience peanut pain or inflammation during an activity, this is a good time to evaluate what your body is saying and respond in a positive, strengthening manner. Try asking the favourable questions:
- What particular part of my body is affected?
- Does the pain happen single during a definite activity or is it constant?
- Am I experiencing pain when running or close on a definite type of terrain?
- Is this a new pain or one that has happened before?
- What measures can I take to proper or strengthen the affected body area?
I old this list of questions to understand a reoccurring pain on the extrinsic of my legs. After a little research and a trip to my local moving specialty store, I learned the pain was IT Band Syndrome. The IT Band is a long tough muscle, located on the outside of the leg. When it becomes inflamed, pain is felt at a point near the knee joint. I knew the pain usually happened when I was hiking downhill for long periods of time and it went away aft a few days of rest. This signified single areas of my body that necessary work: weak leg muscles, a air-tight IT Band, and not enough superior support to stabilize my knee during an activity. I have united the following constructive measures to help strengthen my body’s weak points:
- Wearing well-fitted moving and hiking shoes with strong superior support.
- Adding leg strengthening exercises to my daily routine.
- Wearing neoprene knee braces on a long hike with a lot of downhill climbing.
- Increasing my daily stretching routine, with specific stretching for the IT Band.
- Doing stretching and warm-up exercises before a strenuous hike or run.
- Cross-training: running, walking, hiking, biking, weight lifting and using the rounded trainer to provide a variety of exercises to complete leg muscles.
- Using ice therapy immediately after a hike if I feel pain.
- Working up to a energetic hike by doing shorter hikes on hilly terrain weeks before the full-size day.
- Maintaining a normal weight so as not to place added stress on my legs.
Don’t let pain, or your fear of it, be a factor in whether or not you are an nimble person. Not exercising will result in far worsened consequences. Use pain as a guide to become a stronger, much aware and better person.
Disclaimer: This information is not intended as a substitute for nonrecreational medical treatment or consultation. Always consult with your physician in the event of a serious injury.
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