A runner’s ability to avoid and manage injury will determine his or her fitness on race day. To help local runners reach their goals, Physical Therapists Rob Naber and Jenny Warner from Physical Therapy of Los Gatos, and Dr. John Kao from the SOAR Medical Clinic teamed up in May to deliver a running injury prevention and treatment seminar to 150 members of the San Jose Fit marathon training club.

Already several weeks into their training program, the San Jose Fit runners were engaged and attentive as Rob Naber presented information on avoiding and managing injuries. The runners received information on pronation and supination, walking and running biomechanics, and some corrective exercises that Physical Therapists prescribe to address specific problems.

Dr. Kao’s presentation provided information about the causes of injuries, specific training errors to avoid, and detailed medical descriptions of several kinds of running injuries. He also explained the injury first-aid “PRICEMM” protocol, which calls for Protection, Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation, Medications, and other treatment Modalities.

The presenters offered these key take-away messages to the San Jose Fit runners:

• Avoiding injury is the key to running success
• Most injuries result from overtraining
• Do not increase training mileage or duration by more that 10% per week
• Complement your running training with specific stretching and strengthening exercises
• If you have an injury, use cross-training activities to continue your fitness training
• Use a heart rate monitor to maximize the benefit from your cross training efforts

Dr. Kao recommended contacting a physician whenever any of these circumstances arise:

• Pain is localized to the bone or joint
• Joint motion is accompanied by catching, popping or locking
• Pain cannot be controlled by the recommended dose of over-the-counter anti-inflammatory medication such as ibuprofen
• The problem persists for more than two weeks
• You are worried or concerned about your symptoms

Dr. Kao noted that individuals can make the most of any medical visit by coming prepared with accurate information about their injuries and symptoms. Dr. Kao can be reached by contacting his assistant Wendy at (408) 247-4900 x1214.

The seminar presenters thank Sports Basement for the use of their Sunnyvale store conference facility for the San Jose Fit seminar.

Osteoarthritis is a degenerative joint disease marked by joint inflammation and deterioration. Osteoarthritis is common: according to the Arthritis Foundation, nearly 21 million Americans, or 7% of the US population, are affected by osteoarthritis. The incidence of osteoarthritis goes up sharply with age.

Considering its prevalence, you probably already know someone who has been diagnosed with osteoarthritis. If that person is a competitive or recreational runner, one might expect to hear others say, “All that running. It’s no wonder he’s got arthritis.”

The fact is, there are plenty of non-runners with osteoarthritis, too, and there is a lack of evidence to support the notion that running causes arthritis.

In his excellent book, “Lore of Running,” Dr. Timothy Noakes cites a variety of research studies designed to examine the relationship between running and arthritis. Studies published in 1994 and 1997 determined that recreational joggers are not at any increased risk of developing osteoarthritis. A study published in 1985 found that the incidence of osteoarthritis in a group of runners who competed between 1930 and 1960 was lower than a matched group of swimmers who competed at the same time. A Danish study published in 1990 found that a group of athletes that ran 20 to 40 km per week for 30 years had an incidence of osteoarthritis that was no different from that of a comparison group. And a 1986 study found that runners with an average age of 60 who had run an average of three hours per week for 12 years did not have a greater prevalence of osteoarthritis than a comparison group.

Though at no greater risk of developing osteoarthritis than others, runners can and do experience pain from soft tissue injuries, such as hip bursitis, iliotibial band (ITB) friction, and tendonitis. Pain resulting from these other causes can be serious enough to interrupt training and recreational running. The runner with poor mechanics may never train long enough to develop osteoarthritis from running. And clearly an athlete who has jogged for 30 years has the correct biomechanics to run without breaking down.

Excluding injuries resulting from falls, runners’ injuries are almost always due to progressing their training too quickly or overloading the muscle support around the affected joint. A runner’s muscular strength around his or her load-bearing joints must be considerably stronger than that of non-athletic individuals of the same age and sex. Furthermore, different types of running such as sprinting, long-distance, cross-country, and asphalt training have different muscle support requirements.

The running program at Physical Therapy of Los Gatos is a goal-directed training program designed to prevent running injuries, get runners who have been injured or recovering from orthopedic surgery back into training, and increase running speed. The evaluation for the running program includes a comprehensive interview process where we measure baseline parameters of running fitness, uncover specific deficiencies, analyze your running form, and help you clarify your goals. For additional information on preventing running injuries, rehabilitation of running injuries, and increasing running speed, please contact Physical Therapy of Los Gatos by calling (408) 358-6505.