Running Injuries: Overload, Red Flags and What Helps

Running injuries are commonplace because Bournemouth is a runner’s town. The seafront fills with joggers most mornings, Parkruns in Poole draws a crowd every Saturday and annually the Bournemouth Marathon takes over the promenade.

Alongside and because of all that, running comes the inevitable crop of aches and injuries. Running injuries are very common and the majority are overuse problems: the same tissues are loaded over and over until they complain, rather than a single dramatic one-off accident. The reassuring news is that most injuries and complaints respond well once you understand what is causing them. Then, the most useful thing I can do for a runner is work out which pains are simple training overload that will settle with sensible management and which need a more investigation. This page is about telling those apart and pointing you to the right information for the specific injury you may have.

Common running injuries and where each is covered

Most running injuries are lower-limb problems and each has its own helpful guide on this site. Use these live links to jump straight to your complaint and book a free consultation if you are need more information or guidence.

Leg, knee, ankle and foot

Pain at the front of the knee or runner's knee: knee pain guide
Pain along the shin or shin splints: leg, knee, ankle and foot guide
Pain behind the heel or Achilles pain: Achilles tendinopathy guide
Calf, hamstring or thigh strain: leg muscle strains guide
Pain under the heel or plantar fasciitis: plantar fasciitis and heel pain guide
A rolled or sprained ankle: ankle and foot pain guide

Hip, buttock and the back

Deep buttock pain, including piriformis, a common runner's complaint: hip and pelvic pain guide
Hip or groin pain in younger and sporting adults, including impingement and labral problems: hip and pelvic pain guide
Leg pain, tingling or numbness that starts in the back, or sciatica: sciatica guide

What is a running injury

The majority of running injuries are injuries of the lower limb and they are common enough that studies have reported anywhere from around a fifth to nearly four-fifths of runners being affected over a year, depending on the group studied and how injury is defined.[1] So you are not alone.

The injuries also fall in predictable places. A recent systematic review found that the knee, ankle and lower leg to be the most commonly injured regions with Achilles problems and shin splints among the most frequent specific diagnoses.[2]

What this means in practice is that most running injuries are really a knee, shin, calf, Achilles or foot problem and the detail of each lives on the leg, knee, ankle and foot pages.

This page focuses on the running itself: why these injuries in runners happen and how to tell an ordinary overload from something that needs more attention.

Why runners get injured

Most running injuries come down to load. Do more than the tissues are prepared for and something within that tructure eventually objects. That extra load can be more miles, faster runs, more hills, harder surfaces or new shoes and often it is simply one of those factors added too quickly, too much and too soon.

The research supports this: novice runners who increased their weekly distance by more than about 30% over a fortnight were more prone to distance related injuries than those who built up more gradually.[3] A previous injury and a sudden change in training are among the most consistent risk factors across studies.

None of this means running is bad for you or that you are fragile or unable to improve. It means the body adapts to running when the load climbs at a pace it can keep up with and tends to break down when it exceeds this boundary too soon. That is a useful and very positive thing to know because load is something you can easily adjust and puts you in control.

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Leg, knee, ankle and foot: the most common site

Back, hip and pelvis

Neck, shoulder and arm

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men running along the beach at Branksome Chine Poole all of whom could suffer running Injuries at some point

How chiropractic may help your injuries from running

For the overuse injuries that make up most running problems, chiropractic care may help you recover and get back to running as you want to. Because these are primarily load problems, the foundation of getting better is managing that load: easing off what is provoking the pain, then rebuilding training regimes gradually rather than returning straight to where you left off.

Alongside that, hands-on treatment of the affected joints and muscles can ease symptoms and help restore movement and a targeted strength programme often addresses the capacity or control that was found wanting. When the real source of an injury is a specific structure in the leg, knee, shin or foot then approach to treatment follows what suits that structure best.

Importantly, the aim is to never to stop you running if possible. Running is strongly linked to better health with even modest amounts associated with meaningfully lower mortality,[4] so for almost everyone, the goal is to keep you running more comfortably and more sustainably.

If an injury from running is stopping your progress or training, come and talk it through. I offer a free 15-minute consultation, you can come in for a short no-obligation chat with no examination or treatment.

Book a free consultation

Or call for a chat on 01202 937568

The Red Flags: when to seek advice

Most running pain is mechanical and settles with sensible management but a few things deserve a medical opinion first. Bone stress can build into a stress fracture. So, a sharply localised pain over a specific point of bone, pain that worsens through a run rather than warming up or pain bad enough to make you limp or hop, is worth getting assessed rather than running through. See your GP or use NHS 111 if you cannot bear weight after an injury. Seek urgent care for calf pain with swelling, warmth or redness which can occasionally signal a blood clot rather than a muscle strain and treat any back-related leg pain accompanied by numbness around the back passage or loss of bladder or bowel control as an emergency. These symptoms are uncommon in runners but they are the ones not to ignore and that I am obliged to mention.

Your first visit to Bournemouth Chiropractic

Your first visit starts with a detailed history of your running and training, when and how the pain began and what you have changed recently and this usually points directly to the cause. That is followed by an examination of the painful area and the regions that load it. I will explain in what I think is going on and whether chiropractic care is a correct and sensible option for you and if you would be better served by another professional: a podiatrist, physiotherapist or GP.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a chiropractor help with running injuries?

For the overuse injuries that make up most running problems, yes I would advise coming to see me as a chiropractor. My role is to identify exactly what is going on, address the load and the specific structure involved, guide the rebuild and recognise anything that needs a different professional. Because so many running injuries are really a knee, shin, Achilles or foot problem, getting the diagnosis right is the important first step.

Should I stop running while injured?

Not always completely. Many running injuries can be managed by reducing load rather than stopping altogether, keeping some running within a tolerable level of discomfort while the problem settles. Others do need a genuine break. Running through sharp or worsening pain is rarely wise and the sensible step is to get it assessed so you know which situation you are in.

How quickly can I increase my mileage?

There is no perfect number but the evidence points towards building up your milage after injury gradually rather than in big jumps. Runners who raised their weekly distance by more than about a third in a short space were more prone to injury than those who progressed more slowly. Increasing volume, pace and hills one at a time, rather than all at once is a sensible principle.

Is it shin splints or a stress fracture?

Shin splints and a stress fracture can feel similar so it is worth taking seriously. Shin splints tend to cause a diffuse ache along a length of the shin that often eases as you warm up. A stress fracture is more likely to be a sharp, pinpoint pain over one spot of bone that worsens with running and can hurt when you hop. If it feels like the latter, stop running and get it assessed.

When should I see a GP or call 111 for my running injury instead?

Seek prompt medical care if you cannot bear weight after an injury, if you have a sharply localised bone pain that worsens through a run or if you have calf pain with swelling, warmth or redness. And leg pain coming from the back with numbness around the back passage or loss of bladder or bowel control is an emergency.

Whatever is behind your running injury, come and find out

A niggle that flares every run is frustrating and most people want to know two things before anything else: is this something serious and is it going to stop me running. At a first full appointment I will take a full medical history, examine the painful area properly and look at the hip, pelvis and lower back as well, because how you load through the whole leg often has a great deal to do with what is complaining lower down.

Running injuries are a common reason active people book in to see me here in Bournemouth and Poole. Patients range from parkrunners and marathon trainers to people who simply noticed pain creeping in as their mileage climbed and then those who felt something go on a single run.

Where the problem is an overuse injury or a related mechanical issue, hands-on care alongside the load management and strengthening work that carries the strongest evidence is a well-tolerated option worth considering and I will explain what I think will help in your case when I see you. Some running injuries need another opinion, a suspected stress fracture among them. If that is what I find, I will help you get to the right person who can help you further.

Book an appointment online and you can choose what suits you: a first appointment, which is the full visit with a detailed history, examination and treatment where appropriate or a free 15 minute consultation, which is simply a no-obligation chat about your problem with no examination and no treatment. If you are not sure which you need please call the clinic on 01202 937568 and we will work it out.

Call or message me, whatever is easiest and we will take it from there.

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