May 16 2007
Marathon Runners Prone to Injury
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A recent article in Sports Medicine cited a significant increase in the number of people who are running marathons. The yearly incidence of injuries in marathon runners is reported as high as 90%, but it appears that less experienced runners are the ones who are more prone to injury. More experienced runners are less likely to experience injuries. The risk of injury decreases as the years of experience increase. But, the risk of injury increases once the once a threshold of 40 miles/week is crossed. The most common is injury was to the knee, citing patellofemoral syndrome as the most common. Other common running injuries included plantar fasciitis, meniscal injuries of the knee, achilles tendonitis, iliotibial band syndrome and tibial stress syndrome.
Fredericson M, Misra AK. Epidemiology and aetiology of marathon running injuries. Sports Med. 2007; 37 (4-5):437-9.
I would definitely be injured after a marathon… mostly because of my poor training habits. I have noticed that I do get more injuries when I increase speed and distance too quickliy and also when I am averaging a lot of miles per week (and I rarely run 40 miles per week.)
Once I put a moldable arch-support in my shoes I had less foot and knee problems overall.
You increase your chance of injury when you increase the speed, distance or intensity of the workout, when you incorporate hills into the training regimen and once you start running over 40 miles a week. Gradually working up to longer distances, gradually adding interval training and gradually incorporating hills will decrease the chances of injuries. For some individuals, custom made orthotics, sport orthotics or arch supports will help control abnormal motion and correct foot position and may help decrease the chances of injury. Glad to hear the arch supports helped.