London, United Kingdowm, April 6, 2018
Whether you've been inspired to run a marathon or simply want to return to regular exercise, managing injuries can be the secret to staying fit and healthy for longer. We spoke to Ashleigh Wienand, clinical director at Ultra Sports Clinic and physiotherapist to city professionals, music stars and professional sports teams, to discover the mistakes you might be making and the ways to avoid a bad injury stopping you reaching your fitness goals. .
Mistake 1: rushing into exercise
"When someone decides they want to run the marathon, they tend to just start running. This rush often means they suddenly get injured because they don't think about the shoes they need to wear, the impact on their legs or whether they've run that sort of mileage before. Another problem occurs when they miss some part of their training programme, like when the snow came this year. Once it clears they feel the need to speed up their training programme to cram it in after lost time. This often leads to injury."
Mistake 2: not accepting your true fitness level
"A lot of my patients get injured because they decide to do an endurance event for charity, but they haven't realised that over the years they're not as fit as they once were and they can't handle this sudden uptake of activity. Many patients have also been running in the same shoes for years, or they've simply bought the next model of the same trainer brand for the last decade. In that time though, your body has changed and you need to adapt to that. In particular, every two years you should be going for a gait analysis, which are often free, when you buy a pair of shoes, at dedicated sports stores."
Mistake 3: ignoring an injury
"People believe they have to be properly injured to see a physiotherapist but that isn't true. The tendency to say, 'it's just a niggle, I don't need to see someone', actually means people further injure themselves and everything takes longer to heal. That's why individuals need to source a physio for good diagnosis as soon as possible. Ultra Sports Clinic does a free 15-minute body review that can be booked online. You can come in with a niggle or a question and an experienced physio will assess you and give you some really good advice."
Click here to read the full Harpers Bazaar article about the exercise mistakes you may be making.
If you have an injury you are ignoring, why not call us on 0203 893 5100 or book your initial assessment session online, so that we can help resolve it before it becomes more than just a niggle.