Running injuries / problems

One of the most common injuries/problems I see with runners in my clinic is knees! It’s not surprising when you think you have up to 6 times your body weight going through your knees while running.

A common condition I see is patella (knee cap) maltracking. Your knee cap is a floating bone that sits in the tendon of your quadriceps muscle (thigh muscle) it sits in a grove in the femur (thigh bone) you have structures that attach in and around the patella that can influence its position if they become tight or weak.

There are a number of biomechanical problems that can cause patella maltracking. The first is the hip. If your hip has a tendency to ‘roll in’ as you single leg knee dip this causes the knee to ‘knock in’ and the patella to track laterally (out to the side) this can cause pain as the patella slides over the edge of the femoral grove. This usually is a result of muscle imbalances around the hip and pelvis. These can be corrected with our Pilates for runners programme by correcting normal hip alignment and strength.

Another reason you can get patella maltracking is if your tibia (shin bone) rotates out (foot turning out) this position will pull the quads tendon laterally therefore pulling the knee cap with it. This again can be corrected by re-educating normal biomechanics with our Pilates for runners series.

Pilates for runners has been designed to complement your running and strengthen up the areas that require most support whilst running to prevent injuries and improve your running style.