Doctor Shares Tips to Avoid Running Injuries This Spring

CAMBRIDGE, OH – With the weather warming up more people are out and about, taking advantage of the nice day.

Many start new hobbies of walking or running but don’t know where to start when it comes to helping protect your body.

Zack Hill, a foot and ankle Surgeon at Ohio Health Southeastern Medical Center, says the number one thing people overlook is wearing the correct shoe for the activities they’d like to do.

“As you’re increasing your activity, you want to keep a close eye on your shoes and the wear patterns.” Hill said. “Really, if you’re starting to run or train for certain events, you want to make sure that you are replacing those shoes every 300 to 500 miles. Try to track that and understand that good supportive shoes gear can help prevent a lot of these foot and ankle injuries that we see.”

Hill says if you notice you’re sorer than usual after a run or jog, listen to your body because there may be more to that pain.

He says to make a list of your symptoms and then get in touch with a doctor to let them know what’s been going on.

Hill also provided some tips for those looking to participate in a longer run, like the Inaugural Guernsey County Crossroads Marathon and Half Marathon happening this weekend.

“Pay attention to what we call the 10% rule.” Hill said. “If you’re starting, you don’t want to start too fast, you want to increase your mileage by about 10% each week, if you can, and certainly that’s not a hard and fast rule. But making sure we stay consistent and steady instead of starting with high mileage right away, that will help prevent a lot of the acute injuries and stress injuries that we see in our athletes and our runners.”

Guernsey County Crossroads Marathon and Half Marathon will take place on Saturday, May 16th at 7AM on the Great Guernsey Trail.