Plantar fasciopathy is the most common cause of plantar (under-side) heel pain. It is an overuse condition of the plantar fascia at the attachment to the heel. The plantar fascia is involved in foot biomechanics as it provides arch support and absorbs shock throughout gait. People with low arches or flat feet can have an […]
Ping! There it went. A sudden pain and tightness was felt through the back of my right thigh and I immediately tumbled to the ground. It was a hot January afternoon and I was being put through my paces with repeated sprint efforts during the preseason training for AFL. Fortunately for me, this was my […]
Any run over five minutes is highly reliant on the aerobic system. Therefore regular aerobic runs (commonly known as ‘tempo runs’) during the week and the long slow weekend run are critical for improving performance. However these runs won’t develop your muscular strength or speed and can become very monotonous. For this reason interval sessions […]
During exercise, the body experiences micro-damage to tissue, inflammation, accumulation of metabolic waste products, reduced fuel stores and neural fatigue. Although these implications sound detrimental, they are in fact a necessary process as long as rest and recovery takes place afterwards. When we allow ourselves sufficient recovery time, it ensures that we restore both physiological […]
Runners are well aware that training load increases have to be gradual, otherwise they are at risk of injury. To become a faster runner, the load must be increased in order to encourage adaptation, however not be so high that the tissue becomes overloaded resulting in an injury. Runners clearly struggle to find this sweet […]
I see many runners in the clinic and more running injuries than I would like to! These injured runners are often lean and very fit, though are often quite weak in their major running muscles. They may have developed excellent cardiovascular fitness with all the running they have managed to get in over the past […]
The achilles tendon connects the calf to the foot and plays a major role in propulsion as well as energy absorption during walking, running and jumping. Pain commonly occurs when the tendon is exposed to an unaccustomed load which can often be the result of: A sudden increase in training Biomechanical failure causing increased work at […]
A wet and windy winter in Canberra has meant we have either spent less days out on the track or it’s driven us indoors to the dreaded treadmill to get in the kilometres. It begs the question; What is the best way to get a good run out of the treadmill? How do we get […]
In Australia, the winter months are usually the best time for long distance running. However, whether you are a novice or more experienced runner, running in Canberra during winter involves exercising in what can be an uncomfortable and motivationally challenging environment. The benefit of running at this time of year is that you can push […]
A Sever’s Lesion causes heel pain to arise in younger athletes as they progress into puberty (around 10-14 year olds). Initially thought to be an inflammatory condition, Sever’s Lesion is now thought to more likely be a non-inflammatory disorder relating to repetitive stress injury. This stress injury continues to aggravate the calcaneus bone, where the […]