Whether you enjoy a casual jog through the neighbourhood or train for marathons, running is a high-impact sport. In addition to obvious stressors – bouncing all of your body weight on your lower limbs – you are also repeatedly swinging your arms and bending your knees, and rely heavily on your core muscles, to say the least.

The heart of chiropractic care is to encourage the inner workings of the body to work in harmony with an emphasis on the nervous system and connective tissues. Chiropractic care can help you heal from injuries and prevent them from reoccurring by pinpointing the cause in addition to treating the symptoms. Since running is a full-body exercise, chiropractic care is a complimentary course of maintenance for runners of every skill level.

Chiropractic care for body maintenance – could you use a tune-up?

Running on uneven ground such as a sloping sidewalk or the beach will make a difference on your gait, your stance, and your performance. Regularly running on uneven ground will cause strain, overcompensation and poor posture, leading to possible acute or chronic injury.

Are your shoes wearing evenly? Just like the wear on tires indicates whether your car needs an alignment, the wear on your shoes may indicate improper posture. If one sole is wearing out faster than the other, your gait may be off kilter. Call your chiropractor, and bring your running shoes to the appointment.

Ever felt stiff in the legs when you stand up at the end of the day? Sitting for long hours shortens your stance which tightens ligaments and tendons, and your lack of motion can make you stiff. Runners working desk jobs will feel that.

To run effectively your body wants to be long and limber. Sitting all day can lead to injuries such as hamstring and groin muscle pulls because your body lacks the fluidity running requires. Constant sitting can also hamper your stationery posture and, in turn running posture.

A chiropractor can assess your posture while sitting, standing, walking, and running to see if you lean to one side, whether due to an injury or habit, and recommend ways to correct your posture to reduce your risk of injury.

Are you a runner suffering from acute or chronic injury?

Chiropractic care can treat acute and chronic injury related to running. This includes:
•    Achilles tendonitis
•    Iliotibial-band (IT Band) Syndrome
•    Runner’s Knee (Patellofemoral pain syndrome)
•    Patella (kneecap) injury
•    Hip Bursitis (hip inflammation)
•    Plantar Fasciitis
•    Groin injuries
•    Shin splints
•    Tendon pain
•    Piriformis syndrome (a real pain in the backside!)
•    Lower back pain
•    Leg-length inconsistencies
•    Joint pain in ankles, hips, and knees
•    Degenerative arthritis
•    Ankle strains
•    Muscle strains

Since chiropractic treatment includes determining and treating the cause of an injury in addition to reducing pain, regular adjustments can prevent acute injuries from becoming chronic.

Improved Performance

Physically maintaining your body to be in running shape you will also improve your abilities; run faster, longer, and on increasingly challenging terrain. Your chiropractor can help you increase the range in motion in your hips will which elongate your stride, and improve your overall range of motion which will effect how fast you can run. Manual therapy provided by chiropractors goes a long way to support connective tissues in reaching your full potential.
Book an appointment at https://wilsonhealth.ca with our chiropractor Dr. Jason Wilson today by calling (519) 624-8000.