The Sydney Morning Herald
· collected 2026-10-11 · by Danielle Friedman
Running can benefit your cardiovascular system and your mental health.
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Running → benefit → system
But without a few precautions, it can also hobble you with aches and pains.
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it → hobble → aches
“Running is really unforgiving,” says Dr Carlin Senter, the chief of the primary-care sports medicine service at the University of California, San Francisco.
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Senter → say → California
“You can get away with having some weakness or injury” with some other types of exercise, she says, but because running puts so much stress on your body, there’s a greater risk of getting hurt.
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running → get → body
A 2024 study of 1049 runners registered for the New York City Marathon found that more than 40 per cent suffered an injury while training or during the race itself.
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cent → register → race
We asked sports medicine doctors, physical therapists and coaches to share the habits they wish all runners practised to avoid injury.
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runners → ask → injury
Here are six strategies they swear by.
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they → swear → ?
Build mileage gradually
Many running injuries come from pushing yourself too hard, too soon.
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injuries → build → yourself
A slow and steady training program builds your resilience and increases what your body can safely tolerate, says Stuart Warden, a professor of physical therapy at Indiana University Indianapolis.
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Warden → build → University
, Warden says.
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Warden → say → ?
If you’re preparing for a marathon, give yourself at least 12 weeks to 16 weeks of training – or longer if you’re new to running – to help your body adapt to the demands of increased physical activity, the experts say.
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experts → prepare → activity
Keep your easy runs easy
Training for a marathon may be intense, but not every workout should be, says Pamela Geisel, a running coach and exercise physiologist at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York.
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Geisel → keep → York
Most of your long runs should be at a truly easy pace, she says.
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she → say → pace
“We scream it from the rooftops,” she adds, but runners still struggle to slow down.
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runners → scream → rooftops
Long, easy runs are important for building aerobic endurance.
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runs → build → endurance
They also train your body to rely on fat for energy versus carbohydrates, which can help to ensure you don’t crash when tackling longer distances.
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you → train → distances
Some runners feel pressure to push the pace when they train with a group or run club, Geisel says.
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Geisel → feel → group
Fitness apps that allow you to log and share your workouts can also make some runners feel competitive with others – or with themselves.
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runners → allow → themselves
“That public-facing information, while it can serve as a motivator, can also put on this layer of needing to keep up with the Joneses,” she says.
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she → face → Joneses
On easy runs, you should be able to have a conversation without gasping for air.
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you → have → air
“Like, call your mum,” she adds.
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she → call → mum
Prioritise rest
Runners should be disciplined about rest, says Becs Gentry, an elite marathoner and coach for Peloton.
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Gentry → discipline → Peloton
Rest “is massively underrated, under-discussed, underappreciated in the fitness world,” she says.
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she → discuss → world
Downtime is important for building strength.
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Downtime → build → strength
“The magic really happens on those recovery days,” Geisel says.
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Geisel → happen → days
“We apply a stress, and then the body repairs to a greater baseline.”
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body → apply → baseline
It’s fine to run errands and stretch on recovery days, Geisel says, but don’t, for example, take a dance cardio or challenging Pilates class.
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Geisel → ’ → cardio
Prioritise sleep, especially in the two months before a marathon, when training injuries are most common, says Dr Adam Tenforde, a sports medicine physician at Mass General Brigham.
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Tenforde → prioritise → Brigham
Sleep helps your muscles and bones repair themselves, and some studies suggest it can also affect performance, he says.
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he → help → performance
Strength train
Running doesn’t by itself build a lot of muscle.
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Running → build → muscle
“You’d be surprised how many runners are weak,” Warden says.
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Warden → say → ?
“They can run fast, they can run long distances, but when you actually test their strength, they’re relatively weak.”
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they → run → strength
Many running injuries stem from muscle weaknesses and strength imbalances, he says, as other muscles or tendons try to compensate and become overworked.
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muscles → stem → weaknesses
Strength training can help these imbalances.
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training → help → imbalances
It can also help you run more efficiently, Geisel says.
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Geisel → help → ?
Experts recommend focusing on the muscle groups that you rely on most as a runner: your legs and glutes, as well as your core, which helps keep you upright and stabilises your entire body.
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which → recommend → body
Exercises including squats, lunges, Romanian deadlifts, glute bridges, planks and side planks can work all of these areas.
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planks → include → areas
Keep your strength training plan simple, Geisel says: pick a few exercises you enjoy, do them at least twice a week and make sure you’re continually challenging yourself by increasing the weight you’re lifting or the difficulty of your routine.
Don’t ignore pain
Most runners have been there: you’re moving closer to your race goals, then you start to feel a persistent ache, or perhaps even a sharp jab.
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you → keep → ache
You hope it goes away, but it keeps coming back.
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it → hope → ?
This is where serious injuries can occur, Geisel says.
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Geisel → occur → ?
…and 12 more, not listed.
The Aporia
