Running Physiotherapy
Running is a fantastic way to improve your fitness, boost your mental wellbeing and stay active. Whether you're a beginner, a regular runner or training for your next race, running places significant demands on your body and sometimes lead to pain or injury.
80% of runners get a niggle or injury every year. Fortunately most of these injuries are preventable. Our physiotherapists run everything from Park Runs to ultra marathons. Combining our love of running with our physiotherapy expertise we have developed the Physiotherapy Running Assessment to help you avoid those preventable injuries.
At Chiltern Physiotherapy we help runners understand their injuries, improve their running performance and return to running with confidence. Our physiotherapists take an individual approach to your treatment, helping you identify the cause of your symptoms and develop a plan tailored to your goals.
Whether you're experiencing a new injury, struggling with a recurring niggle or looking to improve your running, we're here to help you keep moving.
Don't wait until you're injured before having a running assessment
Prevention is better than a cure. Our Physiotherapy Running Assessments are designed to do exactly that.
What happens during a running assessment?
The Physiotherapy Running Assessment is tailored to your individual needs, whether you're recovering from an injury, experiencing recurring pain or looking to run more efficiently. We identify potential injury risks and how to reduce that risk and enhance your performance.
During your running assessment, we will:
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Discuss your running and injury history: We’ll discuss your current training, training history, previous and current injuries, symptoms and running goals to understand your individual needs.
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Assess strength and mobility: We’ll test muscle strength, flexibility and joint mobility to identify weaknesses, muscle imbalances or areas that may be contributing to your symptoms.
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Analyse your foot mechanics: Using our gait analysis equipment, we’ll assess foot pressure and how your weight is distributed across your feet when standing and moving.
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Conduct a treadmill running analysis: We’ll observe your running gait, looking at your stride, foot strike and overall running technique to identify any movement patterns that may benefit from improvement.
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Provide a tailored rehabilitation and injury prevention plan: Based on our findings, we’ll create a personalised programme of strengthening exercises, mobility work and practical advice to help manage existing injuries, reduce injury risk and improve your running performance.
Common Running Injuries
Running injuries can affect anyone, regardless of experience or fitness level. They can develop gradually through repeated loading or occur following a sudden change in training, intensity or distance.
Some of the most common running injuries we see include:
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Runner's knee - pain around or behind the kneecap, often aggravated by running.
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Achilles tendinopathy - pain and stiffness in the Achilles tendon, particularly during or after exercise.
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Shin splints - pain along the shinbone, commonly associated with increased running loads.
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Plantar fasciitis - pain around the heel or sole of the foot, often worse with your first steps in the morning.
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IT band-related pain - pain around the outside of the knee that can develop during running.
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Calf strains - tightness, pain or sudden discomfort in the calf muscles.
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Hamstring injuries - pain or tightness at the back of the thigh.
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Hip and gluteal pain - discomfort around the hip or buttock that can affect your running.
How Can Physiotherapy Help Runners?
Running places significant demands on your muscles, joints and tendons, sometimes leading to pain or injury. Physiotherapy can help identify the cause of your symptoms, reduce pain and get you back to running confidently.
At Chiltern Physiotherapy, our expert physiotherapists use a combination of hands-on treatment, targeted exercises and personalised advice to help manage injuries, improve strength and mobility, support recovery and reduce the risk of recurring problems.
Whether you're a beginner, a regular runner or training for your next event, physiotherapy can help you stay active, improve your performance and keep doing what you love.
Physiotherapy can help runners in many ways, including:
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Pain relief
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Improved strength and mobility
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Faster recovery from injury
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Reduced risk of recurring injuries
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Improved running performance
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Advice on training loads and recovery
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A safe, gradual return to running
You don't need to be injured to benefit from physiotherapy! Regular check-ups can help identify potential issues before they become bigger problems, keeping you running strong and helping you stay one step ahead of injury.
