QUESTION: Running: how to reduce the risk of injuries in runners?

Running is one of the most accessible and effective types of physical activity, yet it carries the risk of joint and muscle injuries. To minimize this risk and make workouts safe, it is necessary to introduce several useful and proven habits into your daily routine. To begin with, get yourself used to general daily activity and endurance, aiming to walk an average of 8–10 thousand steps daily, which will strengthen ligaments and prepare the body for impact loads.

Before starting the run itself, spend at least 5 minutes on a quality warm-up. Dynamic exercises, joint rotations, and light swings warm up the musculature and increase the mobility of the joint apparatus. Upon finishing your running workout, be sure to perform static stretching of the main leg muscle groups to relieve excessive tension and accelerate the recovery process.

In addition to the warm-up and cool-down, it is important to gradually increase running volumes and monitor step technique. You should not sharply increase mileage or speed from workout to workout, as this leads to overexertion of the musculoskeletal system. Listen to your body's signals and take a break to rest at the first sign of sharp pain.