Ask The Coach Weekly QnA: loud foot landing noises; fitness lost during injury layoff

Coach Atul Godbole answers your training related questions…

Q. Sujay asks: “I heard that when running that there should be no foot thud sounds when landing. Is it true as it cause some or other injury?”

A. A loud foot landing, in and of itself, does not indicate any potential injury. The sound that your foot landing makes depends on your running style, speed, shoes, surface, etc. However, one particular issue that I can think of is a weak tibialis anterior muscle which can cause a foot landing with a thud. Do the Heel Walk Exercise to strengthen that muscle and see if the foot landing improves.

Q. Amit asks: “How much fitness is lost in 2 weeks? I am taking time off to recover from a minor injury. Will biking during this time help?”

A. After about 3-5 days of no running, you will start to lose fitness, though the rate is reverse exponential (slow at first, and fast later). Good news is that it also comes back promptly after you resume running.

Yes, biking during this time will help maintain some aerobic fitness, though ultimately, running fitness can only be maintained or improved by running.

 


Runners and triathletes, have training, diet, nutrition related queries? Send email to askthecoach@motiv8coaching.com 

 

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