Running injuries: An Olympian's advice on staying on the right track 

Olympian Catherina McKiernan says injury-free running is all about using the correct technique over and over. To help you get started on the right foot, she shares her step-by-step rules 

Olympian Catherina McKiernan in attenanced at the launch of the Irish Life Dublin Marathon and Race Series, Runners' Support Squad.

When we speak, Catherina McKiernan is in her running gear, gently glowing after a quick run in the sunshine. At the peak of her career, the Irish running legend won the prestigious London, Berlin and Amsterdam Marathons, was European cross country champion and four times silver medallist in the World Cross Country Championships and was an Olympian. These days the Co Cavan native’s mission is to get the rest of us running in a way that will best improve our fitness and not wreck our knees. 

“When you learn to run more efficiently, it is so much easier on your body,” McKiernan says. “In fact, the most important aspect of injury-free running is your posture.”

 In so many ways, there has never been a better time to lace up your trainers and head out for a run. Recent research as part of Irish Life Health of The Nation report reveals that people in Ireland are exercising less, with the number managing more than 3.5 hours of exercise a week dropping by 7% in two years. Despite no increases in average height, our waistlines continue to expand - the average weight has increased by half a stone since 2018. 

“This research shows us that there has been a persistent upward trend in body weight over the last four years as well as a decline in the amount of exercise that people do per week,”  says DCU professor of clinical exercise physiology Niall Moyna, who helped to compile the report. “If the current trend continues, it is likely that half the Irish adult population will be classified as obese by the end of the current decade. The health implication will be significant considering that obesity is an important risk factor for many chronic diseases.”

McKiernan says most of us can run and that even subtle postural changes when running can reduce your risk of injury. A recent study in the journal Human Movement Science by researchers at the University of Colorado Denver looked at trunk flexion, the angle at which runners bend forward from the hip and found that when runners were asked to lean forward only slightly, it had a significant impact on their stride length, joint movements, and ground reaction forces. Given the head, arms and trunk comprise about 68% of total body weight, it is possible that tiny changes in trunk flexion add loading that aggravates or cause knee and back pain. Results of this study showed that leaning led to a shortened stride length and changes in foot and lower limb position, ultimately causing a 29% spike in loading and ground reaction forces hammering through the body.

It’s this kind of bad habit that McKiernan, now 52, strives to get her running charges to avoid. “When I ran competitively, my own coach was very hot on good technique to keep me running free,” she says. “After I retired from racing, I studied the biomechanics and technique of running in more depth and tried to break it down into manageable principles to teach others.” 

Everybody can change their running technique for the better, she says. “The more you practice good technique, the more it becomes ingrained in the muscle memory,” she says. Here are Catherina’s rules for running better:

Position your head correctly

Your head is heavy and tilting it to one side or too far forward or back will throw you out of alignment. A big mistake many people make, especially when tired, is bringing their chin up or too far back, restricting oxygen supply to the body and muscles. Keep your head and neck in line with the spine and your chin only slightly tucked in.

Keep the shoulders relaxed

Imagine your shoulders are the headlights of a car beaming straight ahead. They should not deviate from that position – keep them relaxed and down. Any tension in the upper body restricts oxygen supply and can leave muscles all over the body feeling sore and achy after a run.

Your arms are as important as your legs

Think of your body as a balanced machine with all the individual parts working as one unit. If you are not using your arms appropriately, you are asking your legs to do too much work. Always have your fists gently closed with thumbs on top and hold your arms at 90 degrees, using a short arms swing with a snappy '1,2,3,4' rhythm count. Good rhythmic movement of the arms translates to a quick turnover of the feet. 

On a flat surface, such as running track or level road, you want 50% of the propulsive effort to come from your arms and 50% from your legs. Your hand should come back as far as your hip, and on the return motion, your elbow should come forward to your hip. When you go uphill, your arms need to work harder to get you up the incline, so drive them hard. It’s your upper body that helps you get uphill efficiently in this way.

Perfect your body alignment

Imagine your pelvis is like a bowl or basin and you need to keep it level, with hips slightly back. You should feel a little tension in your lower abs but nothing extreme. Make sure your shoulders, hips and ankle bones are in a straight line so that you can see the bows of the laces on your trainers when you look down. If you can’t see this, your hips are too far forward, so adjust. Get this position right and your feet will land in the correct position, reducing the risk of injury over time.

Check your landing

Where your feet land in relation to your body impacts how much force and shock reverberates through your legs and spine. If your feet land too far ahead of the body, there will be an awful lot of impact absorbed. Your aim is to always feel your feet land directly underneath your body and not to hit the ground hard with each stride. Keeping the front of the ankle joint relaxed encourages a mid-foot landing which is what you are after. Tension in the ankles creates a heel strike landing which increases impact absorbed.

Shoes don’t matter as much as you think

Spending hundreds of euros on a high-end pair of trainers will not undo the damage caused by poor technique. No one super-shoe suits everyone and my advice is to try on several pairs at a specialist running shop and go for the shoes that feel like cushions on your feet and fit like a glove. You will know the instant you put them on that they are right pair, and don’t let marketing dissuade you. If you know your posture isn’t perfect yet, it’s wise to avoid thick-soled trainers that encourage a heel strike, but generally shoes just need to be comfortable and supportive.

• Catherina McKiernan is a member of the Irish Life Dublin Marathon and Race Series Runners Support Squad. The initiative provides expert advice and coaching tips. To enter see IrishLifeDublinMarathon.ie

How to protect your joints while running:

• Run quietly - If you can hear loud slamming of your feet against the tarmac, you are likely landing with too much force.
• Run without headphones - Partly for the same reasons above, but also so that you can tune into your body and environment. Your run should be an opportunity for quiet and meditation, allowing time to focus on good technique.
• Relax your body - By relaxing your shoulders and upper body, you will have better posture – core muscles engaged, bottom tucked in, back straight, but not poker rigid – enabling you to land more efficiently.
• Check your centre of mass - It should always be ahead of your foot strike. That way, gravity is doing the work and there is much less impact on your body, helping to avoid knee injury, shin pain and calf strains.
• Take short, snappy strides - Think about just picking up your heels off the ground, not about pushing off with your feet – the idea is for your heels to catch up with the rest of your body as you run forward.