The Complete Guide to Preventing Running Injuries

Every runner has a story. Maybe yours started with a friend's invitation to join a Saturday morning group run, or a New Year's resolution to get healthier, or the ambitious goal of finishing your first marathon. Running gives you freedom, clarity, and accomplishment. Until it doesn't.

If you're reading this, you probably know what comes next. That subtle twinge in your knee that you ignored for a few weeks. The shin pain that started small but now stops you mid-run. The Achilles tendon that's so stiff in the morning you can barely walk to the bathroom. These aren't badges of honor. They're warning signs that something in your training, strength, or mechanics needs attention.

Here's the reality: between 40% and 80% of runners will experience a running injury in any given year. That means if you're training for a race alongside three friends, at least one of you will get sidelined. The injury won't just steal your training, it'll cost you money in treatment, disrupt your race goals, and force you to watch from the sidelines while everyone else keeps logging miles.

But here's the good news. Most running injuries are preventable. Not with expensive shoes, fancy recovery gadgets, or magic stretches, but with smart training principles backed by decades of research. This guide brings together the latest evidence on what actually works to keep runners healthy, strong, and training consistently.

Understanding the Running Injury Problem

Running isn't inherently dangerous. Your body is built to run. But modern runners face a unique challenge: we want to do too much, too soon, without the physical foundation to handle it. Research shows that injury incidence ranges from 19.4 to 79.3% depending on the population studied, with novice runners at the highest risk. The knee, lower leg, and foot account for the majority of injuries.

The most common injuries we treat at Victory Performance in Culver City include runner's knee (patellofemoral pain syndrome), IT band syndrome, shin splints, Achilles tendinopathy, plantar fasciitis, hamstring strains, and stress fractures. Each of these conditions develops over time through a combination of training errors, biomechanical issues, and strength deficits. They don't appear overnight. They build gradually, giving you plenty of warning signs if you know what to watch for.

Understanding your running mechanics and training load is essential for staying injury-free. Most running injuries develop gradually through a combination of training errors, biomechanical factors, and strength deficits that can be identified and corrected with proper assessment.

Why Runners Get Injured

Understanding why injuries happen is the first step in preventing them. The research points to several key factors:

Training Load Errors are the biggest culprit, responsible for approximately 60% of running injuries. This includes increasing weekly mileage too quickly, inadequate recovery between hard efforts, and sudden spikes in training intensity. The acute-to-chronic workload ratio (ACWR) has emerged as a valuable tool for monitoring training load. This metric compares your recent training stress (acute load from the past week) to what your body has adapted to handle (chronic load from the past four weeks). Research shows that ratios between 0.8 and 1.3 provide the lowest injury risk, while ratios above 1.5 dramatically increase your chance of getting hurt.

Weak Hips and Core create a cascade of problems down the kinetic chain. When your glutes can't stabilize your pelvis during the stance phase of running, your knee caves inward, your foot overpronates, and your lower leg muscles work overtime to compensate. This excess stress gets transferred to vulnerable tissues like tendons, bones, and cartilage. Studies consistently show that runners with chronic injuries exhibit delayed gluteal activation and weaker hip abductors compared to healthy runners.

Poor Running Mechanics amplify forces through your joints with every step. Overstriding, excessive vertical oscillation, and heavy heel striking all increase impact loading. A groundbreaking 2018 study found that gait retraining to reduce impact forces decreased injury occurrence by 62% over a one-year follow-up period. Even small changes in running form can significantly reduce your injury risk.

Inadequate Tissue Capacity means your muscles, tendons, and bones can't handle the repetitive loading demands of running. This is especially common in new runners who haven't built up the tissue resilience needed for high mileage, but it affects experienced runners too when they transition to new surfaces, increase speed work, or return from time off.

Previous Injury remains the strongest predictor of future injury. If you've had runner's knee, shin splints, or Achilles pain before, your risk of recurrence is significantly higher unless you address the underlying causes, not just the symptoms.

🏃 Victory's Comprehensive Running Assessment

Not sure where to start with injury prevention? Our Running Assessment identifies your specific injury risk factors through:

• Video gait analysis and cadence evaluation

• Strength and mobility testing (hips, core, ankles)

• Movement screening to spot compensations

• Training load review and optimization

• Personalized injury prevention plan you can implement immediately

Book your Running Assessment: 424-543-4336

What the Evidence Says Actually Works

The research on injury prevention has matured significantly in recent years. While early studies were often inconclusive, we now have much better data on what interventions reduce injury risk.

A 2024 systematic review analyzing injury prevention strategies found mixed results for generic exercise programs, but promising findings for targeted interventions. The key takeaway: one-size-fits-all approaches don't work. You need personalized assessment and programming based on your individual movement patterns, training history, and injury risk factors.

Here's what has solid evidence behind it:

Strength Training shows consistent benefits when properly implemented. A 2024 study on hip and core strengthening in recreational runners found a 39% reduction in injury prevalence compared to controls. The program included exercises targeting the gluteus maximus, gluteus medius, hip external rotators, and core stabilizers, performed 2 to 4 times per week. The exercises were prescribed to feel challenging and be performed to fatigue while maintaining good form.

Gait Retraining has proven effective for reducing injury risk and managing existing pain. Studies show that teaching runners to land softer (reducing impact forces) cuts injury risk by approximately two-thirds. Increasing step cadence by 5-10% reduces loading on the knee, hip, and ankle joints while decreasing ground reaction forces. The beauty of gait retraining is that small adjustments can yield significant benefits without compromising running economy or performance.

Progressive Load Management prevents the training spikes that lead to tissue breakdown. While the old "10% rule" (never increase weekly mileage by more than 10%) provides a basic guideline, the acute:chronic workload ratio offers more sophisticated load monitoring. Research on competitive runners found that fortnightly increases in ACWR between 0.10-0.78 led to increased injury risk, demonstrating that even seemingly small load changes matter.

Neuromuscular Training proves particularly effective for preventing specific injuries. A 2024 systematic review on medial tibial stress syndrome (shin splints) found that neuromuscular training programs reduced injury odds by 87%, with high certainty of evidence. These programs emphasize coordination, balance, and movement quality, not just raw strength.

Strength Training for Runners

If you're only running, you're not training optimally. Running reveals your weaknesses but doesn't fix them. Comprehensive strength training builds the tissue capacity, movement control, and power output that keep you injury-free and performing at your best.

The research is clear: strength training needs to target specific muscle groups that play critical roles in running mechanics. At Victory Performance, we've seen this work countless times with runners in Culver City and across Los Angeles.

Hip Strength and Control

Your glutes are the foundation of injury-free running. The gluteus maximus provides hip extension power during push-off, while the gluteus medius and minimus stabilize your pelvis in the frontal plane with every single step. When these muscles are weak or poorly coordinated, your pelvis drops on the swing leg side (Trendelenburg sign), your knee caves inward (dynamic valgus), and compensatory stress gets transferred throughout your lower extremity.

A 2023 study using advanced musculoskeletal modeling examined gluteal muscle forces during eight common hip exercises. The research found that exercises like single-leg Romanian deadlifts, single-leg hip thrusts, and split squats generated the highest gluteal forces, making them excellent choices for runners. Body-weight exercises like side planks, hip hikes, and side-lying leg raises also proved effective, particularly when progressing with resistance.

Key Hip Exercises for Runners:

Single-Leg Romanian Deadlift: Builds posterior chain strength and single-leg stability. This exercise closely mimics the loading pattern of running and teaches hip hinge mechanics that reduce low back stress.

Single-Leg Hip Thrust: Generates maximal gluteus maximus force, especially when loaded progressively. This exercise directly targets the hip extension power needed during push-off.

Hip mobility and lateral strength prevent the compensatory movement patterns that lead to runner's knee and IT band syndrome. Functional exercises that challenge balance and control in multiple planes build the stability needed for injury-free running.

Lateral Band Walks: Strengthens gluteus medius for pelvic stability. Despite being a simple exercise, it effectively targets the hip abductors that prevent pelvic drop.

Single-Leg Squat: Develops functional strength and exposes movement compensations. If your knee caves inward during a single-leg squat, it's probably doing the same thing when you run.

Side Plank with Hip Abduction: Combines core stability with hip abductor strength. This exercise trains the lateral system that keeps your body stacked during a single-leg stance.

Dosage and Frequency: Aim for 2-3 strength sessions per week, with 6-12 repetitions per exercise when using external resistance. The goal is to challenge the muscle to fatigue while maintaining perfect form. For runners new to strength training, start with body-weight variations before adding load. In-season runners should prioritize maintenance (1-2 sessions weekly) while off-season training can accommodate higher volume.

Core Strength That Matters

Core training for runners isn't about six-pack abs or holding planks for minutes. It's about developing anti-rotation and anti-extension strength that allows efficient force transfer from your lower to upper body while maintaining spinal stability.

During running, your core muscles work to prevent excessive trunk rotation and limit anterior pelvic tilt, both of which can contribute to low back pain and hip dysfunction. Weak core muscles force your back extensors to work overtime, leading to the familiar ache in your lower back after long runs.

Effective Core Exercises for Runners:

Dead Bugs: Teaches coordinated trunk stability while moving opposite limbs, exactly what you do when running.

Pallof Press: Builds anti-rotation strength to minimize trunk twist during the gait cycle.

Single-Leg Balance with Perturbation: Combines core stability with hip control in a functional position.

Bird Dogs: Develops posterior chain coordination and spinal stability.

Planks with Movement: Static planks are a starting point, but adding shoulder taps, leg lifts, or hip dips makes them more running-specific.

Eccentric calf training on steps or curbs builds the tissue capacity needed to handle the repetitive impact forces of running. This exercise is essential for preventing Achilles tendinopathy and calf strains, particularly when returning from injury or increasing mileage.

Eccentric and Isometric Training

Eccentric strength (controlling lengthening of muscle-tendon units) is crucial for runners because running is inherently an eccentric activity. Your muscles must eccentrically control the forces of ground contact thousands of times per run. Without adequate eccentric strength, you can't decelerate effectively, absorb impact properly, or handle downhill running without excessive stress.

Research on hamstring injuries, which affect many runners, demonstrates that eccentric training (particularly Nordic hamstring exercises) both prevents initial injury and reduces recurrence. The same principle applies to other muscle-tendon units throughout the lower extremity.

Isometric exercises (holding positions without movement) have gained attention for their ability to reduce tendon pain while maintaining strength. A 2024 systematic review found that isometric and isotonic exercise provides short-term pain relief and functional improvement for tendinopathies, with progressive tendon loading showing the best long-term evidence.

Key Eccentric and Isometric Exercises:

Eccentric Heel Drops: Essential for Achilles tendon health and calf strength.

Nordic Hamstring Curls: Prevent hamstring strains by building eccentric strength in the posterior thigh.

Single-Leg Deadlifts (Slow Eccentric): Emphasize the lowering phase to build tissue capacity.

Isometric Wall Sit: Develops quad endurance and can reduce patellar tendon pain.

Eccentric Step-Downs: Train knee control during deceleration and downhill running.

Running Mechanics and Gait Optimization

Your running form matters. Not because there's one "perfect" way to run, but because inefficient mechanics amplify stress on your tissues. Small adjustments can substantially reduce injury risk without sacrificing speed or economy.

Cadence (Step Rate)

Cadence refers to how many steps you take per minute. Most recreational runners have a cadence between 160-170 steps per minute, but research suggests that 170-180 steps per minute reduces joint loading and decreases injury risk.

When you increase your cadence, several beneficial changes occur. Step length shortens slightly, which reduces braking forces at impact. Ground contact time decreases, lowering the duration of loading on each leg. Vertical oscillation (how much you bounce) decreases, reducing energy waste and impact forces. Peak knee flexion angle, hip adduction, and foot strike angle all improve.

A 2024 study found that even modest cadence increases of 5% reduce plantar loading across all foot regions, making this intervention relevant for conditions like plantar fasciitis and metatarsal stress fractures. Another recent systematic review confirmed that gait retraining to increase cadence was effective in reducing mean vertical load rate and improving various biomechanical measures.

How to Increase Your Cadence: Use a metronome app during easy runs, starting with a 5% increase (8-9 steps per minute). Run to the beat for short intervals initially, gradually extending the duration as it feels natural. Most runners adapt within 2-3 weeks of consistent practice.

Impact Loading and Foot Strike

The debate about foot strike pattern (heel strike vs. forefoot vs. midfoot) continues, but the evidence suggests that impact loading matters more than where you land. Runners who land heavily—regardless of foot strike pattern—experience higher injury rates.

Gait retraining focused on landing softer (often cued as "run quieter" or "land like you're running on eggshells") reduces vertical loading rates, tibial acceleration, and joint contact forces. The landmark 2018 study mentioned earlier found that teaching novice runners to reduce impact loading cut their injury rate by 62% over one year.

Transitioning to a forefoot strike pattern can reduce certain loads, but it may increase stress on the Achilles tendon, calf muscles, and plantar fascia. This approach should be implemented gradually and only when indicated by your specific injury history and movement patterns.

Overstriding and Forward Lean

Overstriding—landing with your foot too far in front of your body's center of mass—creates a braking effect with every step and increases impact forces. Runners who overstride typically have longer ground contact times and higher vertical loading rates.

The fix often comes naturally when you increase cadence, but you can also cue slight forward lean from the ankles (not the waist) to shift your center of mass forward and encourage a foot strike closer to your body.

When to Work on Form

Gait retraining is most effective when implemented progressively over 2-4 weeks, using audio or visual feedback initially before fading the cues. Changes should be practiced during easy runs first, then gradually incorporated into training paces. Trying to change your form during hard workouts or races often backfires, causing compensation patterns and excessive fatigue.

Smart Training Principles

The strongest predictor of injury is how you manage your training load. Even with perfect strength and form, poor load management will break you down.

Progressive Overload Done Right

The principle is simple: gradually increase training stress to stimulate adaptation, then allow recovery for that adaptation to occur. The challenge is defining "gradual." The traditional 10% rule provides a rough guideline, but research shows mixed results when it's rigidly applied.

A more nuanced approach uses the acute:chronic workload ratio. Your acute workload is the training you've done in the past 7 days. Your chronic workload is the rolling average of the past 4 weeks (28 days). Dividing acute by chronic gives you a ratio that indicates whether you're adequately prepared for your current training load.

Research on runners found that maintaining an ACWR between 0.8-1.3 provides the "sweet spot" for adaptation with minimal injury risk. Ratios above 1.5 indicate dangerous spikes in load, while ratios below 0.8 suggest undertraining or deconditioning.

How to Apply This: Calculate your weekly training load (duration × intensity, or simply miles run for most runners). Track your past four weeks and calculate the average. Each week, ensure your current load falls within 80-130% of that four-week average. If life disrupts your training and you miss a week, resist the urge to "catch up" with a massive spike. Instead, return gradually to your baseline.

Recovery is Training

Adaptation occurs during recovery, not during the workout itself. Your training session provides the stimulus. Rest allows your body to repair, rebuild, and come back stronger.

Easy runs should feel genuinely easy—conversational pace where you could hold a full discussion. Many runners make the mistake of running their easy days too hard, which compromises recovery and limits their ability to push during quality workouts.

Recovery strategies include adequate sleep (7-9 hours for most athletes), proper nutrition (especially protein for tissue repair and carbohydrates to replenish glycogen), and active recovery (light movement, walking, cycling, or swimming on rest days).

Recovery begins the moment your run ends. Static stretching, rehydration, and proper nutrition in the 30-60 minutes post-run support tissue repair and prepare your body for the next training session. Consistent recovery habits are as important as the training itself.

Hydration and Electrolyte Balance

Dehydration impairs performance and increases injury risk by reducing blood flow to working muscles, decreasing joint lubrication, and compromising your body's ability to regulate temperature during those warm Culver City afternoon runs. Even 2% body weight loss through fluid can negatively impact running economy and increase perceived effort.

Water remains your primary hydration tool for runs under 60-90 minutes. For longer efforts, particularly in LA's warmer months or during high-intensity training, you'll need to replace both fluids and electrolytes lost through sweat.

Sodium, potassium, and magnesium play critical roles in muscle contraction, nerve signaling, and fluid balance. When you lose these through sweat without adequate replacement, you risk cramping, fatigue, and impaired recovery. Research shows that proper electrolyte replacement during extended training sessions supports performance and reduces post-exercise muscle soreness.

For runs exceeding 90 minutes or particularly sweaty sessions, consider using a natural electrolyte drink mix that provides balanced minerals without unnecessary sugars or artificial ingredients. These formulas help maintain proper hydration status during long weekend runs or back-to-back training days.

The basic hydration protocol: drink to thirst during shorter runs, aim for pale yellow urine as a hydration marker throughout the day, and replace both fluids and electrolytes during extended efforts. Your individual sweat rate varies, but most runners need 16-24 ounces of fluid per hour of running, adjusted for temperature and intensity.

Periodization for Injury Prevention

Periodization means varying your training volume and intensity over time. Rather than running the same mileage at the same pace every week, periodized training includes:

Base building phases with higher volume and lower intensity Strength building phases with moderate volume and added resistance training Peak training with specific race-pace workouts Taper periods allowing recovery before goal races Off-season or transition phases with reduced running volume

This varied approach prevents the chronic overload that leads to overuse injuries while developing different energy systems and movement capacities.

Cross-Training and Variety

Incorporating non-running cardiovascular exercise (cycling, swimming, elliptical) reduces cumulative impact while maintaining aerobic fitness. This is particularly valuable during high-mileage training blocks or when recovering from minor niggles.

Vary your running surfaces when possible. Trails provide softer landings but require greater stability. Roads offer consistency but higher impact. Tracks allow controlled speed work but create repetitive stress in one direction. Mixing surfaces throughout your training distributes stress more evenly.

The Victory Running Assessment: Your Personalized Injury Prevention Blueprint

At Victory Performance and Physical Therapy in Culver City, we've built our runners program around these evidence-based principles. Our comprehensive Running Assessment starts with evaluation, not generic exercise lists—because every runner's injury risk factors are different.

What's Included in Your Running Assessment

Movement Screening: We evaluate your squat pattern, single-leg balance, hip mobility, ankle dorsiflexion, and core control to identify movement limitations that affect running mechanics.

Gait Analysis: We watch you run (often using video) to assess cadence, foot strike pattern, knee and hip movement, and trunk position. This reveals compensations you can't feel but that create injury risk.

Strength Testing: Manual muscle testing and functional strength assessments identify specific weaknesses in your glutes, quads, hamstrings, and core. We also look for side-to-side asymmetries.

Training History: Understanding your weekly mileage, intensity distribution, recent training changes, and injury history helps us identify load management issues.

How We Train Runners

Based on your assessment, we create an individualized program that addresses your specific limitations. This typically includes:

Targeted Strength Work focusing on the muscles and movement patterns most relevant to your needs. A runner with weak hip abductors gets different programming than one with poor ankle dorsiflexion or limited core stability.

Progressive Loading that matches your tissue capacity and training schedule. We scale exercises up or down based on your response, recovery, and performance.

Gait Retraining when indicated by your assessment and injury history. This might involve cadence manipulation, impact reduction cuing, or correcting specific biomechanical faults.

Load Management Guidance to help you scale your training appropriately. We help you understand when to push, when to maintain, and when to back off.

Return-to-Run Progressions if you're coming back from injury. This follows a systematic approach starting with walking, progressing to run-walk intervals, then continuous running, and finally speed work.

Real Success Stories from Culver City Runners

Maddie came to Victory just three weeks before her first marathon with knee and shin pain that threatened to derail months of training. "They created a perfect plan of action for me," she shared, "including many exercises to get me to the start line healthy." Through targeted hip strengthening and gait modifications, Maddie not only finished her race, she did it pain-free with a personal best time.

Samantha dealt with persistent knee pain for months, trying rest and various treatments without success. After working with our team at Victory, she said, "I've been able to strengthen my knee and reduce the pain I was feeling. I'm back to running my regular distance." The key was addressing the hip and core weakness that was causing excessive load on her knee.

G. Millan, another runner who's worked with us through multiple injuries, noted: "I've gone to Victory for multiple injuries and their thoroughness and knowledge are unparalleled. As a runner, they helped me learn how to build strength and manage flare-ups. I've never been more consistent."

A. Ramirez came in with nagging hip pain after years of running: "I've been a long-time runner and came in with some nagging hip pain. They didn't just give me exercises—they explained what was happening and helped me correct it. I'm running stronger than I have in years."

These results reflect what happens when runners get proper assessment, individualized programming, and expert guidance through the process.

Red Flags: When to See a Professional

Not every ache requires professional intervention, but certain pain patterns warrant immediate evaluation:

Pain that changes your gait or running form. If you're limping, favoring one side, or modifying your mechanics to avoid pain, something significant is wrong.

Pain that worsens during a run. Some discomfort that appears in the first mile and then disappears is often just tissue warming up. Pain that progressively intensifies during your run signals tissue damage.

Pain that persists more than 48 hours after running. Delayed onset muscle soreness should resolve within 2-3 days. Pain that lingers longer suggests a more serious issue.

Pain that's sharp, shooting, or feels "in the bone." These characteristics often indicate stress fractures, tendon tears, or significant ligament damage requiring immediate assessment.

Pain accompanied by swelling, warmth, redness, or significant loss of motion. These signs suggest acute inflammation or possibly infection requiring medical evaluation.

Pain that doesn't respond to rest, ice, and activity modification within 7-10 days. If basic self-care measures aren't helping, professional assessment prevents minor issues from becoming chronic problems.

In California, you have direct access to physical therapy, meaning you can schedule an evaluation without a physician referral. This allows faster assessment and treatment, potentially preventing a minor issue from becoming a season-ending injury.

Your Actionable Injury Prevention Plan

Let's translate this research into a practical framework you can implement immediately:

Strength Training: 2-3 Sessions Per Week

• Hip strengthening: 2-3 exercises targeting glutes (single-leg RDLs, hip thrusts, lateral band walks)

• Core work: 2-3 exercises emphasizing anti-rotation and stability (dead bugs, Pallof press, bird dogs)

• Eccentric training: 1-2 exercises for key muscle-tendon units (eccentric calf raises, Nordic hamstrings)

• Duration: 20-30 minutes per session

• Schedule: On easy run days or immediately after runs, not before hard workouts

Training Load Management

• Calculate your acute:chronic workload ratio weekly

• Keep ACWR between 0.8-1.3

• Increase weekly mileage by no more than 10-15% from your 4-week average

• Include a cutback week (20-30% reduction) every 3-4 weeks

• Build in at least one complete rest day per week

Running Mechanics

• Assess your current cadence (count steps for one minute)

• If below 170 steps/minute, work on gradually increasing by 5-10%

• Practice "running quieter" during easy runs to reduce impact loading

• Record yourself running from the side and front to spot obvious form issues

• Consider professional gait analysis if you have recurring injuries

Recovery Protocols

• Prioritize 7-9 hours of sleep nightly

• Keep easy runs truly easy (conversational pace)

• Vary running surfaces throughout the week

• Include 1-2 easy days between hard workouts

• Don't add intensity and volume simultaneously

Movement Screening

• Perform a bodyweight single-leg squat in front of a mirror

• Watch for knee caving inward, heel lifting off ground, or excessive trunk lean

• Check ankle dorsiflexion (can you touch your knee to a wall 4-5 inches from your toes?)

• Test single-leg balance: can you hold steady for 30 seconds with eyes closed?

• Deficits in any of these suggest areas needing focused work

The Bottom Line

Running injuries aren't inevitable. They're the result of predictable patterns: too much load applied too quickly to tissues that lack the capacity to handle it, amplified by biomechanical factors that concentrate stress on vulnerable areas.

Prevention works. Strength training builds tissue resilience. Smart load management prevents overload. Gait optimization reduces impact forces. Recovery allows adaptation to occur. The research consistently demonstrates that runners who address these factors stay healthier and perform better.

The key is taking action before injury forces your hand. By the time pain stops you mid-run, you're already dealing with tissue damage that requires rehabilitation, not just prevention. Start incorporating these principles now, while you're healthy and motivated to train.

If you're a runner in Culver City or the Los Angeles area dealing with pain, recurring injuries, or performance plateaus, Victory Performance and Physical Therapy specializes in keeping runners healthy and strong. Our team combines expert movement assessment, evidence-based programming, and hands-on treatment to address the root causes of running injuries.

Ready to run stronger and injury-free? Schedule your Running Assessment to get a personalized injury prevention plan based on your movement, strength, and training. Call 424-543-4336 or book your Running Assessment online.

Quick Reference: Injury Prevention Checklist

Weekly Training ☐ Calculated ACWR and confirmed ratio between 0.8-1.3 ☐ Included at least one complete rest day ☐ Kept easy runs conversational pace ☐ Completed 2-3 strength training sessions

Strength Work ☐ Single-leg exercises for hip stability ☐ Core anti-rotation exercises ☐ Eccentric training for major muscle groups ☐ Progressive overload from previous week

Running Mechanics ☐ Monitored cadence during runs ☐ Focused on landing softly ☐ Varied running surfaces throughout week ☐ Recorded running form monthly to track changes

Recovery ☐ Achieved 7+ hours sleep on most nights ☐ Maintained adequate protein intake (1.2-1.6g/kg bodyweight) ☐ Scheduled recovery activities (massage, foam rolling, stretching) ☐ Addressed any pain or discomfort within 3-5 days