Warmer weather brings more outdoor workout opportunities — from running, to outdoor HIIT and even obstacle course racing. While enjoying the fresh air, many fitness enthusiasts find new energy. It’s a great way to revamp your routine, but that energy can also lead to harder and longer workouts without even noticing how time flies.
The newfound energy and motivation keep us going — that is, until shin and foot pain crop up out of nowhere. At first, most will assume the discomfort is from shin splints or plantar fasciitis, until it doesn’t go away. Often, the culprit for this type of pain is a stress fracture. This may seem surprising for fitness enthusiasts, but it’s no surprise for healthcare providers. Stress fractures account for almost 20 percent of injuries seen in orthopedic clinics, and most of the patients are young, active women!
While stress fractures may sideline your fitness plans for months, you can prevent stress fractures in many cases. Keeping yourself in the fitness game is easy with just a few fitness and nutrition tweaks. With a few simple strategies to prevent stress fractures, you’ll be all set.
Plan It Out
The number one reason for such sharp rises in summertime stress fractures is doing too much too fast. But what is too much too fast? Exercise science says don’t increase your routine’s intensity by more than 10 percent per week. If you’ve ever tried to measure that, confusion probably followed. So, the rule is easy to say, but quite complex to enact.
Your plan will depend on what you want to do and where you’re starting. Here are some general guidelines to help:
Exercise Plan: Integrating Running or High-Impact Activity
If you want to run or do high-impact activity, carve out 40 minutes on two to three non-consecutive days in the week. The first 10 minutes and last 10 minutes are for your warm-up and cool-down routines.
Use the following table to guide your progression into high-impact fitness. Complete each workout at least three times before progressing to the workout for the next week. Listen to your body; allow yourself permission to repeat workouts more than 3 times before progressing to the next phase if you feel fatigued or sore.
Here’s how to build up to a full 30 minutes of moderate- to high-intensity outdoor running or aerobic activity safely.
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