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When the temperature outside the window rises, more and more people engage in physical activities in the fresh air. The question is, are you sure it is fresh? Despite the benefits of running, is it worth doing sports, e.g. in polluted big cities? Or maybe it’s better to use an air-conditioned gym and do kilometers on a treadmill?
- An orthopedic doctor advises you on how to prepare for a run so as not to hurt yourself
- It is worth paying attention to the ground on which we are running. This can be crucial for the health of our joints
- Before we go for a run, let’s check the air quality. Perhaps you will find that it is better to choose a treadmill training in the gym than in the field
- You can find more such stories on the TvoiLokony home page
How does running affect the body?
When it gets warm outside, one of the popular sports is running, which does not require specialized equipment and complicated preparations. Every spring, sidewalks in city centers, neighborhood streets and park alleys fill up with runners.
– Running is one of the simplest physical activities. We can start the adventure with running at any age, although of course it will be of a different intensity in each case. It can be said that everyone can find something for themselves in this activity – some will prefer a quiet jog, some interval runs, and others will find themselves in long-distance running. Running can be varied in any way – by changing not only the distance traveled, but also the terrain or the surroundings – comments the drug. Karolina Stępień, specialist in orthopedics and traumatology of the musculoskeletal system from the Carolina Medical Center hospital belonging to the LUX MED Group.
Running is not only a great way to spend your free time. It also has benefits for our health. It is a sport that generates a high caloric expenditure in a relatively short time through the intensive work of skeletal muscles. This makes it easier to maintain a healthy body weight. High heart rate values during this form of exercise prove that the cardiovascular system is working at its highest speed – such periodic stimulation of the cardiovascular system helps prevent diseases such as hypertension and atherosclerosis in the long term. Additionally, this form of activity is very satisfying – a lot of effort is a large endorphin release.
What is it safe to run after?
In cities, runners in most cases have a choice of sidewalks, paths or residential streets. However, long-term hard running is not particularly beneficial for your joints. The best solution is to diversify the training and change the place where we run. Why?
– The ground on which we run may affect the type of injury with which runners report to the orthopedist’s office. In the case of patients running on pavements, we most often deal with overload injuries – it is not a consequence of one injury, but the sum of multiple micro-injuries that lead to tissue damage. On the other hand, the soft ground – most commonly found in forests, is often not devoid of, for example, protruding roots or stones, which cause falls and problems such as: fractures, sprains or sprains. That is why it is so important to carefully plan training – both in terms of their volume, so that there is no overload, as well as the planned route, to avoid acute injuries – says the drug. Karolina Stępień, Carolina Medical Center LUX MED Group.
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Polluted air in large cities – is it worth running?
One of the key questions that arise in the context of this physical activity is: to run or not to run among driving cars? What does an expert advise?
– With the highest parameters of pollution, which, unfortunately, we often meet in Warsaw or other larger Polish cities, I would encourage you to be active in closed rooms. This is especially important when we are talking about exertion such as jogging, when the amount of air passing through our lungs is very large. That is why, out of concern for the lungs, it is worth choosing to use a treadmill, remembering that it is a hard surface and it may be necessary to modify the planned training – comments the doctor.
If we are not sure whether the current air condition will not be harmful to us, it is worth using applications containing data on the level of pollution. They inform you which activity is possible and safe to perform on a given day. With high concentrations of airborne particulate matter, sports such as running are usually discouraged.
– Often, however, without reading the measurements, we know that the air is very heavy. In such conditions, we will not have fun running, because each breath will be “biting” for us – adds the drug. Karolina Stępień, from Carolina Medical Center, LUX MED Group.
A short trip to the forest can also be a compromise – sometimes a dozen or so minutes by bus or car can make a difference for the runners’ lungs.
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How to prepare for running?
However, regardless of where we will engage in physical activity, remember to properly prepare for running.
– One of the basic elements is warming up – we cannot start running immediately after getting up from the couch. As part of the preparation, it is worth starting with a gentle jog or a faster walk to activate the muscles and joints and only after 5-10 minutes start regular training. At the beginning, we can also use jumps, swings or lunges of the legs to additionally warm up. Clothing is also important – it should be adapted to weather conditions. We should dress as if it was about 10 degrees C more outside than it really is – says Karolina Stępień.
If we have not dealt with this form of activity before, it is worth remembering a few more important aspects.
– If we have not run or did it occasionally, we must be careful and listen carefully to our body. At the beginning, it is worth thinking about the so-called walk-running to check your current capabilities, and then gradually increase the time and distance of the run, shorten the walking time. It is worth being patient, because too intense effort in a short period may lead to problems that will effectively discourage us or even cost our health – concludes Karolina Stępień, from Carolina Medical Center, LUX MED Group.