There was recently an interesting article published in the New York Times (read the whole article here) about long time runners actually having healthier knees than other similarly aged people that were non-runners.
The article discussed a couple of studies that point to the possibility that long term endurance running can actually protect your knees from degeneration (osteoarthritis) as you age. This is in direct conflict with conventional wisdom that says that running is terrible for your knees.
It’s a very interesting article and I recommend you check it out. I have two points to add.
The first point I’d like to make is one that was glossed over in the article. The studies mentioned seem to follow long-term runners that were CONSISTENT with their running. Exercise and training of all kinds tends to be more beneficial if it’s consistent. If there is a large fluctuation in the amount and intensity of exercise (think weekend warrior), then you’re less likely to get the benefits discussed in the article.
The second point is also one that was briefly mentioned but I’d like to briefly expand on. It was mentioned that if a muscle isn’t firing appropriately, say from an injury, then another muscle or other structure (ligament, cartilage, etc.) will have to compensate and try to pick up the slack, as it were. This is precisely the way that I often help athletes perform. Through something called applied kinesiology (AK) I can locate a muscle weakness and
better still, I can locate the source of the weakness and fix the problem, often times in just a visit or two to my office.
You see, often times, the body breaks down from the inside out. In other words, if you have a digestive system, immune system, nervous system or another part of the body that is stressed and not sending ideal messages to the rest of the body that will often times set you up for an injury.
Here’s a quick story of a person that I helped the morning of his race with just such an issue.
 “I came to Dr. Frykman because I hurt my knee training for a race. I had a shooting pain every time I stood and I could hardly walk up stairs. I tried everything I could think of to relieve the pain but I was having no luck.
The day of the race it was worse than ever and I was ready to throw in the towel. In desperation I decided to talk to Dr. Frykman and he agreed to see me to try to fix the problem. He was very professional and explained everything to me in a way that I could understand. After the session I couldn’t believe it when 95% of the pain was gone! I was so ecstatic! I was able to run the race with little problem. I have to admit that at first I was skeptical but Dr. Frykman made me a believer. He has a customer for life. I would definitely recommend him to others.” Tim Osterlund |
So the moral of the story is make sure you’re getting consistent exercise and to really optimize your health, set up an appointment with an applied kinesiologist who can locate the source of any potential muscle weaknesses.
Helping you live YOUR Vibrant Potential,
Dr. Chris Frykman