4 ms·

I think recent studies don't support the idea that running destroys your knees, actually.

austinjp 11y ago
This is correct. The true picture is complex and not fully understood. Distance running tends to increase surface area of knee cartilage. Lifting weights seems to increase thickness of cartilage. However, thickness of cartilage seems to have a maximum value beyond which it will not increase. This may be because the chondocytes (cells inside the cartilage that produce and maintain it) gain all their nutrition by diffusion, so cartilage that is too thick would prevent adequate nutrition. Lack of activity certainly leads to reduction in cartilage thickness, possibly surface area. It is unclear how exercise should be prescribed to optimally restore this. Irregularities in cartilage surface, due to injury or possibly genetic bad luck, can produce irregular pressure on the underlying bone surface. This seems to be a driving factor in bone changes in early osteoarthritis. Everyone's response to exercise is unique to them. It's not currently easy to say whether distance running is "good for you". However, the benefits of exercise generally outweigh the risks. Personally I suspect that only a tiny minority of people are capable of regularly running marathon distances and benefiting from that. If you are over 40, don't expect to do then save intensity or duration of your younger peers, particularly if you are starting a new form of exercise. Your body has already adapted to your lifestyle, and it will be slower to adapt. But find what works for you, do what feels good, don't compare yourself to others, and enjoy yourself.
- mironathetin 11y ago
  "But find what works for you, do what feels good, don't compare yourself to others, and enjoy yourself." That sounds good and right, especially 'don't compare yourself to others'. It is a good Zen training to let others go faster and stick to ones own goals.
VeejayRampay 11y ago
It really depends on your stride and general form, doesn't it? It sounds reasonable that overstriding (landing with your foot ahead of the imaginary vertical line passing through your body) would place a lot of pressure on the knee, which would result in long-term damage. The same goes for the landing, it's easier on the body to make good use of the natural mechanism present in the arch of the foot by landing on the mid-foot (ball of the foot). Daniel Lieberman (Harvard professor) has excellent research on the subject for those interested.
- rorykoehler 11y ago
  Exactly. Stride and posture are vitally important for a healthy run. As someone with a sprinters build and stride to match any amount of long distance (over 5k) puts a massive strain on my shins. I have a mid foot strike which is quicker over short to mid distances but is completely unsustainable for longer distances (for me at least). Full time running training (5-7 days week) also inevitably results in shin splints. Watching people run in the park it's clear that only ~5% have put any thought into their stride and posture.
  - cafard 11y ago
    Most women appear to land on the mid foot or even farther forward. Now, women are in general lighter, and who knows how far the random woman runner seen on the streets is actually going? But I know at least one woman with a very forward strike, and who ran a lot, who was still going in her 50s when I last saw her. I don't recall how my friend with the bad knees landed: but I do remember that her way of pushing off at the end of a stride was distinctive, recognizable from a distance. By the way, have you eliminated the possibility of compartment syndrome?
    - VeejayRampay 11y ago
      I've observed the opposite: the women I see running are generally heel-striking shufflers. But then again, the sample is composed of Parisian women who don't exercise as regularly as they could because of urban conditions and population density (and the resulting scarcity of running estate).
    - rorykoehler 11y ago
      I believe shin splints is a form of compartment syndrome in the tough sinewy tissue between the tibia and fibula. I had to stop running every day after the last bout. Took 4 months to recover from and by that time all the good work had been undone. I try mix it up more these days with biking and when in better shape also soccer (though that can be terrible for the knees too). The reason I quit training was because a guy in my track group had the same problem and he didn't quit. It resulted in a badly fractured ankle which took him out for a whole season. I hadn't met him before (I was new to the group) but he turned up to training one day to say hi and told me his story which was a bit of a wake up call. We were training very hard at the time, ~15 hour track time (including warm ups) and ~15 hours weights per week.

This is correct. The true picture is complex and not fully understood. Distance running tends to increase surface area of knee cartilage. Lifting weights seems to increase thickness of cartilage. However, thickness of cartilage seems to have a maximum value beyond which it will not increase. This may be because the chondocytes (cells inside the cartilage that produce and maintain it) gain all their nutrition by diffusion, so cartilage that is too thick would prevent adequate nutrition. Lack of activity certainly leads to reduction in cartilage thickness, possibly surface area. It is unclear how exercise should be prescribed to optimally restore this. Irregularities in cartilage surface, due to injury or possibly genetic bad luck, can produce irregular pressure on the underlying bone surface. This seems to be a driving factor in bone changes in early osteoarthritis. Everyone's response to exercise is unique to them. It's not currently easy to say whether distance running is "good for you". However, the benefits of exercise generally outweigh the risks. Personally I suspect that only a tiny minority of people are capable of regularly running marathon distances and benefiting from that. If you are over 40, don't expect to do then save intensity or duration of your younger peers, particularly if you are starting a new form of exercise. Your body has already adapted to your lifestyle, and it will be slower to adapt. But find what works for you, do what feels good, don't compare yourself to others, and enjoy yourself.

mironathetin 11y ago
"But find what works for you, do what feels good, don't compare yourself to others, and enjoy yourself." That sounds good and right, especially 'don't compare yourself to others'. It is a good Zen training to let others go faster and stick to ones own goals.

VeejayRampay 11y ago

It really depends on your stride and general form, doesn't it? It sounds reasonable that overstriding (landing with your foot ahead of the imaginary vertical line passing through your body) would place a lot of pressure on the knee, which would result in long-term damage. The same goes for the landing, it's easier on the body to make good use of the natural mechanism present in the arch of the foot by landing on the mid-foot (ball of the foot). Daniel Lieberman (Harvard professor) has excellent research on the subject for those interested.

rorykoehler 11y ago
Exactly. Stride and posture are vitally important for a healthy run. As someone with a sprinters build and stride to match any amount of long distance (over 5k) puts a massive strain on my shins. I have a mid foot strike which is quicker over short to mid distances but is completely unsustainable for longer distances (for me at least). Full time running training (5-7 days week) also inevitably results in shin splints. Watching people run in the park it's clear that only ~5% have put any thought into their stride and posture.
- cafard 11y ago
  Most women appear to land on the mid foot or even farther forward. Now, women are in general lighter, and who knows how far the random woman runner seen on the streets is actually going? But I know at least one woman with a very forward strike, and who ran a lot, who was still going in her 50s when I last saw her. I don't recall how my friend with the bad knees landed: but I do remember that her way of pushing off at the end of a stride was distinctive, recognizable from a distance. By the way, have you eliminated the possibility of compartment syndrome?
  - VeejayRampay 11y ago
    I've observed the opposite: the women I see running are generally heel-striking shufflers. But then again, the sample is composed of Parisian women who don't exercise as regularly as they could because of urban conditions and population density (and the resulting scarcity of running estate).
  - rorykoehler 11y ago
    I believe shin splints is a form of compartment syndrome in the tough sinewy tissue between the tibia and fibula. I had to stop running every day after the last bout. Took 4 months to recover from and by that time all the good work had been undone. I try mix it up more these days with biking and when in better shape also soccer (though that can be terrible for the knees too). The reason I quit training was because a guy in my track group had the same problem and he didn't quit. It resulted in a badly fractured ankle which took him out for a whole season. I hadn't met him before (I was new to the group) but he turned up to training one day to say hi and told me his story which was a bit of a wake up call. We were training very hard at the time, ~15 hour track time (including warm ups) and ~15 hours weights per week.