that 70-80 per cent of humans have a left femur (thigh bone) that's longer than the right, in order to support our asymmetrical internal organs. Running on natural terrain isn't a problem, but hard road surfaces make your muscles over-compensate, causing

running terrainRunners often have strong opinions about where to run. The best solution for you as a new runner may be to simply mix it up, says Glover. "Soft surfaces are not necessarily better," she says."Treadmills and dirt may seem 'softer

tucked tightly against the sides of my head. "Try to imagine you are looking at a swimmer from the side, the body should be flat from head to toe, and parallel with the water's surface," says Bullock. "If your legs are too low, you are presenting more

of the swim sessions above can be completed with hand paddles to develop specific strength. Start by alternating between paddles and no paddles and build up to completing the whole set with paddles. Paddles present a larger surface area to the water during

people would describe the way I look when I run.See full threadResist injury: run off-roadWurzel – Trail running can help your speed: the strengthening of various muscles by running on an uneven surface should make you faster. Most of the good runners I

nerve supply, but the bone underneath (subchondral) does. It takes repetitive loading of the cartilage surface to irritate the subchondral bone and produce pain.The clicking and locking with the above are really indicative of an issue with your kneecap

with the loading pressures on the under surface of your kneecap.Your kneecap is covered in a cartilage to help protect it as it slides over your thigh bone. The issue is you have loaded your kneecap above and beyond what its used to do. The cartilage swells

an 800m course and the kids did a "proper" race in age/sex groups. Fab intro and the kids loved it. They even got goody bags at the end! AdyP Try to keep the running off-road. Tarmac is not a good surface and too much running on it at a young age may

other reasons)Quad muscles under tension when they should be flaccid. Lie flat – face down on a hard (carpeted) surface. Roll yourself from side to side with max bodyweight over the thighs. You'll feel one / some of the muscles under tension – it can

mileages and intensities very gradually and (b) avoid running on hard surfaces as much as possible. I had shin splints for a while, and they were finally sorted out by a visit to a podiatrist, and some orthotics. Expensive, but very effective in my