Steep walk down at Beachy Head
There are many common injury presentations found in walkers. Particularly in those who are occasional walkers. Those of us who believe ourselves to be fit and healthy, can run for half an hour or complete many exercise classes often find many new body parts that begin to ache very quickly.
Going away for the weekend or a holiday break to discover the surrounding countryside and hills. Often we take a ‘short’ 3-4 hour stroll, using completely different sets of muscles, which may result in upper and middle buttock pain, Hip pains, low back ache, Achilles Tendonotis, Patellar tendonitis, Shin splints, Plantar Fasciitis, thigh and hamstring pains. Invariably the pains may only become noticeable weeks later. Most of these injuries are preventable given correct stretching and a sensible build up plan to hill and distance walking.
Walking around or down hills, such as this one near Beachy Head, with an angled footpath can cause ankle joint ligament and lower leg muscle strains. It is advisable to give the ankles a good stretch after a long or steep walk involving a large hill.
Steep downhill walks can really work the fast twitchmuscles in the quadriceps, the following day this can lead to very deep aching in the front of the thighs. My wife and I struggled for a few days after a three hour walk to Beachy head. The small dot in the middle is a person which may give you some idea of the distance going straight downhill. Steep uphill walks mean raising the toes higher giving rise to anterior shin muscle pain, something akin to shin splints.
Long downhill angled walk at Beachy Head
Correct shoes, socks and clothing are essential. For a good walkers shop visit Blacks www.blacks.co.uk or Cotswold www.cotswold-outdoor.co.uk
Here at the clinic we are able to offer a full check up prior to setting off walking. We are able to observe and identify potential problems before they arise and recommend corrective treatment and preventative exercises and stretching.
Remember when walking in the country the paths are invariably on slopes and inclines are usually followed by declines. These all place the foot at precarious angles to the leg putting the ligaments, joints and tendons at risk.