Running creates impact forces of up to 10 times your body weight! When your body is not stacked in a strong, aligned posture against the forces of gravity and ground reaction, guess what? Your body will suffer! With each foot strike, you hit the ground. Then, the ground hits you back with an equal but opposite force. In essence, if there is a weak link in your body, such as in your ankle, knee, low back, you could have pain and injury.
Walking and hiking, too, have impact issues. In these activities, the impact is less. However, the pain and injury from misalignments, muscle imbalances and faulty foot mechanics can be the same. So, what can you do to combat this? Perform the following posture exercises (provided by the Egoscue® Portland Clinic) before and after your next workout! They will keep you running, walking and hiking pain free.
