January is that time of year when most of us decide we need to “get healthy”, which typically involves a new fitness routine. Unfortunately, many people then develop overuse injuries as a direct result of their resolution to get healthy. An overuse injury is an injury to a bone or tendon which is the direct result of overuse of that structure. Regardless of your previous level of fitness, New Year’s Resolutions put all of us at risk for overuse injuries. Here are some helpful hints on how to reduce your risk of an overuse injury while getting healthy.

Typically, overuse injuries are a result of a sudden increase of two or three of the following exercise parameters: Intensity, Frequency and Duration.

Frequency – this is the most common parameter to increase suddenly. Often, we will go from exercising 0-1 time per week to exercising 4-6 times per week, overnight! Be careful about such a sudden increase in frequency. Such a dramatic decrease in time between workouts puts your bones and tendons at risk for overuse injury as they have less interval time to heal.

Duration – This refers to how long you spend exercising. For example, if previously a workout for you was 30-40 minutes, don’t suddenly increase your workout time to 1 hour. If previously you didn’t work out, then start with a reasonable workout session of 20-30 minutes, and slowly increase from there. A good rule of thumb is increase by 10% per week.

Intensity – this describes the level of difficulty of your exercise. If prior to January 1st you have never run farther than to your refrigerator and back, then don’t start your fitness regimen with running! Start with walking at a faster pace on the treadmill, or with lower impact activity such as elliptical or bike.

Overall, keep this in mind: Start low, go slow. Start low in intensity, frequency or time and increase those parameters slowly, one at a time. Not only will you be less likely to get injured, but you will be more likely to maintain your new routine!
 

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