30-50% of active runners experience an injury at least once a year. Here are the 10 most important tips to avoid injuries.

1. Exercise on a regular basis
   Taking long breaks between training sessions prevents the body from adapting to the workload and tolerating it better. Two running sessions per week should therefore be the minimum.
2. Softly Increase
   There is a considerable risk of injury due to the level of effort involved in running. This can be reduced by never increasing the weekly training load by more than 10% and not increasing distance and speed at the same time.
3. Take frequent rest days
   Rest days benefit you in two ways: on the one hand, you develop your performance by giving your body time to make important changes; on the other hand, micro-injuries can heal better.
4. Establish the fundamentals
   Running is a complex sport in which all conditional factors play a role. In order to stay injury-free, the factors of strength, coordination and agility in particular must be trained.
5. Diversified exercise
   Anyone who sits in the office during the day and laces up their running shoes two to four times a week will sooner or later find that the unilateral stress causes problems with the musculoskeletal system. In contrast, those who manage to challenge their muscles in a more versatile way through other forms of exercise have a clear benefit.
6. Take signals from the body seriously
   Our body usually lets us know clearly through subliminal signals when things are becoming excessive. The secret is to take these signals seriously and interpret them correctly, to avoid that the body sends stronger and stronger signals until we can't help but follow them.
7. Avoid doing too many long sessions.
   Every time we exercise, we cause "damage" in the body that is "repaired" during the recovery period, usually resulting in over-adaptation. However, if we do too many long sessions, the damage is simply too severe to repair in a reasonable amount of time.
8. Avoid sudden changes
   Unfamiliar stress can overwhelm our bodies. This can be observed, for example, when practicing a sport again after a long period of time. The muscles are then involved for days in repairing the damage. The situation is similar if, for example, you suddenly find yourself walking a lot on tight paths uphill and downhill or wearing completely different shoes while on vacation.
9. Reducing the stride length
   Shortening the stride length by 10% results in a smoother stride and consequently less strain on the musculoskeletal system. It also saves energy, which translates into better time, especially in longer competitions.
10. Ensure a balanced diet
    What you eat can affect your risk of injury. Make sure you get enough protein, carbohydrates, minerals and vitamins.

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