Running and Athletic Performance Rehab at Home
In-Home Running and Sports Rehabilitation in Oakland and Macomb County, Michigan
Find the cause, fix it, and return to running and sport step by step.
ELEVATE provides in-home physical therapy and performance training for runners and athletes recovering from overuse injuries in Oakland and Macomb County, Michigan. Licensed therapists work on strength, movement and gait analysis, and graded return to running, golf, throwing, and the gym in your own home, alongside your physician. Visits are private-pay and one-on-one.
- Running is one of the most popular forms of exercise, and running injuries are common. The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) notes you can reduce your risk with proper conditioning and training, suitable apparel and footwear, and attention to your running environment.
- Most running injuries are overuse injuries: the load on a tissue grows faster than the tissue can adapt. Common sites are the knee, shin, Achilles tendon, heel and hamstring.
- Good rehabilitation does more than calm the pain. It finds why the tissue was overloaded, restores strength and movement control, and builds a gradual plan back to running or your sport.
- Physical therapy leads recovery, and performance training with your clinician builds the strength, speed and resilience to return and stay healthy.
- ELEVATE Therapy Services brings therapy to your home in Oakland and Macomb County, Michigan. Visits are private-pay and one-on-one.
How running loads the body and what goes wrong
Every running stride lands on one leg with a force greater than body weight, and the foot, ankle, shin, knee, hip and spine share that load. Muscles, tendons and bone adapt to training stress when it increases gradually and with recovery, and become irritated or injured when it increases too fast, too often or with too little rest.
The same principles apply to sports that involve running, jumping, throwing or swinging, such as golf, tennis, baseball and gym training. What changes is which tissues and movement patterns are stressed.
Causes and risk factors
- Training errors: a sudden increase in distance, speed, hills or frequency, or restarting hard after a layoff. AAOS notes shin splints are especially likely when you are just starting a fitness program.
- Footwear and surface: worn or unsuitable shoes, and hard, uneven or sloped surfaces. AAOS recommends running on a clear, smooth, resilient, even and reasonably soft surface and avoiding hills when you can, since hills increase stress on the ankle and foot.
- Preparation: skipping a warm-up. AAOS recommends a progressive running plan and a five-minute warm-up followed by stretching.
- Strength and movement patterns: weak hips, core and calves, limited motion, or a stride that overloads one area.
- Previous injury, fatigue and inadequate recovery or nutrition
Common running problems
| Problem | What it is | Where to read more |
|---|---|---|
| Runner’s knee (patellofemoral pain) | Pain around or behind the kneecap, often with stairs, squatting, prolonged sitting and running downhill. | Physical therapy, knee and sports injury guide |
| Shin splints | Aching along the inner edge of the shinbone after activity, often when starting or increasing running. | Physical therapy, foot and ankle guide |
| Achilles tendon pain | Pain and stiffness in the tendon above the heel, often worse in the morning and at the start of a run. | Physical therapy, foot and ankle guide |
| Plantar fasciitis | Heel pain on the bottom of the foot, often worst with the first steps after rest. | Physical therapy, foot and ankle guide |
| Hamstring strain | Sudden or gradual pain in the back of the thigh, usually with sprinting, speed work or stretching. | Physical therapy |
| Hip and groin pain | Pain with running or turning from the hip joint, labrum or muscles. | Physical therapy, hip pain guide |
| Low back pain | Aching or stiffness from repeated impact and trunk muscle fatigue. | Physical therapy, back and neck guide |
When to get help
- See your physician for pain that persists for more than a couple of weeks, pain at night or at rest, pain that is getting worse with each run, or pain that makes you limp.
- Get evaluated promptly for pain at one specific spot on a bone, which can signal a stress fracture, or for swelling that does not settle.
- Stop and seek care for sharp, stabbing pain during activity rather than pushing through it.
- Report chest tightness, unusual breathlessness or dizziness with exertion to your physician before continuing.
How running injuries affect life
| What a person may notice | Why it happens | Who helps |
|---|---|---|
| Pain that starts each run and fades, then returns afterward | A tissue that is overloaded is irritable, and warming up temporarily reduces pain while the underlying load problem remains. | Physical therapy |
| Having to cut down mileage or stop running | Pain forces training to stop, and fitness and routine suffer. | Physical therapy, performance training |
| Fear of re-injury when returning | After an injury, confidence and trust in the body are reduced. | Physical therapy |
| Weak or imbalanced hips, core or calves | Weak supporting muscles shift load to the tendon or joint that hurts. | Physical therapy |
| An injury that keeps coming back | The cause, such as training load, strength or movement pattern, was never changed. | Physical therapy |
| Trouble meeting job or sport demands | Occupational and sport tasks stress the same tissues. | Physical therapy, performance training |
How care works
For most running injuries, treatment begins with identifying and relieving the aggravating load, which usually means reducing rather than stopping all activity, keeping the rest of the body fit, and calming symptoms. A physician rules out fractures and other causes when needed. Recovery then depends on building strength, flexibility and movement control, and on a gradual, measured return to running.
The APTA clinical practice guideline on patellofemoral pain supports exercise therapy for the hip and knee together with patient education, and the APTA guideline on hamstring strain injuries in athletes supports progressive, criteria-based rehabilitation. AAOS recommends a progressive running plan, a warm-up and stretching, proper footwear and sensible choices about surface and weather. A therapist adapts these principles to your injury and your goals.
What PT and performance training each do
Physical therapy: find the cause, fix the problem
- Assessment of the injury plus strength, flexibility, balance and movement patterns of the whole leg, hip and trunk
- Movement and gait analysis: how you land, push off, rotate and absorb impact, and where the load is going
- Corrective exercise and core stabilization for the areas that are weak or compensating
- A graded return-to-running program with walk-run intervals, measured by pain, strength and confidence, and cleared by your physician
- Return-to-golf and throwing programs that rebuild rotation, shoulder and hip control and tolerance gradually
- Footwear, surface and training-load advice and a written home program
Performance and return-to-gym training: building a resilient athlete
- Strength and conditioning programs for the hips, thighs, calves, trunk and shoulders, progressed from rehabilitation to performance
- Return-to-gym programming: safe re-entry to lifting and training with technique coaching
- Speed, agility and power work when appropriate, once strength and control meet your goals
- Individualized plans for your sport, job or fitness goals, built with your therapist
Supporting services
What an ELEVATE home visit looks like
- Review: your running or sport history, training load, footwear, past injuries, medicines and your doctors’ recommendations.
- Assessment: strength, flexibility, balance, movement patterns and, as appropriate, a look at your running or sport movements.
- Plan: goals that matter to you, a graded return-to-sport program and a written home program.
- Progress checks: strength and control measures to guide each step back.
- Communication: progress shared with your physician or surgeon as appropriate.
ELEVATE serves adults in Oakland and Macomb County, Michigan, with licensed physical and occupational therapists and performance training. See Payments & Insurance for details.
Questions families ask
Should I stop running when something hurts?
How do I come back safely after an injury?
Are new shoes the answer?
Why does my injury keep coming back?
Does stretching prevent running injuries?
Do I need a referral or does insurance cover this?
Does ELEVATE replace my doctor?
Trusted resources for running and sports injuries
These organizations are the leading sources of education and support for this condition. We are not affiliated with them.
Related guides
Browse every condition we treat on our Conditions We Treat page.
Sources and medical note
- American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, OrthoInfo: Tips for a Safe Running Program and Shin Splints.
- Willy RW et al. Patellofemoral Pain. Journal of Orthopaedic & Sports Physical Therapy, 2019 (APTA).
- Martin RL et al. Hamstring Strain Injury in Athletes. Journal of Orthopaedic & Sports Physical Therapy, 2022 (APTA).
This page is educational and is not medical advice. It does not replace your physician’s care. Always follow your physician’s instructions. After an injury with severe pain, a deformed limb or inability to bear weight, or for chest pain, severe breathlessness, fainting or signs of heat illness, call 911 immediately.
Contact Elevate Therapy Services
Need to reach us? Use our web form to send a message now, or contact us using one of the methods below.
We will be in contact within one to two business days.
Phone: (248) 266-5721
Fax: (586) 788-1704
