Hip and core exercise programme prevents running-related overuse injuries in adult novice recreational runners: a three-arm randomised controlled trial (Run RCT).

Researchers recruited 325 novice recreational runners and split them into three groups: one did hip and core exercises before running, another did ankle and foot exercises, and a third did static stretching as a control. Everyone ran the same training programme over 24 weeks while reporting any injuries they sustained. The hip and core group had fewer injuries overall compared to the stretching group, with roughly 39% fewer overuse injuries on average each week and 52% fewer of the more serious overuse injuries.

The ankle and foot group, however, showed no protection against overuse injuries and actually had more acute injuries than the stretching group. This suggests that not all injury prevention exercises work equally, and targeting the hip and core region appeared to offer real protection for new runners.

If you have recently taken up running, you might be curious whether doing certain exercises beforehand could protect you from the common aches and pains that often derail new runners. This study followed people like you over six months and found that those who did hip and core strengthening exercises before their runs stayed healthier than those who only stretched.

The benefit was meaningful, with about half as many serious injuries in the exercise group. Interestingly, exercises focused on the ankle and foot did not help and may have even been associated with more sudden injuries.

These findings suggest that hip and core work may be worth exploring if you are starting a running routine, though as with any training change, it makes sense to start gradually and listen to your body.

This is a summary of research, not medical advice. Talk to your own healthcare provider about anything affecting your care.

This well-designed RCT with reasonable sample size (245 female, 80 male novice runners) provides useful evidence that hip and core exercise programming reduces running-related lower limb injury in this population. The magnitude of effect is modest but clinically relevant, with a hazard ratio of 0.66 for overall injury incidence and a 52% reduction in substantial overuse injuries.

The study was carefully controlled, with all groups supervised and performing identical running programmes, so the intervention itself appears to be the driver of the difference. What strikes the eye is the poor performance of the ankle and foot programme, which not only failed to prevent overuse injuries but was associated with higher acute injury rates.

This raises questions about exercise selection and dosing that the current study cannot answer. The trial strengthens the case for hip and core work as a foundational approach to injury prevention in novice runners, though longer follow-up and investigation of optimal exercise prescription would help refine practice.