Walking and running on ice and snow
Friday, February 4th, 2011
Winter Running
If you suffer from sore feet, be careful where you walk and run: with a few bad steps, dangerous surfaces can injure you and undo weeks of recuperation.
Icy, snowy areas represent the most evident example of a dangerous surface. With your feet slipping, sliding, gliding, and floating unpredictably in any direction, icy surfaces can inflict extra damage to your already tender feet and/or Achilles tendons. And on those flat icy areas with ice and snow chunks frozen in place, walking and running can be horrific. Don’t attempt to navigate ice-covered areas unless you absolutely have to.
Moving across any type of uneven surface will be questionable to the safety of your feet. Luckily, walking or running through such an area will feel uncomfortable, and you’d probably sense right away that it’s not good for your lower extremities. And you’d be right. The foot in the lower position is subject to undue stress, as it carries an excessive proportion of the load in this situation. The discomfort should stop you from settling into a route or area that features this type of footing and repeating it as your regular routine; note, however, that even one pass through a risky, icy area can re-injure vulnerable feet. Be careful where you travel.
Some ideas to handle navigation on icy, snowy, wintery conditions:
- Choose relatively even surfaces if you can.
- Use restraint and caution when exercising upon icy, snowy surfaces; assume that all wet, dark areas on pavements are slippery.
- Choose footwear that provides traction; shoes or boots with soles that are grooved, vs. smooth, are ideal.
- Walk and run with a short stride, keeping your center of gravity directly over your feet as much as possible. Avoid the aggressive, lunging stride. If you do this on snowy, icy surfaces, you won’t be walking or running long anyway. You’ll most likely be twirling around on the ground.
- Consider ice-gripping devices for your footwear, like YakTrax or Ice Grips; the metal “teeth” on these accessories can really bite into snow and ice, and keep you from slipping and tumbling.
During the winter in a snowy area, it’s great to keep active, but at the same time, keep safe!