Running Assessment
Merridy has a special interest in treating runners. She comprehensively assesses running techniques for lower limb injuries, performance, and injury prevention. She uses running retraining to help with various running injuries, while also providing a specific strength and conditioning plan tailored to each patient's goals.
Goal of assessment
With many years of experience treating runners, Merridy is dedicated to helping people reach their goals and stay injury free. She uses a combination of gait retraining, strength and conditioning, footwear advice, and various treatment modalities (shockwave therapy, dry needling, soft tissue massage, and foot/ankle joint mobilisations) to help runners achieve their goals. She is passionate about helping runners of all levels to stay injury-free and reach their maximum potential.
What is a running assessment?
More than running biomechanics
Person-centered approach
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Need to consider:
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Why do you run?
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Training load (load v load capacity)
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Previous injury
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Beliefs around injury and training
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Personal (psycho) factors
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Strength/flexibility/motor control
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Sleep, recovery, and diet
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Footwear
What's involved
After a thorough history, a full biomechanical assessment is undertaken to assess:
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functional movements (squats, lunging, single leg squats, hoping)
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strength tests (calf capacity, any other muscle group relative to pain/goals for running)
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range of movements (hip, knee, ankle, and foot)
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diagnosis of specific pain and explanation of evidence-based treatment
Plantar pressure and force analysis
Merridy uses an instrumented treadmill that records videos from various angles while measuring the plantar pressures and forces acting on the body. This ensures that all patients get an accurate and comprehensive analysis of their movement patterns.
Elements of a run assessment
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Video analysis is undertaken from various angles using high-speed cameras
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Force and pressure analysis using the Zebris instrumented treadmill
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A step-by-step explanation of each phase of running, highlighting what is most optimal and how the runner compares
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Diagnosis of any potential causes of pain from running style or optimising for injury prevention and performance
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Modify running technique based on the history, assessment, current pain, and goals
Detailed report
At the end of the assessment, a detailed report is created, which breaks down all components of the run assessment and provides comprehensive data that patients can use to track their progress.
