The Wall Street Journal discusses risks for injury while marathon training and includes guidance from Jordan D. Metzl, MD, sports medicine physician at HSS.

According to Dr. Metzl, as runners enter peak training season and increase their mileage for fall marathons, many can get hampered by repetitive-use injuries.

He noted that Runner’s knee and Achilles tendinitis can be deceptively minor. “They tend to hurt just a bit more every day, but if they’re not properly recognized and diagnosed, they can be quite serious,” he said.

Dr. Metzl explained that research suggests first-timers have a higher rate of injury than seasoned marathoners. It can take months for the body to adapt to distance running, he added.

The article highlights a student recently published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, led by Brett G. Toresdahl, MD, and co-authored by Dr. Metzl, showing that a rapid increase in training volume is a major predictive factor for developing an injury in marathon training.

“As long as you’re cross-training, you should be fine to pick up where you left off rather than try to catch up,” he noted.

Read the full article at WSJ.com. A subscription is required to access.