Clinch Performance and Recovery

04/21/2026

We love running, but walking also deserves some love!

From energy conservation for ultras to rehabbing an injury back to running, walking can have some serious benefits.

I’ve incorporated walking into patient rehab programs (including my own when I was rehabbing a hamstring injury). It allows individuals to get back into running in a gradual and progressive manner so they don’t overdo it and end up with a setback or another issue.

Plus, it allows us to slow down and enjoy the scenery 🏔️🌳⛅️

Walking can literally be a win!

Clinch Performance and Recovery
Performance physical therapy services in Reno for people who are serious about living an active lifestyle.

Our 3 Step Process:
Ditch the pain.👊
Build resilience and mobility.💪👍
Clinch your goals! 🏊‍♀️🚴‍♀️🏃‍♀️🥋i🥊🤼

Send a DM or reach out to:
Clinchperformanceandrecovery.com
admin@clinchrecovery.com
(775)984-6605

04/17/2026

People have their own reasons why they’re walking during a race.

We don’t know their backstory.

As long as people are respectful, why judge?

I agree that walkers should start towards the back of the corral, not only so that the faster runners aren’t impeded but also for safety reasons.

For a walk/run, raise a hand to let the people behind you know that you’re slowing down.

We are all out there, doing the thing.

Personally, I’ve had to walk because of an ACL tear.
My close friends and family have to walk because of health conditions.

I don’t think that we should be shaming people who are out there, doing their best, even if it is walking.

04/17/2026

When I see someone walking on a course, I don’t know their backstory.

Personally, I’ve walked on courses before. Sometimes I was dealing with knee pain from a torn ACL, others for energy management, others because I wanted to take in the experience.

Some of my patients are doing a walk run because it’s their first race back from an injury.

As long as people aren’t being disrespectful, I think we should be supportive that people are out there.

04/17/2026

I came across this article about running shoes which summarized the following:

There was no significant difference between neutral/cushioned shoes vs minimalist shoes in regards to injuries or how much someone liked the shoes.
Whether or not motion control shoes reduce the number running injuries compared to neutral/cushioned shoes is not certain.

Softer midsole shoes may make little or no difference when it comes down to injuries.

It is also uncertain whether or not stability shoes reduce the number of injuries when compared to neutral/cushioned shoes.

Whether motion controlled shoes reduce the number of injuries compared to stability shoes is also not certain.

It is not conclusive that prescribing running shoes and basing shoe selection on foot posture makes a difference in injuries.

There were some limitations with this analysis: the participants knew what types of shoes they were receiving, the number of participants was small, and there wasn’t a significant amount of studies comparing the shoe types. Bias was also an issue when comparing these studies.

So what does this mean?
From a clinical perspective, this makes sense since the runners in my clinic wear all different types of shoes and it is very individualized to what the runner prefers.
My biggest take on shoes is comfort and finding a shoe that feels good and doesn’t make one change the running gait.

We also have to take into account that running injuries can be complex: They can happen due to training load errors, energy deficiency, strength and/or range of motion deficits, metabolic and hormonal factors, or a history of previous injury. We can’t blame shoes for everything.

If you are looking for some guidance on running shoe wear, check out the . They are going to do their best to fit you with shoes that work for you and are also passionate about keeping people active, and that is something we can all get behind.

Relph N, Greaves H, Armstrong R, Prior TD, Spencer S, Griffiths IB, Dey P, Langley B. Running shoes for preventing lower limb running injuries in adults. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2022 Aug 22;8(8):CD013368. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD013368.pub2.

04/16/2026

What’s your vision?

Have you ever sat with yourself for a moment and really thought that out?

Where do you see yourself going? What do you see yourself doing? What type of fulfillment can you see yourself obtaining?

Is it crossing the line of your first half marathon with a big smile on your face and your hands in the air?

Is it rehabbing your knee and finally feeling good enough that you can go for a run with your dog?

One thing about forming a vision is that it gives us a glimpse of what’s possible. It also gives us hope.
This is important, especially when we are dealing with an injury. A vision and hope let us know that if we take a change on ourselves, all is not lost. It’s easy to get caught up in the “My life sucks, this is never going to get better” mindset, but the people who really are successful are the ones who don’t lose sight of the vision.

Our vision at Clinch Performance and Recovery is to be a place where someone walks in and knows that they belong. We want to foster a community and build a network of people who understand the value of doing hard things, and also want to help the people of our community stay healthy, injury-free and out there, because we believe that helping each other achieve what they once thought was impossible is how we become better humans.

That is our vision because we understand the value and difficulty of doing hard things, and we want to give others a chance to experience that for themselves.

What’s your vision?

04/15/2026

The lateral step down test is a useful tool to determine how well a runner is stabilizing through the leg.

I have used it as both an assessment and treatment drill, especially for anterior knee pain conditions like patellar pain (when appropriate for the runner).

I learned this tool from who deserves a huge amount of credit, and it has been a real game changer for rehabbing runners.

Clinch Performance and Recovery
Performance physical therapy services in Reno for people who are serious about living an active lifestyle.

Our 3 Step Process:
Ditch the pain.👊
Build resilience and mobility.💪👍
Clinch your goals! 🏊‍♀️🚴‍♀️🏃‍♀️🥋i🥊🤼

Send a DM or reach out to:
Clinchperformanceandrecovery.com
admin@clinchrecovery.com
(775)984-6605

04/15/2026

Mistakes can be painful lessons.

Sometimes we need help, and that’s okay. When we train smart, it opens up so many possibilities.

Our bodies were made to be worked WITH, not AGAINST. When we continue to beat it up, it’s only a matter of time before it hits back.

As a running PT, the last thing I want to see is people getting hurt and not being able to run. It’s not a fun experience and because I didn’t know how to train art at the time, I got hurt. That’s why I wanted to share this lesson.

It’s okay to get help so we can do things the smart way.

Thanks to to helping me complete my dream of becoming an Ironman!

04/14/2026

Forefoot, midfoot, rearfoot… oh my!

Is one better than the other?

Let’s break down some of the differences:

A rear foot strike is when the heel comes in contact with the ground, first.

A midfoot strike is when the initial contact is made closer to the center of the foot.

A forefoot strike is when the front of the foot makes initial contact. This can be seen with sprinters.

Different foot strikes are going to emphasize different muscles. Rear foot striking will place more eccentric load on the tibialis anterior (shin muscle) while forefoot striking will create more eccentric load on the Achilles tendon and calves.
Midfoot striking is considered “ideal,” but I’ve also seen midfoot strikers with ankle and foot injuries.
The limb is still under a tremendous amount of load.

When it comes down to it, tissue capacity is what’s important, along with manageable loads. One foot strike pattern is not going to guarantee zero injuries, just as one isn’t going to guarantee terrible running. If the body has adapted to that running style, it may not be beneficial to change it. Sometimes those changes can come with unintended consequences.

So is one better than the other? I think a better question is: is this persons body adapting well to the training demands or do we need a plan to address the issue?

If you’re experiencing some running issues, we would love to help you figure out what’s going on and how to solve it.

Clinch Performance and Recovery
Performance physical therapy services in Reno for people who are serious about living an active lifestyle.

Our 3 Step Process:
Ditch the pain.👊
Build resilience and mobility.💪👍
Clinch your goals! 🏊‍♀️🚴‍♀️🏃‍♀️🥋i🥊🤼

Send a DM or reach out to:
Clinchperformanceandrecovery.com
admin@clinchrecovery.com
(775)984-6605

04/12/2026

Not everyone needs to change their running biomechanics to improve running economy.

This article was an interesting read that looked at the relationship between running biomechanics (Ankle, knee, and hip angles at initial contact, midstance or toe-off and their range of motion, peak vertical ground reaction force, and EMG) and running economy.

What they showed was that vertical oscillation had a higher association with energy cost, lower extremity range of motion was not significantly associated, leg stiffness was associated with lower cost, surface EMG was not significantly associated with energy cost, and foot strike patterns were also not significantly associated with running economy.

So what I took from this was that changing someone’s mechanics into “textbook perfect” is not always necessary. It could actually cause harm, because changing the way someone moves is introducing novel stresses on the body that it is not used to.

However, systematic reviews are just that: a review of a lot of data that we can try to summarize into general ideas. They are great to help guide treatment plans, but the limitations are that they don’t look at each individual data point.

One data point (a person) may benefit from improving ankle dorsiflexion mobility to help with midstance, while person may not need any changes in mechanics.

We also don’t want to take what works for one person and generalizing it to everyone.

The research can help guide treatment, but the most important thing is the person in the treatment room.



Citation:
Van Hooren B, Jukic I, Cox M, Frenken KG, Bautista I, Moore IS. The Relationship Between Running Biomechanics and Running Economy: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Observational Studies. Sports Med. 2024 May;54(5):1269-1316. doi: 10.1007/s40279-024-01997-3. Epub 2024 Mar 6. Erratum in: Sports Med. 2025 Mar;55(3):779-780. doi: 10.1007/s40279-024-02157-3. PMID: 38446400; PMCID: PMC11127892.

04/11/2026

To help avoid running injuries, adding intensity should be done gradually.

We tend to think of adding mileage as the reason why injuries happen, but sharp increases in intensity can also be a culprit.

This happens because the strain on the musculoskeletal system shifts, especially as we go from steady state or zone 2 runs to sprinting. It’s a reason why we can see upper hamstring strains on the track. The hip extensors are under a lot more stress with sprinting.

It’s not just the track, but adding too much vert is another form of intensity that the body may not be used to, especially if the majority of the running has been done on flat ground.

This doesn’t mean we avoid those things. It just means we need to allow for tissue adaptation so that its capacity can match the demands.
We need to ease into it and allow for progression over time so the body can adapt.

We can’t rush biology, so this takes time, patience, smart training, adequate recovery, and maybe some strength exercises or mobility work; but an an injury-free runner is always going to be a better runner than an injured runner.

Have fun. Stay healthy. Stay out there.

Clinch Performance and Recovery
Performance physical therapy services in Reno for people who are serious about living an active lifestyle.

Our 3 Step Process:
Ditch the pain.👊
Build resilience and mobility.💪👍
Clinch your goals! 🏊‍♀️🚴‍♀️🏃‍♀️🥋i🥊🤼

Send a DM or reach out to:
Clinchperformanceandrecovery.com
admin@clinchrecovery.com
(775)984-6605

04/11/2026

Please be fueled for training.

Not only does this help with performance, but we also want to make sure we don’t develop injuries or in severe cases, REDs (relative energy deficiency syndrome) because the body is not getting what it needs.

Calories, fat, protein, and carbs should not be seen as enemies, but tools to help us function, feel, and perform better.
This includes being fueled for day to day functions, life demands, AND training.
If you need help, I would recommend a registered dietitian who works with athletes.

Let’s embrace fueling so we can stay out there 💪

04/11/2026