It’s frustrating, especially when you’re relying on your physical health to keep everything else in your life moving. But according to Dr. Miho Tanaka, a top-tier orthopedic surgeon, getting hurt is not a bad luck thing, it’s often the result of small, avoidable gaps in how we treat our bodies. Here are better ways to look at how to build and prevent it from crashing.
1. Prepare the body
Think of your body like a high performance engine. You wouldn’t redline a car that’s been sitting in a freezing garage for a week without letting it idle first. As we get older, our tendons,the thick cords connecting muscle to bone, naturally lose some of that youthful staminaThey get stiffer, and if you demand explosive movement from a cold, stiff tendon, it’s going to complain.
The Human Fix: Stop treating the warmup like a chore you have to “get through.” Make it part of the ritual. Use dynamic movements,things like leg swings, arm circles, and hip openers. You’re essentially waking up the nervous system and telling your blood flow where to go. Also, remember that a warmup isn’t just what you do five minutes before a run; it’s the training you do in the weeks leading up to a big event. Consistent, smaller efforts prepare the tides for the big tides.
2. Find Your Symmetry (The Balance Factor)
We all have a strong side.Maybe you always carry your heavy bag on your right shoulder, or you favor your left leg when you stand. Over time, these tiny habits create muscle imbalances. One side becomes a workhorse, while the other gets lazy. This puts uneven pressure on your joints, leading to some pains that seem to come out of nowhere.
The Human Fix: This is especially vital for women, whose biomechanics can put extra strain on the knees. If your quads are much stronger than your hamstrings, or your core isn’t “talking” to your glutes, your ACL (a major knee ligament) takes the hit. Dr. Tanaka points out a staggering stat: simply correcting these imbalances can slash your risk of an ACL tear by up to 75%. When you’re at the gym or stretching, be obsessive about symmetry. If the right side feels tighter than the left, stay there an extra 30 seconds. Balance isn’t just about standing on one leg; it’s about making sure your “engine” pulls evenly from both sides.
3. Respect the “20% Rule”
The “tide of stress” often makes us want to overcompensate. We feel behind, so we try to do a month’s worth of exercise in a week. This is the fastest way to hit a wall. Your muscles might be ready for more weight, but your tendons and joints are much slower to adapt to new loads.
The Human Fix: Embrace the “Slow and Steady” mantra. Dr. Tanaka suggests a cap of 20% growth per week. If you ran 10 miles last week, don’t do 20 this week; do 12. This incremental approach feels “too slow” when you’re motivated, but it’s the only way to ensure your structural integrity keeps up with your ambition. It’s about being indomitable over the long haul, not just a hero for one afternoon.
4. Watch Your Mechanics
How you move when no one is watching is how you get hurt when the pressure is on. “Biomechanics” sounds like a cold, scientific term, but it’s really just the “geometry of you.” For women in particular, the way the hips are structured can cause the knees to “cave in” during a jump or a sharp turn (pivoting).
The Human Fix: You don’t need to be a pro athlete to benefit from a “movement checkup.” If you feel a “clunk” or a “pinch” when you move, your body is sending you a signal. Recording yourself on your phone or working with a coach to analyze how you land, or pivot can reveal “blind spots” in your movement. Fine-tuning these mechanics is like realigning the tires on your car, it prevents uneven wear and tear and keeps you moving smoothly for years to come.
The Bottom Line
Building a fortified body isn’t about being tough enough to push through pain; it’s about being smart enough to avoid it. By focusing on preparation, balance, and patience, you’re not just preventing injury, you’re ensuring that your “solo flight” stays in the air as long as you want it to