How significant is the difference between running on a sidewalk vs a paved road?
I've been running somewhat regularly for about 5 years now. I have always run on the road. For the last 4 weeks I have a new route that requires I run on a sidewalk. During this time I have developed slight pain in my repaired ankle. I'm about 230lb's (have been between 255 and 230 this whole time) and my ankle has 2 plates and 12 screws in it.
I've had knee pain and other leg pain in the past which regular stretching relieved. So far the ankle has not stopped aching (on and off). Could the hardness of the sidewalk make a big enough difference to my body to begin a serious problem?
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The surface you are running on may play a role in how your body reacts. There’s an often quoted study co-authored by Southern California podiatrist John Pagliano that states…
"… one of the five leading causes of injury is "improper" running
surfaces........concrete is approximately 10 times harder than
asphalt, so all your bones, muscles and connective tissues get
pummeled. In other words, welcome to stress fracture city"
And, an additional post attributed to Bill Nye (“the science guy”) states….
"Now get this ... there are infinite different types of concrete. It
has to do with the mixture with determines the strength (measured in
pounds per square inch or psi). There are many types of concrete
because of the different applications, in buildings, as sidewalks,
used in planters or parking lot bumpers, etc. Asphalt is different in
that is only used for roads, so it's basically residential road,
commercial road (high use) or highway. The asphalt on maple drive can
be softer than on main street, and main street can be softer than the
interstate. Asphalt (400-600 psi) is "softer" than concrete (typically
3000 psi) meaning that it takes compression and then expands back to
its original state. Concrete sidewalks and paths are the "softest"
concrete to run on, about 3000 or 4000 psi. Worst concrete substance
to run on: Airstrip, typically 8000 - 10000 psi."
So, your body may be reacting to a different PSI since you’ve changed your training route.
Your problem might not be with the hardness of the ground you're running on. If you run on a sidewalk that is on the same level on the road you shouldn't see much difference.
I think the issue here is the fact that sidewalks are not as straight as paved road. Most sidewalks have bigger slopes going down, up, then back down again. And the sidewalks stop when you reach entrances to parking lots. Because you ran for so long on paved road, your feet had no problem running because you don't have to worry about any of that. Where as when you run on sidewalks, your legs have to constantly adjust to the constant slopes, cracks, and when you switch from sidewalk to road to sidewalk when you pass parking lot entrances.
In short, sidewalks are not are straight and leveled as roads. That's what's probably taking a toll on your ankle.
While concrete may be a harder surface than asphalt, other than preconceived perceptions, there is not an appreciable difference in deflection (Force returned from a surface) between concrete and asphalt.
There is a difference between grass, dirt, rubberized track surfaces, etc., but between asphalt and concrete any difference that you perceive is perception only, and not real. You simply don't generate the PSI force necessary to make a difference.
hypertextbook.com/facts/1999/SaraBirnbaum.shtml www.translatorscafe.com/cafe/units-converter/pressure/calculator/newton-per-square-meter-%5BN/m%5E2%5D-to-psi-%5Bpsi%5D/ www.chirunning.com/blog/entry/comparison-of-harvard-study-results-with-chirunning
There have also been studies where the forces of various surfaces were compared with running strides as shown by the following links
Study comparing rubber, grass, concrete and asphalt
Forty-seven adult recreational runners ran twice for 40 m on all four different surfaces at 12 ± 5% km · h(-1). Peak pressure, pressure-time integral, and contact time were recorded by Pedar X insoles. Asphalt and concrete were similar for all plantar variables and pressure zones
Study comparing ground reaction forces
No significant differences were detected among the surfaces for shoe reaction forces, contact time, or impulse (P > 0.05). This implies that runners who choose to run on stiffer surfaces are not exposing themselves to additional risk as a result of loading but possibly because of internal compensatory mechanisms. However, these results may not apply to all runners.
This last one does indicate that there may be a difference in how people run on various surfaces, but the surfaces themselves are largely irrelevant.
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