I was heading to the pool for a swim the other morning and passed a woman running to work.  I know this because she had a backpack loaded to the hilt.  I mean, why would anyone just out for a run be carrying a big pack with presumably – enough gear to get through the day?  Right.  When I see people doing this, I am always tempted to warn against such practice – but I don’t.  Few people appreciate the unsolicited advice of complete strangers.

As a running coach and former ‘bike and/or run-commuter’ I appreciate the dedication it takes to get all of your runs into your otherwise tapped schedule.  There are many things to balance in one’s day – so running to work seems to be a very efficient use of your time.  Unfortunately, it may not be a particularly effective use of your running.

Running efficiency can go right out the window when you’re carrying a load like this.  Your speed, gait, leg turnover and general body position changes with a backpack.  Research points toward balancing the pack front and back so that the overall position of the body is less affected.  There are the suggestions of keeping the pack very tight to the body in order to avoid a lot of bumping around.  Makes sense.  The fact remains that if you plan to run a long way – the chance of altering your normal running biomechanics enough to increase the risk of injury is fairly high.  Research suggests that the risk of a variety of injuries may present with prolonged loading: foot blisters, stress fractures, back strains, metatarsalgia (foot pain), rucksack palsy (shoulder traction injury) and knee pain (Knapik, J. et al., 1996).

If you are a “running commuter” – perhaps you might reconsider the big backpack and find another way to transport your stuff? Just a thought.

LiveSplendidly!