Runner’s Clinic for Young Athletes

Running is a vital part of many sports — from track and cross country to soccer, lacrosse and basketball. The Sports Medicine Center at Children’s Hospital Colorado provides a specialized experience at The Running Athlete Clinic (TRAC) for athletes to maintain health, form and function on the run.

What is The Running Athlete Clinic?

TRAC specializes in multidisciplinary care for athletes with running-related injuries or illnesses and athletes who want to improve their health and performance. Our team can help with injury management, training plans, nutrition, recovery, running biomechanics (movement) and building strength to heal and help prevent injuries.

Our clinic is staffed by experts including a sports medicine physician, athletic trainers, a sports dietitian and physical therapists who specialize in running conditions, injuries and performance.

Who do we treat at our runner’s clinic?

Our runner’s clinic was created specifically for young runners who have suffered a running injury or have recurring running injuries. We specialize in caring for child, teen and young adult runners. Whether for a specific sport like track or a running-related injury or condition, our sports medicine experts treat it all.

What should you expect from a visit to our runner’s clinic?

During the first visit, you will meet with a sports medicine doctor and sports dietitian. Based on your treatment plan, you may be referred to a sports physical therapist with expertise in running care and the Center for Gait and Movement Analysis for running gait analysis. All these providers work together to provide running-focused, comprehensive care.

Sports medicine physician evaluation for running

You will begin your visit with a consultation from a sports medicine doctor, Aubrey Armento, MD, who specializes in holistic care for young athletes. This visit may include:

• Injury evaluation
• Imaging tests
• Injury management  including a return-to-run plan
• Medical and injury history review
• Training plans and goals review
• Lab work for bone health or menstrual dysfunction

Running gait analysis

If your treatment plan requires a running gait analysis, we’ll refer you to our Center for Gait and Movement Analysis. As one of only a handful of accredited labs in the nation, our experts use 3D motion-capture technology to identify movement patterns and assess any changes that could improve performance or help avoid injury.

Learn what to expect for a running gait analysis

Nutrition consultation for running

Many athletes aren’t fueling their bodies for optimal health and performance. Our registered sports dietitians help answer questions about fueling for sport and create plans to ensure proper nutrition and hydration.

By reviewing nutrition history, our experts can identify any changes that can give you the proper fuel for running. By examining medical history, nutrition habits and exercise routines, our dietitians can help determine other nutritional needs as well, such as nutrient deficiencies or adjustments to maximize training and recovery. Once we have all the necessary information, we will discuss a plan for follow-up care.

Evaluation with a sports physical therapist

If referred to physical therapy, our sports physical therapists will perform a musculoskeletal evaluation to fully understand what might be causing your injury. This evaluation includes an assessment of your range of motion, strength and movement patterns for the injured area and your body in general.

Our team will use this information to develop a plan for ongoing physical therapy to treat your injury and correct any issues with your running gait that might contribute to recurring injuries.

Follow-up care with our sports medicine team

Our overall goal is to help you establish healthier running habits and prevent risky habits to stay injury-free in the sport that you love. After your initial appointment, our team will develop your individualized care plan, discuss the plan with your family and schedule follow-up appointments with specific specialists as needed.

What running injuries do we treat?

Our sports medicine specialists create care plans to heal everything from musculoskeletal injuries to general pain, including:

Hip injuries

• Adductor (groin) injuries
• Apophysitis (inflammation around the growth plate)
• Femoroacetabular impingement (FAI)
• Hamstring injuries
• Hip flexor injuries
• Sciatica (back or buttocks pain caused by the sciatic nerve)

Knee injuries

• Anterior knee pain (patellofemoral pain syndrome)
• Fat pad impingement (pain in the fatty tissue just below the kneecap)
• IT band syndrome (overuse injury of the tissue on the outside of the knee)
• Osgood-Schlatter disease
• Patellar tendon injuries (the tendon just below the kneecap)

Ankle and foot injuries

• Achilles tendon injuries
• Ankle sprain
• Plantar fasciitis (inflamed tissue causing heel pain)
• Sever’s disease
• Shin splints (medial tibial stress syndrome)

Other running injuries and illnesses

• Bone stress injuries (stress reactions, stress fractures)
• Exertional compartment syndrome (muscle and nerve condition in the legs caused by exercise)
• Male and female athlete triad
• Relative energy deficiency in sport (RED-S) (not taking in enough calories to meet exercise demands)

Why choose Children’s Colorado for running injury care?

As the first multidisciplinary pediatric running clinic in our region, our sports expertise is unmatched. Everything we do is designed for young athletes.

We know that young athletes are built differently and compete at various levels. A growing body affects an athlete's injuries, training and recovery and only pediatric experts know how to cater care to growing athletes. Our experts understand all the ways kids and teens are different from adults and provide care specific to them. With care plans designed for athletes’ specific sport and goals, we are constantly pushing to improve our care so that they heal faster and have fewer injuries in the future.

Contact our runner’s clinic

To schedule an appointment at The Running Athlete Clinic or get more information, please call: 720-777-5593