I'm curious on what kind of surfaces people run. When I was running along the bikepath yesterday, a woman running the opposite direction yelled at me "Grass is easier on the knees." I do wear a wrap on my left knee so that's probably why she felt that she should let me know about grass. I read that, to avoid injury, grass is the best surface to run on, with the track in the top five, followed by the treadmill, with pavement being the worst (although asphalt is better than concrete--how do you tell the difference?).

So I tried running on the grass next to the bikepath. It was tough! The grass was so uneven and full of sticks and stuff that I think I expended a lot more energy trying to avoid turning my ankle. Plus there were areas where I had to switch from grass to path, then back again. I felt much more comfortable just running on the paved path (hoping it's asphalt rather than concrete!).

So if you run on pavement, do you always run on pavement, or do you switch to other surfaces to give your knees a break? If you run on grass, where do you find enough grass to run on continuously? Inquiring minds. . .

asphalt is generally black and made of the little chunks of gravel. Concrete tends to be lighter in color and poured in blocks, like the sidewalk. Grass and dirt are easier on the knees, you can try running laps around a soccer field or some similarly maintained surface, that might be easier than trying "trail" running. I personally do mostly treadmill right now, but im working on building up again to being able to go 30 min without stopping. I prefer the treadmill for these training runs since i can keep a good eye on pace and time.

I run anywhere I can!!! Sometimes I run on the pavement, sometimes (depending on the route) on a flattish grass verge that runs along side it. Sometimes on country paths, sometimes on canal towpaths. Sometimes in the park I run along the grass rather than the path. I prefer the towpath/country path surface, it's not quite even but a lot more forgiving than the pavement or the road. I tend to find grass quite hard, particularly if it's a bit wet because it seems to suck my foot right in without giving me any bounce to push back off. It really depends what mood my knees are in sometimes, I have a couple of different routes I run depending on my mood and my aches and pains!

I run mainly on asphalt/bike paths, sidewalks & when I am lucky on trails beside the river. I run better on the asphalt becuase it is even, the trails tend to make me trip over myself. Although I must say the two times I fell I was on asphalt. LOL go figure. Probably because that is where I run the most. I can't run on the grass that easily either, its very uneven. As far as the hardship on your knees/joints, any running is going to cause strain, but we're still better off in the long run out taking care of our bodies by running

I know what you mean, I try to run on the grass because its easier on the knees, but heck I kept tripping over sticks and falling into holes, it wasn't fun, so I do a little of both, grass because I KNOW I should and then in some areas Asphalt...

I run on asphalt almost exclusively, unless I'm at the track doing speedwork (not that THAT has happened in the last two years ). I find off-road running unstable (this is a very rocky and hard desert) and slow. I've always done OK on asphalt, but I do have one stretch of road where I alternate sides because the edges have a slant away from the center, which makes one leg effectively longer than the other, and that can cause injury after a while. Concrete is horrible, very jarring, and I try to avoid it.

Anne

I tend to run mostly on concrete as I am running on footpaths, but some of my track does include dirt paths. I run at night after work so I can't really run on the grass as I tend to trip over unseen uneven bits!

When I run on the weekend I will run on grass or go trail running with my boyfriend. I always notice how much "softer" the grass is on my knees as I have had problems with them in the past. Running on the grass leaves them feeling a lot better (even if I DO have to pay more attention to my running surface) than running on concrete.

Liv

I feel the difference between ashphalt and concrete, asphphalt is much easier on the knees... I don't run on grass because of the reasons mentionned above, I certainly don't want to sprain my ankle... Running on the dreadmill is easier on the knees but excruciatingly boring but it is easier to do speed work and sprints on a treadmill...