Since my knee injury I have told myself to run slower, build up gradually and make sure I don’t injure myself again.

I have put into place the RICE method of recovery which is as follow, this has kept away any inflammation that has arisen:

Rest

Rest is a key part of repair. Without rest, continual strain is placed on the area, leading to increased inflammation, pain, and possible further injury. Also, most soft tissue injuries will take far longer to heal. There is also a risk of abnormal repair or chronic inflammation resulting from a failure to rest. In general, the rest should be until the patient is able to use the limb with the majority of function restored and pain essentially gone.

Ice

Ice is excellent at reducing the inflammatory response and the pain from heat generated^{[citation needed]}. Proper usage of ice can reduce the destruction over-response which can result from inflammation. A good method is ice 20 minutes of each hour. Other recommendations are an alternation of ice and no-ice for 15–20 minutes each, for a 24–48 hour period.^[5] To prevent localised ischemia or frostbite to the skin, it is recommended that the ice be placed within a towel before wrapping around the area.

Exceeding the recommended time for ice application may be detrimental, as blood flow will be too reduced to allow nutrient delivery and waste removal.

Compression

Compression aims to reduce the edematous swelling that results from the inflammatory process. Although some swelling is inevitable, too much swelling results in significant loss of function, excessive pain and eventual slowing of blood flow through vessel restriction.

An elastic bandage, rather than a firm plastic bandage (such as zinc-oxide tape) is required. Usage of a tight, non-elastic bandage will result in reduction of adequate blood flow, potentially causing ischemia. The fit should be snug so as to not move freely, but still allow expansion for when muscles contract and fill with blood.

Elevation

Elevation aims to reduce swelling by increasing venous return of blood to the systemic circulation. This will not only result in less edema, but also aid in waste product removal from the area.

But running slower, this is something that I have found hard. I have tried consciously to slow down my pace, starting fast and then trying to slow down whilst running. Yet when I look at GPS data I am going faster than when I was fully fit. I will have to see how it goes.