The Art of Running

By Geoff Cater

The last few years has seen an influx of running techniques, the most popular of these are ‘Chi Running’ and ‘Pose Running’, both promising improved performance and most tantalizing of all an injury free future. They have documented these ‘revolutions’ in books, DVD’s and now even have their own trainers to help re-teach you to run. Too good to be true? Afraid so! Not that they don’t have some very valid points, but the idea you can have a one size fits all system is wish full at best and completely nonsensical at worst. You simply can’t re-invent a natural process we have been doing since the Wooly Mammoth gave us the evil eye! Forcing a person to change the natural kinetic chain of their lower limbs I believe will increase the risk of injuries in the long term. The irony of course is that technique has been badly neglected in the fitness community and is extremely important to the Soft Sands way of training.

The truth is that technique, defined ultimately as efficiency of movement, has always had an enormous bearing on the success of elite runners and can also be hugely advantageous to the every day runner in terms of performance and injury prevention. The subject, however, is unquestionably clouded in confusion and ambiguity. Indeed, it is an area of such controversy and contradiction that most personal trainers stay away from it completely.

The biggest area of risk is normally associated with foot placement and where I believe the Chi and Pose running systems are most flawed. I have purposely stayed away from this area and urge you not to think about foot placement at all when you run. I concede some people may think differently and site scientific theories as evidence, but in reality there are hundreds of theories and studies out there, all which contradict one another. For example, you may be interested to know that although scientifically speaking mid-foot or ball of foot landing is considered the most efficient, over 70% of elite runners land heel first. (Exponents of ball of foot landing love to use legend Haile Gebrselassie as there poster boy when in fact he actually lands heel first; at faster paces we all change our foot position forward, which is why film analysis may show the opposite).

The Solution

I have written this article to try and cut through all the controversies and give you practical advice to help improve your natural style. I have compiled a list of common denominators which can help all runners. Unfortunately, although crucially these cannot be set rules, but principles which will help you find the right path. The more you begin to understand these principles, the more you will gain a sense, a ‘feel’ of what is right for you. It does take extreme concentration, but ironically, also extreme relaxation at the same time. Trying to marry the two is perhaps a lifelong undertaking, but one that will see improved performance, less injuries and more enjoyment.

PHASE 1

Look straight ahead at all times – visualize a glass balancing on the top of your head.

Try to feel an even balance between the left and right side of your body.

Keep your mouth and face relaxed – smiling is good little trick to help this!

Keep your shoulders relaxed – down and back.

Keep an upright posture – do not bend over.

Bend your arms at 90 degrees and move them straight up and down and not across the body.

Move your arms from shoulder to hip.

Keep your hands loose – do not make a fist.

Try and put the effort into moving the arms back and let them come forward naturally – arm movement should be gentle and not excessive, contrary to popular belief.

When you are comfortable with this you can move to the more advanced theories of phase 2.

PHASE 2

In the same way you visualized a glass balancing on the top of your head in phase one, now visualize balancing a glass in the middle of your pelvis. You want to try and keep your pelvis as flat as possible on not ‘rocking’ or ‘dropping’ from side to side.

Gently push your hips forward and also up (making yourself as ‘tall’ as possible)

The gentle forward push of the hips will help you create a slight lean forward (this should be at the hip and not in the back).

The forward hips and subsequent lean should not be excessive, but will help facilitate the next principle – trying to strike your foot underneath your centre of gravity or even slightly behind it, so that you are propelling yourself forward. Over striding is the opposite of this, where you are actually breaking yourself and then starting the forward motion over again.

Most people benefit from shortening their stride to help achieve this.  (Yes, some people do over compensate and stride too short and become less efficient). This is a very complex issue so I would suggest trying to concentrate on the principle of striking underneath you; you may then feel that shortening your stride a little will help you achieve this. You can normally tell when you are over striding because you feel ‘uneven’ and your pelvis drops or rocks from side to side. Remember your foot strike should be underneath you or as near as possible and not way out in front of you.  When you increase pace you will naturally increase your stride length and this is normal adaptation, just try not to excessively over stride.

Try to keep your foot flat as it cycles underneath you, not dropping your toes.

Quicken your cadence – turn your legs as quick as you can without feeling you are ‘out of rhythm.’ The important thing is to try and keep minimum contact with the ground, running as ‘light’ as you can.  Pretend your feet are on hot coals!

Bend your knee fully by lifting the heels of your trail leg (towards your backside). This is almost impossible to do at a slow speed and is dictated by what speed you are running to some extent, but keep in your mind that a fully bent knee of your trail leg is more efficient than a partially bent knee.

Can I turn my legs too quickly?

Most runners will benefit from quickening their cadence, but yes, it is possible to overdo it. If you have quickened your cadence too much you will feel unbalanced and a lack of power, experiment by slowing it down a little bit and find the right ‘gear’ between power and speed of your leg cycle. (The under striding or ‘chopping’ I mentioned a moment ago normally comes from trying to achieve too fast a cadence).

When increasing your cadence and trying to keep your pelvis balanced at the same time, you might feel you ‘sink’ down a little; remember to stretch your hips up so you ‘stand tall’ and give your legs room to work.

Find a RHYTHM. This is most important thing of all when it comes to cadence, try to keep this rhythm consistent through your whole run and feel you are ‘threading through’ each leg evenly on both sides of your body.

RELAX YOUR WHOLE BODY!

To begin with, focus on one or two things each time you go for a run and then slowly add more to your checklist. Pretend to throw and imaginary blanket of relaxation over your body so the technique is within a relaxed state. In other words, don’t over force or over think the points to the detriment of relaxation.  Running should feel smooth, natural and rhythmic. If you feel uncomfortable just tone down the element that is causing discomfort and eventually you will find your style. You will, in time, become more efficient and therefore faster but most importantly, you yourself will know why.

Happy Running!

Got a question? Geoff always welcomes questions and comments:

geoff@softsands.co.uk

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