Running form

It seems the buzz of barefoot running has been replaced by the minimalist movement. With this change has come an ongoing discussion on running form and how to ensure efficiency/prevent injury. Though I agree that running form is a subject worthy of discussion, it should be noted that distinct research showing that injury rates diminish based on proper running form is not quite there. We have seen good results with changing form to diminish loading rates which will make a runner less vulnerable to common injuries. However, as is often the case, we need to allow the research to catch up to the buzz.

I recently gave a talk about running form which I would like to review. My goal was to keep things simple which seems to always work best, especially when changing an ingrained habit like running.

Run Softly: As crazy as it sounds, listen to what you sound like when you are running. Do you hit harder on one side versus the other. If you do, chances are that is the side which will be more vulnerable to injury. Do you land so hard that you would be considered a "godzilla" runner!?!
All joking aside, studies show that if you focus on landing softly, you can diminish ground reaction forces considerable. That, my friends, is a good thing. When I give the cues to "run softly" most folks look at me like I am nuts. No sooner do they give me the stink eye do they concentrate and really make a change. You can hear them get soft. It might be only for a few strides, but they do it. Give it a try! What is happening when you do this is likely the foot is moving back closer to the center of mass such that the foot is not slamming into the ground so hard. Moving the foot closer also causes cadence to increase, and stride length to decrease. Both of these are good for decreasing stress up the legs. The initial contact point will also change when you get "soft". Usually as the foot comes back closer to COM, the initial contact point is more on the mid foot or forefoot.

Run Tall-Another topic discussed in the running form mix was the value of good upright posture. If a runner is overusing his/her lower back muscles, the curve in the lower back tends to increase. As a result of the abnormal position, the spine is under more stress/strain. Also, running with an increased lower back curve moves the center of mass posteriorly. This scenario causes the foot to be brought anterior to the COM. This is known as "overstriding"( see photo). Think about actively having an upright posture with a gentle bracing of the core muscles. Add to this 'tall' posture as slight forward lean from the ankles(see photo of runner outside below), and you are ready for action. If you are tall with a slight lean forward, the foot automatically stays underneath you.
Another point about posture is to remember that you can't sit slouched at your desk all day, and then expect the body to come to perfect erect postures. Another incentive to double check your desk set-up to ensure that it is facilitating upright posture. it does not hurt to get up and move around a bit multiple times per day for a change.









Cadence- Another discussion point from the run clinic was consider a runner's cadence, or their RPM. A gold standard is 90 strikes per minute on one side. Most runners I see in the clinic are moving much more slowly than this. It is important to not try to dramatically change your cadence. If you count your contacts on one side and you get 160 when you double it, try to increase by 5-10%. Research shows that increasing cadence by as little as 5% will diminish the impact stress up the leg, which is what we want. You can use music that has 180 beats per minute to help, or a metronome app for your iPhone. Think about increasing your turn over if you need to. This change typically causes stride lengths to decrease, runners to land less often on their heels etc.

KISS- Notice a trend here? If you change one component of running form, it invariably changes another. I see in the clinic that one client will respond well to one verbal cue, and the next client flounders with the same cue. With each run, consider focusing on one thing, and don't try to maintain that focus for the whole run. If you are focused on being "soft", do so for a minute, and then run normally. Come back to that cue every 10-15 minutes such that you get in a few rounds of practice. Next time, practice the next one!

Overall, my perspective on running form is biased by what I see in the clinic and what I read in the research. In the clinic, I see injured runners. These injuries tend to be around the knees, pain under knee cap or IT band. Both of these injuries will be strained by overstriding so I commonly ask runners to be aware of keeping their initial contact point closer to their center of mass. I can achieve the same goal with increasing their stride contact. These changes seem goofy but the research supports that real changes can be made in running form just by being more aware of how you are running. have fun out there!