In this article, I’m going to explain how to play with the motion of your body to create an efficient and powerful stride. Efficiency will enable you to sustain a racing cadence (steps per minute); power will enable you to run relaxed at race pace. Power and efficiency are both functions of the way you control your body’s moving parts.
Your body is a mechanical system with dozens of moving parts that need to be coordinated. Ultimately, you’ll have to identify the most important elements of the system to keep from being overwhelmed by its complexity. Here, I’ll focus on six critical elements of running style: hips, chest, shoulders, head, feet, and arms. Then it will be up to you to practice coordinating these elements to achieve your performance goals.
Achieving good running form begins by focusing attention on your pelvis. The cue to remind you what to do is “hips back,” meaning tilt your pelvis back, instead of thrusting it forward. The tilted position creates a concave lower back curve, which inhibits overstriding. The resultant compact stride puts your center of gravity over your lead foot as it lands, placing it immediately in a take-off position, ready to propel you into your next stride. The cue is “pick-‘um-up-and-put-’um-down.” Say both cues to yourself many times during a workout. And practice the positions and motions constantly.
It takes a lot of concentration to maintain the “hips back” position. If overstriding is your default style, you habitually relax your pelvis and assume a loosey-goosey gait that’s prone to lateral (side to side) tilting at the hips and shoulders. Your stride should feel compact and tightly held together. Greatly facilitating this aspect of running form is the next focus of attention: your chest. Tell yourself, “chest up,” and raise your chest as you tilt your pelvis back. These complementary movements simulate military posture.
Speaking of military posture, remember to bring your “shoulders back and down.” This is the key movement that leads to relaxation on a run. Whenever you tense the muscles of your shoulders, neck, and face, the first trick is to be aware of the tension, and the second is to remember to relax. This can be difficult when you are in extreme discomfort during the latter part of a race. Yet, tensing isn’t worth the effort. And composing your face could lead you to believe you aren’t hurting as much as you think.
“Powerful and efficient running form is essential for best race performance, but it isn’t automatic.”
Next, your head. It’s a heavy object, so subtle head movements can boost the muscle power you are exerting. By tilting your chin down and gazing at a spot on the ground (say, six feet ahead), you shift your center of gravity slightly forward toward the balls of your feet. The forefoot is the place through which calf power is exerted. You don’t have to land on your forefoot, just remember to push off as much as your feet and calves allow. It takes concentration to use a forefoot push-off without hurting yourself. Beware: landing on the lateral side of your feet puts enormous stress on small meta-tarsal bones, increasing your risk of injury. So, make sure to feel your weight as distri-buted equally on both sides of a center line extending from your heel to your toes.
Finally, your arms should be thrown back, thumbs grazing your waist just above your hip. Your hands should then rise to just below and close to your breastbone. You don’t need to swing your arms straight ahead as sprinters do; that’s not the motion that takes you forward. Remember, when a leg goes back, you go forward. If you want a powerful backward leg motion, fling the opposite arm back at the same time.
These are the elements of style. Powerful and efficient running form is essential for best race performance, but it isn’t automatic. So, practice good form constantly.