Running Form

Ok, I said this week's focus would be "pacing," but I changed my mind.  We'll focus on pacing as we end our base training and begin our official training (that's in less than 2 weeks!).  This week, I'd like people thinking about and working on their running form.  To begin, I should say that there isn't ONE form to use.  In fact, one of the "ugliest" runners I've seen ran on the top varsity team in state.  Everyone naturally runs a certain way (hence the existence of both neutral and stability shoes)...you can only adjust to run more efficiently.  EFFICIENCY.  That is why form is so  important.  Good form leaves you with more energy for the actual running.

Arms/Shoulders

• Your arms should be bent at the elbows and swing at about waist level.  If your hands can touch your sportsbra, you are too high.  When you get tired, it's easy to let your shoulders creep up.  Shake your arms out and get them back into position. 
• Your arms should NOT cross your body.  Think of an invisible line down your torso and don't cross it.  Your body follows your arms, so when you cross your body, your hips tend to follow, which means your body has to readjust each time to keep you running straight.  Don't waste that energy.  The stronger your core becomes (are you keeping up with sit-ups??) the less of an effort it is to keep your torso still and strong.
  
• When you're running at a slow or moderate pace, you do not need to swing your arms very much.  If you don't think about too hard, they will naturally swing about right.  No reason to expend energy on your arms when you don't need to.  But sometimes you do... When you are sprinting (like to the finish line!), you will pump your arms strongly, like you're hammering something behind you.  When you are working uphill, you will also want to use your arms more...do so, just keep those shoulders down. 
• Your hands should be relaxed.  Clenched fists mean you are tightening all those muscles up your arm.  Again, a waste of energy and why I don't like running with anything in my hands.

Legs/Feet

• The stronger you become, the better your form in this area will become because your leg muscles will keep everything in place and working appropriately.
• You can tell a lot about your form in this area by listening to yourself run.  You shouldn't really hear your feet hit the pavement.  If you do, you are running "too heavy," which you can often fix by focusing on your feet coming OFF the pavement rather than landing ON it. 
• Long distance running requires less driving of the knees.  Save that for intervals and your finish line sprint. That said, if you hear your feet shuffling, you've got to drive those knees a little more to raise your feet higher.  Shuffling often happens when you're tired, but it will only make you more so. It's like putting on the brakes with every step.
• Long distance (vs. sprinting) also requires smaller strides.  So, you will take more steps over 200m than a sprinter only running that distance would.  Don't worry about eating up pavement with each stride....waste of energy.  When you are running uphill, you will shorten your stride more (think of the difference going upstairs one vs. two at a time).  Conversely, downhill it is more efficient to lengthen your stride.  Changing strides during a run is also a good way to get a second wind, as different strides engage muscles in different ways. 

Head

• One way to tell if a runner is tired is if their head is bobbing all over the place.  Keep your head still but relaxed, focusing on the road a half a block or so in front of you.  Your body often follows your head, so if it's bowing, your chest isn't as open and your shoulders aren't as strong.  To the side or back, you are also propelling the rest of your body in a direction you don't want to go, which (are you tired of this yet?) means you have to spend energy readjusting to get on the right course.  What a waste!

I will be at the run this Saturday, so if anyone has any questions about their form, I'd be happy to watch you run around. :)