Slight changes in running mechanics can pay dividends
With the streak of very hot temperatures it is difficult for runners to get in a long distance run. A good alternative is to take some time on a track and work on running efficiency. With people having the ability to take videos with their cell phones, it is easy to have a record of your running style to look at and evaluate the biomechanics of your running. If you are by yourself, most cell phones can be set up at a location and record you running in multiple directions. You can run toward the phone, you can run by your phone, and you can even get a view of you running away from the phone.
The key to having a video of your running mechanics is that you need to know what to look for to be a more efficient runner. It helps if you understand Newton’s Law of Action and Reaction. The law states that, “for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.” Another principle to know is that to run faster, all the force you produce should be in the direction you want to run. I have listed a few common faults in running mechanics that will make a runner less efficient.
Starting with the feet a few adjustments can make a difference. Most people let the feet flare outward at a 45 degree angle when they walk, or run. The anatomical structure of the bones of the feet are designed to absorb force and produce force. The inside of the foot has an arch that helps absorb shock when the foot hits the ground. The outside of the foot has a bone structure that acts as a lever to produce force to propel you forward. When you run with the foot flared outward you lose the ability to maximize your potential. The weight of the body goes over the arch of the foot that is designed to absorb force and a runner loses the advantage of having the bones on the outside of the foot reach the potential they are designed for in producing force. Add to the fact that when the foot flares outward the length of the foot is about two inches shorter. To check this fact out stand with the foot pointing straight ahead and draw a line where the toes are. Then let the foot flare outward at the 45 degree angle and notice that the toes are behind the line. It may not seem like much, but when you realize that the feet make contact with ground between 1,500 and 2,000 times in a mile, it starts to add distance lost in a 5K race. Depending on the length of a runner’s stride, when the foot flares outward, those few inches equal almost 45 yards every mile. In a 5K race, you need to run an extra 140 yards. Try to land with the foot pointing as straight ahead as possible, and have the weight go over the outside of the foot for the bone structure to give you maximum force in your push off phase. The push off phase has the foot rolling inward (pronation) to the big toe to finish off each stride.
An easy observation to look for on the video is a common fault called tracking. Think of railroad tracks and how they follow a straight line parallel to each other. The foot should follow a straight line from the push off phase to bringing the foot to the front for another stride. If the foot tends to have an outward movement coming to the front that means a loss of efficient motion in a stride. When you see the foot swinging outward on the recovery there are two possible reasons for this. One is that the knees are not coming up high enough to allow the lower leg move to the front unless it swings outward. The easy solution is to bring the knee up a little higher when you stride forward.
The second reason for the flaring outward is the “for every action, there is an opposite reaction” law. Look at the arm movement. The running motion has the right arm moving forward at the same time the left leg is moving forward. The hands are the easiest to observe. They should be ‘tracking’ back and forth. If one arm is swinging outward, or crosses inward past the midline of the chest, the action of the lower leg will be in the opposite direction. If the left arm swings inward across the chest in a clockwise direction, the right lower leg will swing outward in a counterclockwise direction.
From a side view angle the body should be as upright as possible. Leaning forward prevents the leg makes for an inefficient recovery motion of the leg. Check out the pelvic girdle area. It should be level and not tilted forward. If you see a sway in the back it is possibly caused by the anterior pelvic tilt. Use the hot weather time to work on being a more efficient runner and correct those little problems.
