Running,


Earlier this month, my pal Todd Kenyon (@TTBikefit) uploaded an important operating method evaluation video and commentary to YouTube. I believed it might be nice to share his insights.

Todd has collected some improbable slow-motion footage displaying the elite feminine athletes at mile 24 of the 2013 Boston Marathon. The video offers an excellent alternative to check and critique the assorted variations in operating type utilized by these elite athletes. In direction of the top of the video, comparisons are additionally made to focus on the variations between the elites and people slightly slower.

For those who watch the video, you’ll discover that whereas there are after all the anticipated idiosyncrasies in operating type between every athlete. Nevertheless, there are additionally a lot of commonalities which may be recognized in most of those world-class runners.

Todd identifies parts of operating type such because the mixed hip extension and knee drive (see this text on the crossed extensor reflex), flight time and stride size as all being inextricably linked, together with cadence and foot contact sample.

For an athlete to run with the stride size and flight time wanted to maintain mid-5min/mile tempo for a marathon, a lot of key areas of method have to be working successfully. Todd describes these as:

  • Vary of Movement
    – significantly hip extension to realize stride size
  • Useful Stability
    – operating steady base / pelvis
    – to keep away from ‘power leakage’ and undesirable movement
  • Elasticity
    – the capability to retailer and launch elastic power in mushy tissues when loaded
    – produces passive propulsion upon launch

Foot Strike Sample

Todd makes the good statement that whereas many of those elite runners visually seem like touchdown heel-first (and they’re), such a ‘heel touching’ as he calls it is extremely totally different to the heavy heel strike we see with so many leisure runners. As noticed in analysis by Bastiaan et. al. (2013) and mentioned right here, many runners land heel-first, however load at maximal price not as the burden is utilized to the heel, however over midfoot because the the foot comes flat to the bottom.

Inline with my very own teaching philosophy and the information in our on-line operating method course (50% low cost – click on right here), Todd’s emphasis is extra on how the entire physique is shifting than worrying excessively about foot strike kind. If solely the operating neighborhood as a complete would develop into much less hung-up on how the foot contacts the bottom…!

Featured Athletes

  • Rita Jeptoo (KEN)
    – End Time: 2:26:25
    – Av Tempo: 5:35/mi
    – Cadence: 95
    – Distance/stride: 5’0″
  • Meseret Debele (ETH)
    – End Time: 2:26:58
    – Av Tempo: 5:37/mi
    – Cadence: 101
    – Distance/stride: 4’6″
  • Sharon Cherop (ETH)
    – End Time: 2:27:01
    – Av Tempo: 5:37/mi
    – Cadence: 95
    – Distance/stride: 5’0″
  • Shalane Flanagan (USA)
    – End Time: 2:27:08
    – Av Tempo: 5:37/mi
    – Cadence: 90
    – Distance/stride: 5’2″
  • Ana Felix (POR)
    – End Time: 2:30:05
    – Av tempo: 5:44/mi
    – Cadence: 98
    – Distance/stride: 4’7″
  • Kara Goucher (USA)
    – End Time: 2:28:11
    – Av Tempo: 5:34/mi
    – Cadence: 100
    – Distance/stride: 4’7″
  • Madai Perez (MEX)
    – End Time: 2:28:59
    – Av Tempo: 5:41.mi
    – Cadence: 99
    – Distance/stride: 4’7″

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