Running Form

B

bettyhenes

0
As some of you may know, I took up running couple of months ago. I also started a journal, but haven't posted in a week, but that doesn't mean that I haven't been doing anything. I would rather go out and run instead of just writing about it;) Plus I feel kinda lame, because Sparrow and FF are doing 10 mile runs, 100 miles on a bike etc. A DAY (and every day at that):eek2:And then here comes Betty with her 4 miles a day, alert the media!
Anyways, back to my questions.

Running Form
1) I was running yesterday and caught a glimpse of myself in the window...Basically, I look like crap when I run.:( My head and my upper body are way ahead of my lower body and if you saw me, you would think that I am on my 30th mile. I also don't know what to do with my arms and hands. In what position should they be? Moving in which direction?
Where should I look? How far ahead?
My husband was waiting for me to finish my run so he was watching me for a while..Anyways, he said that I am going up and down wayyy too much instead of forward. He said he is even surprised that I actually go forward:(
I really wanna learn how to run correctly and efficiently, but don't know how.

I looked in my running book but it doesn't say anything about form. I also looked at some videos of professional runners (on youTube).
Any other ideas? Are there like running clinics or something like that?

2) Breathing
How should I breathe when running? I'm a mouth breather, mainly because my nose is always stuffed up due to allergies and polyps (would need to be surgically removed).

3) Hydration gear

Sparrow calls it water belt, I call it hydration pack and FF calls it "that thing fatties wear when doing 3 day breast cancer walk";):yelrotflmao:
I got one of these hydration packs two weeks ago for running on the golf course (the loop is 7 miles, no water stations) and I can't stand it. No matter where I put it, it bugs the hell out of me. If I wear it on the side, my arms keep hitting it and if I put it in front or back, it seems that it hurts my already horrible running form even more. Plus it turns and twists all the time. I got so p***ed this Sunday that I actually tossed it in the bushes:rolleyes:
What do you guys wear?
 
Running form: Not sure how much help I will be on this one, but when you land, roll forward on your foot so when you push off you are pushing more forward than up. Keep your strides long. Relax your shoulders and hands.

Hydration: I can’t stand the water bottle hanging from my waist either and I don’t like carrying the water bottle. What I have been doing is keeping my course short so I can grab a drink on my way past the house each time and run the course multiple times. Another option would be to stash bottles of water along your route. I recently read about how FF and Sparrow liked the camelbacks, so I bought one of those and gave it a try. They are a huge improvement over the water bottle on your waist. If you need to bring fluids with you I would recommend one of these.
 
Another thing I wanted to say, running 4 miles a day is great! Most people can’t run for 4 miles. Everyone needs to start somewhere. If your goal is to be able to run 10 miles per run, you will be able to get there. What you are doing now is excellent! Keep it up!
 
hey there

YOU ARE RUNNING! and everybody else is watching! how cool is that???

I have done several posts on this, but they are not so great that you should hunt for them.

there are all sorts running form. But- accross the board, from my experience and reading, the "strike" is a matter of human anatomy.

banging the heel is bad- but you must utilize the heal or you will get very tired and very large calves- I can show you mine if you wish.

upward motion is non-productive- but you must use some or you will trip over stuff all over the place.

so- heal lightly grazing the ground moving forward, as you "strike" mid-foot, outer step, and then foot slightly rolling inward to launch from ball and bug toe.

Look at the bottom of your bare foot and you can see, clearly how your foot is designed by our creator. Go out and run barefooted. There is a whole communicty of peeps that are barefoot marathoners. Anyhow, by running barefoot, you will quickly discover-

BAD IDEA TO LAND ON HEAL
BAD IDEA TO JUMP TO HIGH-- cuz then you have landing to deal with.

how old are you? weight? injuries? shoes?

foward lean- pinch your shoulder blades togehter a bit and it will stand you up. You will feel stronger too.

there's a lil something to keep ya busy.
:}
 
p.s. as you concentrate on this "strike" situation, your arms will settle in. Until you are "striding hard" and doing some sprints, your arms do what they should do naturally- UNTIL YOU THINK ABOUT THEM- hahahaha then they get rigid and fall out of time. :yelrotflmao:

running is soooo cooll...! it is the mentals that get ya.
 
p.s.s. thanks for bringing up the water belt- I was sooo wrong to make that comment. I think they are perfect for really good lookin females doing anything that they could possibly ever be doing. Now if we can just get them to ALL wear a 'water belt' ONLY! hahahahaha

the nice thing about carrying your own water and such- is you can load it up with your goodies- like electrolytes or whatever.
 
Trevor M. said:
Hookworms......
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and most the members are older... running barefoot forces good form, or you will get blisters and open wounds.

going to barefoot is how I finished my Ironman 70.3 too.

how many miles are you logging Trevor?

and Betty, I do not recommend 4 miles of barefoot, just 20-30 strides at the gym, or on a tread, or down the street, so you can feel how your foot works.

XOXOXOXO
 
I do a similar thing as Drex. Though when I run longer lenghts I do so at the high school track. Easy to reach down on a turn and grab a drink. Toss it down and pick up when I need it again. Or, if I am interval training, I grab a sip in the 'down' time. I find that if I drink to much at one time it slows me down. So, i simply sip it here or there. Just enough to keep me hydrated. I have one of those camel backs for when I run the nature center(trails). It is nice to pack some fruit or nuts in as well for those ventures.
 
Water Belt: Get a camel back thing. They're pretty cool. You can use them for biking or running. They run about 25 bucks for a small one. You clip a line to your clothes, and you turn a valve to drink.

Breathing: I usually go in through the nose, and out the mouth. Depends though. I don't really think about it all that much.

Running Form: Can't really say. There's a lot of forms to take one. I usually have two forms that I do:
1) Keep back straight, relax arms, don't ball up fist.
2) If you're getting tired, do the doggy wiggle. That is let your arms off to the side, palms flat, and shake it off a bit. Then return to the normal style.

Basically, get comfortable. Don't try to change form to something you're not used to. Some people run like a midget with two broken legs. Don't stress out on forms so much as comfort. Also, if you're looking at yourself, of course you'll look silly.

Important things include clothes, surface you're running on, weather, shoes, etc.
 
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Learn to run correctly from the start by doing what FF said and landing lightly on heels and pushing off from font foot and not just slapping your foot down each step, otherwise you'll mess up your shins like i did.
 
Drex said:
Another thing I wanted to say, running 4 miles a day is great! Most people can’t run for 4 miles. Everyone needs to start somewhere. If your goal is to be able to run 10 miles per run, you will be able to get there. What you are doing now is excellent! Keep it up!
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Thanks!
I'm kinda into this whole running thing now. I originally planned on doing half mary by the end of this year and full marathon next...BUT, screw it. Just signed up for bunch of 5K, two 10K this summer, Iron Girl 10K, half mary in September and Seattle marathon on November30th. It's gonna suck, it's gonna hurt...and rain...and be freaking cold, but I'm gonna go for it anyways:rolleyes: I'll just play it by ear. Worst case scenario is that if I feel that I can't finish, I'll just do the half marathon part.
 
flyinfree said:
banging the heel is bad- but you must utilize the heal or you will get very tired and very large calves- I can show you mine if you wish.

Please do:rolleyes::11doh:


how old are you? weight? injuries? shoes? :}
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I'm a girl, 24 tomorrow (4/19):cool:, 5'11" and 127 lbs.
As far as injuries, I had to see a doctor about two months after I started running. I went overboard and did 11 miles on my treadmill one day. Right as I was getting of the treadmill, something popped in my foot and it felt like it just "collapsed". I couldn't move my toes and the pain was pretty bad at night. Went to the doctor, did some MRIs and X-rays and he found two stress fractures. However, he said they have been there for a while. He wanted to do the whole cast thing (all the way to my knee, which I'm not sure why). Didn't run on it for about 3 weeks after that and opted not to get the cast. It's been fine since then. I do about 25-35 miles per week with absolutely no problems (except for that regular soreness).
About the shoes now...My first two pairs were Asics 2120. Loved them, but they got destroyed really quick, because it always rains up here (Seattle/Tacoma). Then I bought Nike Zoom Air and Nike Pegassus, because they come with the Nike+ sensor and they feel better than the Asics now.
Any other questions?:yelrotflmao:
 
Phate89 said:
Learn to run correctly from the start by doing what FF said and landing lightly on heels and pushing off from font foot and not just slapping your foot down each step, otherwise you'll mess up your shins like i did.
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Why? What happened? Is it permanent?
 
flyinfree said:
going to barefoot is how I finished my Ironman 70.3 too.

and Betty, I do not recommend 4 miles of barefoot, just 20-30 strides at the gym, or on a tread, or down the street, so you can feel how your foot works.

XOXOXOXO
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So I did my homework and did the whole running barefoot thing today. Went for 10 minutes on the treadmill in my basement. It wasn't really working out for me. My arches were killing me. I guess I have really flat feet.:drooling1::mad:
 
running barefoot on the tread is different than the regular dirt or grass. Go run on the grass a while or on some softer dirt. It really is a good way to begin fixing a stride. It will point out right away what is a good gait and what is downright painful.

I had issues with my running form at the beginning. I have worked hard on it to make it work for me, and become efficient and the more I did, the faster it got.

It really is somewhat individual but some things are definitely the same across the board. I echo FF in the heal strike. Coming down too hard on the heal is basically like putting on the brakes and it will jar your entire leg with each touch down. Come down more on the mid foot ( not flat, just not HARD on that heal). Your knee should never be fully extended in the active phase of the stride. If you watch the really fast distance people they are like a cheetah. Their knees are bent even as they strike down which lessens the impact. Bending the knees slightly all the time will also allow the "give" you need to move FORWARD and not up and down. It will engage the glutes more. Fix your eyes on the horizon and try not to allow it to bob. Make your lower body do all of the work while you keep the upper body still. Another way you can do it is to put your hair in a high pony tail and try not to let it swing too much :)

I only know what works for me so I'll just put down how i run. I have developed a stride that is highly lower body and very little upper body movement. most of my power is derived from my core muscles, and the rest is from my glutes, and I can feel that when I run. My arms are held loosly near my hips and swing slightly but my shoulders are pulled back and I have better posture than when I walk :) With each stride my hips and shoulders rotate in unison but my head is still and doesn't bob much. My knees stay bent and I believe my shin splints went away as soon as I figured that part out. I'm careful to keep my shoulders down. Thats where I hold my tension and if I'm sore there the next day I'll know I wasn't paying attention to relaxing. I do sporatic deep breaths as my run is in progress and as I exhale I relax my whole posture and kind of "reset" myself to get more power. As for the breathing I inhale through my nose and mouth rhythmically and exhale through both also. If my breathing ever gets away from me I do a deep inhale and exhale which gets me back on track

Anyway, I think the biggest key is to pull your shoulders back keep your upper body more still and settle into your hips so you can move them with your stride but avoid the bobbing. If you concentrate too hard on all the foot mechanics and such you'll just start running weird. Just RUN and make minor adjustments along the way. Don't sweat the small stuff.

Glad to see your post Betty!...and you'd better start posting in your journal, or I'll STOP!
 
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bettyhenes said:
So I did my homework and did the whole running barefoot thing today. Went for 10 minutes on the treadmill in my basement. It wasn't really working out for me. My arches were killing me. I guess I have really flat feet.:drooling1::mad:
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couple of things here-
thanks for actually trying something (barefoot tread) It has shown alot. the reason to run barefooted is to find a stride that does not hurt. Not to check and see if the way you run hurts...LOL! You already knew you were having a running issue. This quick pain, combined with your shoe issues, and the injuries, is SCREAMING- go get fitted for shoes.

a running center, or high end running shoe store, will evaluate your foot and stride for free, and you will know. Want my uneducated guess? you have 1 high arch. That is making you hammer the other foot down. THAT IS A WILD GUESS, but I am spirit led, and that is my guess.

Sparrows post is tremendous, and she put alot into it. Read it a few times.

sheeeeesh, your intention on running must be very solid. I say that because of the energy you are attracting to the effort.

OR- it may be because you have events scheduled and that makes all the difference in the world.

Phate's journal is somewhere and you can read it. HE did not take the time to develop his stride, form and such. He is young, LIKE YOU, and is now trying to recover. Running, and doing it well, and enduring, is NOT NATURAL, it is learned and mastered.

Welcome to the path.

FF
 
flyinfree said:
sheeeeesh, your intention on running must be very solid. I say that because of the energy you are attracting to the effort.

OR- it may be because you have events scheduled and that makes all the difference in the world.

FF
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Betty is a solid gal with some solid goals but she is stubborn and driven like us FF so I believe she would simply keep pushing and improving even without those goals :) You can't hide from us Betty-we know your game :D :luxlove: Keep it up girl!
 
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