Here are 6 Tips that May Give You That Extra Edge When Running
If you find yourself in a rut as far as pushing your running times down, or stretching out that distance and running farther, there may be a few things that you can do to help. When I was in high school, my cross-country coach taught me a few things that I have never forgotten. And some apply to more than just running.
How you plant your feet while you run
You see people running by you on the street or you hear them coming from behind you while you are running... the tell tale slap... slap... slap... of the feet on pavement. This is the sign of a poor running style. If you can hear your own feet slapping the ground, it's time to change.
When your foot hits the ground and your heel slams the ground, this doing only one thing... damage. The impact of your heel sends shock waves up your shin and throughout your leg and then up your spine. This can cause shin splints, knee problems, back problems, etc. It can also slow you down.
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| When planting your feel while running, try landing flat putting more weight on the ball (or toe end) of your foot. You can see here that the toes are slightly pointing downward as the foot makes contact with the ground. |
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| When you apply weight to the ball of your foot, you can then let the foot rock backward, absorbing the impact making the foot act like a spring. Then immediately push off with the front end of your foot. |
When you plant your foot during a stride while running, try flattening your foot or even pointing it downward so that the ball (the part where your toes connect) take the brunt of the impact. Then as your weight transfers to that foot, absorb the impact by slowly letting your foot roll backwards slightly. Don't run on your toes, but just shift the weight onto the front of your foot when your foot makes contact with the ground. It should feel like you are prancing along. Your heel may actually make contact first, but point your toes down and take the weight of your step on the ball of the foot. Doing this also does something else, it is kind of like running on springs. So if you only let your heel touch the ground slightly and focus more on pushing off with your toes, it can propel you forward. This may mean shortening your stride a little, but that is OK. You will do your legs a favor. You can stretch out your stride a little as needed, such as climbing a hill or passing some one when in a race.
Using this style of running will feel awkward and probably hurt like crazy when you first do it. Your calves will feel like they have been put through a grinder. However, once you get used to it and your calve and ankle muscles have strengthened, you can start to extend your speed and distance.
How you carry yourself while you run
Most people who run have a tenancy to hold their hands in front of them and up high while they run. Try lowering them to your sides and swing them forward and back instead of side to side. It should feel like you are reaching straight forward and grabbing a pole and pulling yourself along, your arms swinging straight forward and straight backward to your side. This will help with your momentum and lower your center of gravity, making you a more efficient running machine.
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| While carrying your body on a run, hold your hands low and to the sides as pictured. Also, when the foot plants, you can see here the foot starting to flatten out and become parallel to the ground. Preparing the foot to absorb the shock on the ball of the foot vs the heel. |
If you have a tenancy to grip your hand or squeeze it tight, loosen your grip and open your hands. If you must close your hand, try just lightly holding two fingers together sort of like you are gingerly holding a potato chip. This lessens tension in your upper body and also frees up the energy you are spending contracting your arm muscles so you can use it in your legs.
This video shows all of the techniques described here shown. You can see the arms held low and to the sides, and the feet landing more flat instead of on the heel. As the runner goes by, the sound of the footsteps are relatively light vs a loud slapping sound.
Breathing while running, how you do it means everything
Running is one of the most intense exercises you can do, depending on how much you exert yourself. It burns more calories than most other activities. The average person burns 100 calories per mile. When your body is working that hard, it needs oxygen and fuel, just like a car engine.
We have a tenancy to huff and puff and breathe fast when we exert ourselves running. The harder we work, such as running up a hill, the faster we tend to breathe. If are not careful, you can hyperventilate. If you feel light headed, or feel numbness in your hands or feet, stop and take deep breaths. Try to avoid this from happening by breathing deeper instead of faster as you are running.
During your run, try to concentrate and take a deep breath through your nose for two strides, then exhale for two strides through your mouth. Why the nose? Because it helps filter out allergens and other things and in the cooler weather, it warms the air a little before it gets to your lungs.
When climbing a hill, instead of just breathing faster, concentrate on breathing deeper, when you get to the top you may experience a feeling of elation or sudden energy. You've saturated your blood with oxygen, making you feel better. Imagine if you did this the whole time you ran. When I run extremely long distances and my mind wanders, I tend to forget about my breathing. Then suddenly, I feel like I'm running out of gas. I remember my breathing and then after concentrating on breathing deeply for a few minutes, I feel rejuvenated again. Give it a try! This can be applied to other aerobic activities as well such as cycling. I even use these deep breathing techniques while I am doing strength training. In short, oxygen matters!
Food, how it can help you run longer
When running, you burn tons of calories. It is one of the top ways to burn calories. As mentioned above, the average person burns about 100 calories per mile! So if you are running 10 miles... that's 1000 calories! If you run longer, you are no doubt going to run out of steam.
If you want to go the distance, carb up an hour or two before you run. No sooner than that though, you could cramp up. Just like you shouldn't eat an hour before you swim, don't eat an hour before you run. If you understand how your body processes food, you'll understand that your body actually gets energy from what is in your stomach first. I like to eat a combination of oatmeal and protein powder to carb up before a workout.
When running extreme distances, eating carbs before hand may not be enough depending on what you eat. You can carry some sort of energy drink with you, but that would add weight and be cumbersome. Try using some sort of energy chew that you can carry in a pocket. Gatorade makes one that is a tiny chewable gummy square about a half inch square, yet it packs 100 calories. Almost the calories of an entire bottle of Gatorade! They help when going for those extreme distances.
A protein shake after you run can also help your muscles recover from a long run and strengthen them in the process. Your muscles need that valuable protein to repair themselves.
Overall, a daily regimen of vitamins is essential if you are running. They can help you recover faster after a run or workout. If your daily multivitamin does not have lots of B12, take a Super B Complex along with it. Only if you are working out that is! Too much vitamins can be a bad thing. Ask your doctor if you are unsure. Vitamin B12 is valuable for workouts because it helps your body convert food into energy.
