Run, run, run...

[khiemtran]

So, we were chatting at work and a friend mentioned this article and accompanying video by Christopher McDougall on learning a new (and potentially old) way to run. I'd been aware of the barefoot running movement and I'd seen an interesting article about some of the Australian practitioners, but this article also added a simple way to get started, without actually needing to change footwear.

Basically, the theory goes that if your technique is good enough, you don't actually need any cushioning even on hard surfaces, because your legs should be naturally springy enough by themselves. You aren't pounding the pavement - you're gliding over it. So, instead of putting more and more cushioning into your running shoes, which let you get away with bad technique and cause other injuries, you're supposed to learn to improve your technique instead.

The article gave a few simple drills to try, so yesterday, before swimming, I set out for my second jog since my back injury to give it a go. I haven't really tried to consciously run as lightly as possible before (despite a background as a distance runner), and, at first, it felt a bit like trying to run with fairy steps. It didn't feel particularly smooth either, but then as soon as I started to run uphill it all started to click into place. It looks like all this time I have been landing badly and it's only running uphill that my feet make a nice "gliding" approach. Twenty minutes later, I had clocked just under 5k and was still feeling pretty good.

I've started doing the "100 up" exercises shown in the video, so it will be interesting to see how I improve. I guess the first goal will be to land as smoothly on the flat as I did on the uphill portions. And, now that my back is finally sound enough for me to run again, I can't wait to get out again for a longer run.

Comments

[heleninwales.livejournal.com]

Very interesting! Thanks for the link. The "100 up" exercises will fit very nicely with my current programme of short periods of exercise slotted in amongst normal activities.

[khiemtran.livejournal.com]

It's interesting that since I've started thinking about how my feet land even when I'm walking around, my posture has automatically improved. I guess I've always been lurching forward when I walk and you just can't walk lightly if you're not balanced.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

Neat! My husband is a marathoner--he loved Born to Run. I've sent him a link to the article. I myself am a pretty unenthusiastic runner, but I love the idea of running barefoot, and I'll try the exercises.

[khiemtran.livejournal.com]

I hope he likes it.

A marathon is starting to loom as a crazy idea now that I can finally run again. I think I might start with trying to run the 14K city-to-surf again next year.

I've always loved running because it gives me time to think. When I was a child I loved to daydream, but I found the only way to get the dreams to "move" was to move myself, so I liked walking and running up and down at the bottom of a paddock. Not sure that's entirely normal, but it was a good foundation for cross-country running later in life...

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

What you did with running is exactly what I used to do--and still do--with walking. I had a mile walk to school in high school, and I *loved* that time to tell myself stories. I still do that. But running is so exhausting! I find myself thinking about my lungs, my feet, etc.

I'd like to get to a point where I didn't feel that way about running....