Running is a simple and cheap way to stay fit. However, running in the wrong way can cause your body more overall harm than good. The stride you assume when running is as important as the effort you put into the activity. Running with improper form can inflict damage on your bones, joints and connective tissue. It will also make you waste precious energy and time on the track or trail. Following a few simple tips, however, can improve your stride and all-around performance.
Step Distance
"The most common energy-wasting stride error in runners is overstriding," sports nutritionist and triathlete Matt Fitzgerald explains. To overstride during running means to extend your lead foot too far forward. Short, quick strides support graceful movement and use the energy you expend most efficiently. When you run, make sure that each foot hits the ground in a straight line beneath your body. This will place your legs in position to get the strongest and most efficient "push" off the ground.
Midsection
If you run in a tight or hunched-over position, you will lose lung capacity and waste energy. Instead, keep your back upright and your shoulders relaxed when you run. Doing so will maximize your ability to take in oxygen and promote the most effective use of your power. This is what is commonly called "running tall." Physiotherapist Dean Davies says that running tall "is the ideal running position, as it allows you to utilize your body weight to propel you forward."
Feet
Avoid allowing your feet to "thump" flatly on the ground as your run. Move rather in a nimble and unrestricted manner, floating gracefully across the running surface. Strike the ground somewhere near the heel of each foot and smoothly roll it forward, finally leaping into the air from your toes. Maintain a small amount of tension in the ankle of your grounded foot. This will give you just the right amount of stress to "spring" forward.
Head Position
Run with your head in a similar position to how you would hold it when walking. "The head position is a crucial point in making the muscular system of the whole body engaged in a specific way," sports physiologist Dr. Nicholas Romanov explains on the Pose Tech website. Look forward, not down, as you run. Avoid tilting your head either forward or backward and allow your field of vision to expand. The back of your neck and spine should align somewhat straight down.
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