RunningAHEAD - Topic: Foot Strike (page 2)

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rectumdamnnearkilledem

posted: 7/10/2007 at 7:42 PM

Quote from corb on 7/10/2007 at 7:38 PM:

Yeah. They are not made for over-pronators. I'm the exact opposite in that stability shoes do nothing but give me shin splints.

That's what happens when I wear anything with more than "moderate" stability. Even OTC orthotics KILL my lower legs. k

Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to

remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.

~ Sarah Kay

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rectumdamnnearkilledem

posted: 7/24/2007 at 11:02 AM

Hmmm...revisiting this thread. Last night I had a mostly miserable run (stiff, sore lower legs was my primary issue). I think I'm a pretty hard heel striker--I definitely wear the outside heel on my shoes more than any other area. I also do best in shoes for mild-mod. pronators (NB 767 and 1222 have been my favorite shoes, thus far). But for the last 15 minutes or so I concentrated on leaning forward a bit, keeping my core muscles engaged, and landing more on the middle of my foot. It felt pretty good and it was the fastest part of my run. Now I'm sort of intrigued by the idea of working to adapt this stance a bit more. I've read discussions on various running BBs that attribute some of my chronic injury issues (knees, shins, overly tight calves, foot problems) to hard heel striking. I've also seen some discussions of wearing shoes with a less clunky heel helping a runner to strike more midfoot, rather than allowing the built-up heel to absorb shock. While I don't see myself going so far as trying a truly minimal shoe like a flat or the Nike Free (at least not initially), I wonder of doing some shorter runs in something like the NB 902 might be a good idea. Input...? k

Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to

remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.

~ Sarah Kay

Run To Win

#2867

posted: 7/24/2007 at 1:28 PM

Pronation is the process of striking the ground with the outside edge of your heel, rolling your foot towards the inside, and pushing off again from the ball of your foot. Modern running shoes cater to absorbing as much of that impact as possible, and the midsoles are designed such that the motion of your foot is pretty controlled. That's why you want to make sure you get the right kind of shoes; something that counteracts your natural over- or under-pronation is better than something that exacerbates it.

Run to Win
25 Marathons, 17 Ultras, 16 States (Full List)

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rectumdamnnearkilledem

posted: 7/24/2007 at 2:22 PM

So you don't think that an overly built heel could cause a person to be strong heel striker, unnaturally so? k

Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to

remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.

~ Sarah Kay

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rectumdamnnearkilledem

posted: 7/25/2007 at 12:52 PM

Just did a solid hour of running while concentrating more on my form, particularly my foot strike. I also paid attention to the swing of my arms, upper body, shoulders (I have a tendency to hunch a bit and swing/twist my torso, I believe). My legs feel great, I had no pain, and ran 30-45 seconds/mile faster than my typical easy run pace--with no added effort. I would have gone for more than an hour but the humidity was kicking my butt...asthma was kicking-in more than I was comfortable with and I was having some slight queasy chills which is pretty common when I run in heat with humidity. I'm definitely going to keep working on this. If it means being able to consistently cut even just 30 minutes/mile off of my pace and with no injury, then I'm sold. I may start trying some more minimal shoes, too. The couple of runs I've done while working on midfoot strike have been in my shoes with the least built-up heels (NB 767). Perhaps the 1223 won't be on my shopping list, after all. I'm eyeballing the 902, again, as that may be my best choice for stability and cushion without an overly chunky heel (substantially cheaper than the 1223, too, which is nice). k

Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to

remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.

~ Sarah Kay

Davdaws

Swadvad

posted: 7/25/2007 at 2:21 PM

Quote from zoom-zoom on 7/25/2007 at 12:52 PM:

I'm definitely going to keep working on this. If it means being able to consistently cut even just 30 minutes/mile off of my pace and with no injury, then I'm sold. k

Minutes/mile??? Either that's a typo, or you run a VERY slow pace. Ha!

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rectumdamnnearkilledem

posted: 7/25/2007 at 2:32 PM

Quote from Davdaws on 7/25/2007 at 2:21 PM:

Minutes/mile??? Either that's a typo, or you run a VERY slow pace. Ha!

Oops! Yeah, I'm slow, but I'm not THAT slow! Wink

k

Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to

remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.

~ Sarah Kay

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rectumdamnnearkilledem

posted: 7/26/2007 at 2:13 PM

Sub 10 minute pace for 4 miles...felt easy (except for the humidity). This is unreal--I've cut a minute off of my typical easy pace in just a few runs! Why did I not catch onto midfoot striking and paying closer attention to my posture a year ago?! Tongue

k

Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to

remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.

~ Sarah Kay

Scout7

posted: 7/26/2007 at 3:05 PM
modified: 7/26/2007 at 3:06 PM

You're right, it couldn't be the miles of training you've done....... Willing to bet the last time you had any sort of significant change was somewhere around...6-8 weeks ago.

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rectumdamnnearkilledem

posted: 7/26/2007 at 3:18 PM

Nope...I have been stuck at ~11 minute pace since Winter. Adding speedwork really didn't even affect any change. This is the biggest jump I've had in pace in about a year, and the least gradual. k

Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to

remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.

~ Sarah Kay

GreginND

still alive

posted: 7/27/2007 at 12:30 PM

I think the most important thing is to have your feet directly in a straight line down from your shoulders when they touch the ground, regardless of whether it is your heel or your flat foot. If your feet are hitting the ground in front of you, you are actually pushing against your direction of motion and that takes more energy. Think about your heel in front of you trying to stop your forward motion every time you hit the ground. If you concentrate and avoid that, you will probably find your feet hit the ground almost flat with the heel and mid section striking at the same time.

Greg in ND

One day at a time.

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rectumdamnnearkilledem

posted: 7/27/2007 at 12:35 PM

Quote from GreginND on 7/27/2007 at 12:30 PM:

I think the most important thing is to have your feet directly in a straight line down from your shoulders when they touch the ground, regardless of whether it is your heel or your flat foot. If your feet are hitting the ground in front of you, you are actually pushing against your direction of motion and that takes more energy. Think about your heel in front of you trying to stop your forward motion every time you hit the ground. If you concentrate and avoid that, you will probably find your feet hit the ground almost flat with the heel and mid section striking at the same time.

I think this is a good explanation. Before I think I was "pulling" my body along with my feet. I'm thinking the hip flexor issue I had early on in my running was probably related to that. Now it feels more like I'm pushing myself forward--and pushing with one's weight is always easier than pulling. k

Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to

remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.

~ Sarah Kay

lasdinaub

posted: 7/27/2007 at 1:09 PM

When I restarted running about 4 years ago, my gym had a $10 clinic/slideshow that discussed this method: http://www.evolutionrunning.com/philosophy.htm It all made alot of sense to me, and since I was just starting out again, I was able to adjust my form, or at least I tried, to follow their suggestions - midsole strike, shorter stride, and faster turnover. They had some specail advice for uphill and downhille technique, which is useful for the area I live. Since I started trail running over a year ago, I'm still using the techniques, especially on the downhills.

Next up: A 50k in ? Done: California-Oregon-Arizona-Nevada (x2)-Wisconsin-Wyoming-Utah-Michigan-Colorado

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rectumdamnnearkilledem

posted: 7/27/2007 at 1:15 PM

Quote from lasdinaub on 7/27/2007 at 1:09 PM:

When I restarted running about 4 years ago, my gym had a $10 clinic/slideshow that discussed this method: http://www.evolutionrunning.com/philosophy.htm

I was reading a bit about this method a few days ago. Apparently it's aimed quite a bit at triathletes. Very similar in mechanics to Chi, it looks like. I don't know that I'm going to go out and buy the training manuals/DVDs for any specific method, but the basics are pretty interesting. I've found some good videos on running form on YouTube of all places, too. Smile

k

Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to

remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.

~ Sarah Kay

Scout7

posted: 7/27/2007 at 1:48 PM

Oh, I was waiting for someone to bring that stuff up. Here's Chi/Pose/Evolution in a nutshell: Go easy on easy days. Go hard on hard days. Build up mileage slowly. As for form, try to keep your cadence high, your feet landing underneath you. That's the secret in a nutshell. Chi goes into the mystical side more than the others. Here's my problem with those things: They advocate ONE method. And the problem with that is the one method will NOT work for everyone. I've seen just as many people who developed sidelining injuries from attempting Chi/Pose/Evolution as I have those it has helped. If you want entertainment for a few hours, go look at letsrun.com's forum and search on Pose, or Chi, or Evolution. The threads tend to be quite lengthy, though.

Foot Strike (Read 1185 times)