Forums >Running 101>Bad jogging form
Hi,
So I started running again in February. I was never good at it and had to quit running+gym for the whole of 2019 because of a back injury. I'm also a light smoker (and yes, I know it's terrible).
So I've been running 2 or 3 times a week for 3 months now,, and am having to stretch and foam roll my IT band a lot. I know my form is very good when I run "fast" (5 mins per km) but I can't sustain that speed for very long at all (maybe a minute at the most, hello ciggie). But I am beginning to realise I just can't jog. It becomes painful rather quickly, say 10 minutes in (shins, knees, and above all hips). If runs get painful I end up alternating, every minute, jog (7 to 8 min per km) , run (4 to 5 min per km) and walk (12 min per km) ... But I can only do it so much until the jogging part just kills me almost immediately. (So then I walk a bit, then run again, and the running bit almost feels like a stretch and seems to release my hips).
Any clue what I could be doing wrong or what I could do to improve things? I've only just resumed some at-home strength training, focusing on glutes and core - should that help?
It just takes time to build your base. Running will become easier eventually.
keep it up and report back in September.
Go slow, here's how:
Start walking, go faster and faster until it becomes easier to jog than walk. That is your jogging/conversational pace.
Don't get caught up paying attention to discomforts of running, you'll just amplify them in your head. Wear some headphones and listen to music, the news, podcast, anything. Concentrate on that.
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The runners are right that it will take time. It can also help to keep in mind what you are running on. Grass will be very forgiving as will gravel. Pavement is harder but okay. Concrete sidewalks are going to be the worst for impact. I know if I run on sidewalks too much, my knees get sore.
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Thanks. I run mostly in grass/trails.
keep it up and report back in September. Go slow, here's how: Start walking, go faster and faster until it becomes easier to jog than walk. That is your jogging/conversational pace. Don't get caught up paying attention to discomforts of running, you'll just amplify them in your head. Wear some headphones and listen to music, the news, podcast, anything. Concentrate on that.
Thanks - I will give that a go. Perhaps I'll strike a different pace that'll work better for me - fingers crossed!
I'm not talking about discomforts though, but occasionally tear-inducing pain! Only when jogging, not when going faster.
if you have pain that is bringing tears to your eyes you should definitely stop running
Severe pain means that something is seriously wrong. Running uses muscles, tendons, and joints differently from most any other exercise, so you need to build up gradually. Start with comfortably fast walking - don't stress yourself, but don't just stroll along. When you can go every day for a half hour, then gradually add in a little easy running (what you call jogging). Start by jogging a minute or two during your walk, then a minute or two several times during your walk. Gradually increase the time jogging. Stop jogging immediately if there is any pain, or even discomfort. Eventually you will be able to jog a full half hour without pain, discomfort, or getting winded. Seven to eight minutes per km is about right for a beginner. After you get a good aerobic base, your easy running speed will naturally increase. Running is best done 5 or 6 days per week. Improvement is slow if running only two or three days per week.
Save the hard running for after you have a solid base of at least 30 km per week, and preferably more than that.
One person's searing pain is another's discomfort. It's all relative.
Pain is just weakness leaving the body. (That is what I've been taught....)
The only thing I'd call "pain" while running have been sideackes, and stepping on a sharp rock. Oh yeah, PF and torn achilles, and other injuries could be painful. But not just running, at any pace.
Legs will get sore, lungs may get worked, those things are just discomfort.
Here's my 2 cents worth, I had an IT problem years ago and the running doctor at my sports injury clinic sent me to get an assessment of my running bio-mechanics. I thought my form was good but it wasn't. A couple of months of physio and 2 months of retraining my running style on a treadmill and I was back. That was approx. 10 years ago. Nothing like that since then, thank goodness... An IT problem usually means something is off kilter in your bio-mechanics.