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Running for Your Life
By Dr.
Roger Borbón D.C., C.C.C.N.
wellness@doctorpurelife.com
You see them just about everywhere; in all shapes,
sizes, speeds and at every time of the year. You see them in the back
woods; you see them in the city. Some with faces of elation and some
displaying affects of torture. However, it’s not what they are running
from; it’s what they are running for, LIFE! Vitality, health, optimized
genetic expression, feeling good, and let’s not forget looking
head-turning good are all reasons for this pastime of running. That is
why more and more of us are running for our lives, in a very
empowering sense. And empowering it should be, but what you don’t know
about running can hurt you and really take the wind out of your sails.
So to prevent any pitfalls let’s dissect the anatomy of running.
I know that you have been running since you were a
child. You probably think that you run just fine, and you may.
However, if the vast majority of professional athletes have
running technique coaches, and they do, then perhaps you may have some
parts of your run that can be made more efficient as well. Where to
start? Basic physics will be a good first step.
First, if you are running from point A to point B,
all your momentum should follow the same plane of motion. Therefore the
directions of your toes, ankles, knees, hands, wrists, elbows,
shoulders, head, and eyes can either give or take away efficiency to
your run. Now visualize a straight line ahead of you, if any of these
body parts deviates from this line of direction you are creating an
extra and unnecessary workload. More importantly you produce
asymmetrical loading to various joints. This is one way to guarantee
acquiring osteoarthritis (OA). To avoid this, listen to your body when
it is telling you that it is hurting. Frequent joint pain is not
normal!
Now let’s look at the essentials of stride
biomechanics or gait. A key distinction in stride analysis is how
and where the foot contacts the ground. HOW: The foot should first
contact the ground on the bottom and slightly outside portion of the
heel. As your hips begin to pass over the foot, the weight will be
transferred from the outside of the foot across the balls of the foot.
Next is the toe off phase where the weight comes from the inside ball of
the foot through the big toe. Now the foot cycles through for the next
impact. WHERE: The heel strike on the ground should be close to
underneath your hips. This creates push. Striking out in front of your
hips creates pull. It is easier to push than pull; this will help you
toward a more effortless run. Also, an in front heel strike is a
breaking mechanism. So unless you are trying to stop, don’t do it.
This one aspect is a major contributor for ankle, knee, hip, low back
pain, and headaches.
Obviously your lower body is of concern in relation
to your run. However, your upper body plays a major role in
counterbalance, oxygenation, posture, and stride of your lower body.
Counterbalance: To illustrate the importance of the upper body
interlock your right hand’s fingers to your left hand’s fingers behind
your back and try to run. Now you see how important a role your arms
play in gait. Your legs produce great power and the arms counterbalance
that force to keep you smooth. Oxygenation and Posture: As you
read this try the following. Round your shoulders forward and put your
chin to your chest. Take a BIG breath in. How many seconds can you
breath in? Now sit up tall with your shoulders back, chest up, and head
at neutral with your eyes level to the horizon line. Take another BIG
breath in. How many seconds this time? You probably had twice as
many. Your muscles require oxygen in aerobic activities. If your
running posture is in flexion, with you head forward and tight
shoulders, you may decrease your oxygen intake by 40%. This results in
fast fatigue, sore muscles, and longer recovery times between runs.
Finally stand up and poke your head forward so that your chin is several
inches in front of your chest. As you do this pay attention to what
your hips are doing. This positional change to the pelvis wreaks havoc
on the lower body and your spinal discs. This pelvic tilt is the
proverbial snowball of problems which will build and build if
unchanged. Those among us with a very flat bottom appearance may
actually just have a flexed pelvis. This tends to require more
attention but can absolutely be resolved. So when it comes to your
upper body the keys are: smooth front to back arm swing (or smooth
shoulder undulation if pushing a jogger) and a tall relaxed upright
posture.
Now you have a few tools to critique your run.
Share this information with a running buddy and practice evaluating one
another. This is a cheap and easy way to keep you and your partner on
the right track, make running easier, and to afford you many years of
running for your life.
For more information visit
http://www.doctorpurelife.com.
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