Have you ever stopped to watch people run? I do.
Honestly what I see is amazing. There are two techniques I’ve seen recently that stood out. The first was what I call the “left hook“. This particular runner looked as if she was throwing a left hook EVERY stride. Each time she brought her right leg thru, her left arm would come around as if she was throwing a punch. This left hook technique has served her well over the years she happens to be an above average runner. The other technique I’ve come across recently is the “slapper“. I noticed it while out for a short run with another friend of mine. He slaps both feet hard on the ground with each foot strike. Again my friend is an above average runner.
So besides being a little awkward what is wrong with these techniques if both of my friends can outrun me? Well for starters they are incredibly inefficient. If they could change their technique they could dramatically improve their times just by making their movement pattern more efficient. More importantly if they continue to run with faulty mechanics they are likely to be injured (she happens to be suffering from right knee pain, and he complains of sore calves, no coincidence there…) As you know, we do not believe in trying to consciously change your mechanics, so we’ve come up with a simple exercise that will get you moving smoothly without any upper body compensation. We call it the function run.
The function run will get your hips and gluteals working and make sure your upper body stays relaxed as you run. It should be a very slow pace, treadmill speed would be between 1.5 – 2.5 mph. If done correctly it will resemble a trott, much like you would see a horse do when warming up. Make sure your torso stays upright, shoulders, abdominals, and breathing stay relaxed, and attempt to keep an arch in your lower back. Be sure to go slow enough that you can roll from your heels thru your mid-foot and off all five toes.
You’ll know it’s working when you hip flexor’s and glutes feel like they’re kicking in. This can be done as a warm up to a regular paced jog or run, but it also can be done as an exercise on it’s own. We often suggest a minimum of 30 minutes of it to get your hips going.
Check out this video we made to help you see how the Function Run should be done. Watch Jon’s form and pace as he attempts to deliberately create the heel-ball-toe foot strike.
Even just a few minutes of this type of running will get you feeling better. You will notice that when you go back to a regular pace your shoulders naturally stay more upright, relaxed and your stride improves, without having to work on it. Give it a try it looks a little goofy but I promise it will be worth it!
As always, let us know how it goes! We welcome your comments or any questions.
