When you are training hard for an upcoming race or competition, what are some of the things you fear the most? I’m sure injury and/or illness would rank pretty high up that list. Hence, it is crucial that you train WITHOUT pain.
There will be a certain level of pain from muscle soreness, but what I’m referring to is pain that will knock you off your training. That is the kind of pain you DON’T want.
It doesn’t mean that the more you run, the more likely you are to get injured. Rather, the more you run with the wrong technique, the more you are going to get injured. So, over the past few months, I’ve had Daniel Dittmar of Focus Pilates to aid me with my running technique.
The first step was to do an assessment of my running style and I was given a detailed report. In short, I have limited range of movement in the hips and an over-striding problem. Because of how tight my hips are, it causes me to hinge when I run and thus I’m not running upright enough.
What he did next was to prescribe a personalised conditioning plan, with specific exercises tailored to my problems. Here's a summary of the before-after, as seen in the video:
1. Initial contact (red line) is closer to the centre of gravity (green line), the lower leg (yellow line) is more vertical, and I've changed from a heel strike to a mid/forefoot strike. All of this adds up to significant improvements in running efficiency and decreased injury potential.
2. At the point of maximal vertical load, there is less lean forward, giving better alignment and posture (less load into the back).
3. The swinging leg is much higher, thus improving running efficiency by assisting the legs to recycle energy into the next step.
You can read the detailed analysis on my blog (http://www.cheryltay.sg/running-pain-free-with-runity/), which also includes the exercises I did.
If you're interested in correcting your running technique and become a pain-free runner, you can check out http://www.focuspilates.com.sg/runningassessment.html. They also have an upcoming Runity course from 25 to 27 May (and other workshops), suitable for runners who want to learn conditioning exercises or coaches/personal trainers who want to learn how to teach proper running technique. You can view details of the courses here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/47co58q4msmkbat/Runity%20Info%20Sheet%20-%20April%202018.pdf?dl=0.
