Foot Strike, Running Form, and Injury
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 7 เม.ย. 2017
- www.radiantrunning.com: This video is about the relationship or Foot Strike, Stride, Running Form and Injury. As runners browsing the internet for tips on injury prevention, rehabilitation, and performance enhancement, we are bombarded with various theories on foot strike; which foot strike is best, what angles, directions, parts of the foot we are supposed land on and run with, and a litany of suggestions, scientific investigations, and bold unfounded assertions. Hopefully this won’t fall into any of these categories. This is a study that is based solely on observation of runners over the last 25 years working mostly with injured runners on their technique, running form and posture. Collecting a lot of data on what best works for the runners’ body to heal injuries, to improve efficiency and performance, and to increase enjoyment of the sport.
The most consistent observations regarding foot strike and injury is that forefoot striking is hard on the calves, ankles and feet and that young runners can get away with this, but if they want to have any kind of longevity with running they must find some way to get down on their heels so that the impact force is distributed throughout the foot. This has significant impact on injury prevention and on improvement with force mechanics, rebound and ultimately performance.
The other big problem that is the cause of various aches and pains for the runner are faulty stride mechanics that involve full extension at the knee joint just prior to foot strike. This means that your lower leg goes forward as if you were about to kick a ball, and causes increased impact forces back up the leg into the knee, hip, SI joint, and low back. It often results in unbalanced work in the quads and hamstrings causing muscle, tendon, and ligament strain.
As passionately as the gurus of the barefoot running culture may argue that the modern running shoe is to blame, I have found that it is consistent with a running form strategy that is the result of tight hip flexors. I have elaborated on three major variations of posture and running form that contribute to this type of heel strike in the video. And while running barefoot or in minimal shoes may force a runner to avoid this kind of stride and strike, it will not deal adequately with the root cause often resulting in other problems.
And finally, when correcting faulty running form issues, which usually involves more targeted relaxation then stretching (relaxation is usually a prerequisite for retraining movement), runners are able to relearn proper hip flexion and knee extension more easily. And while a heel strike may still be apparent, the upper body mechanics now allow for an underbody ground contact and shorter contact time. This is the way most efficient and successful runners strike the ground.
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This is one of the best videos and explanations I have seen on the issue of foot strike. When I first began running, like many others, I read articles and watched videos on chi/pose running and other "forefoot" strike philosophies. For me, trying to emulate these styles led to terrible shin splints and even a few stress fractures. After watching some videos on Meb Keflezighi's running form, I noticed that he tended to land on the _front_ part of his heel pad while his foot was moving backwards underneath him (not slamming the back of the heel down and not jamming the front part of the heel straight down either -- the front of the heel pad strikes the ground while the foot is moving backwards underneath the body). I tried running like this and began to notice immediate relief and easier running. I learned from that experience that mid- and forefoot- striking are not for everyone and that there is a proper way to even land on the heel without injury or hyperextending.
thanks, Your videos and instructions are more easier to learn and put in use than some of the other ones. They are more natural than trying to remember 8 things at once through a complete running stride. Old habits are hard to break.
This is the only video I have found that promotes heel strike running; I find that very strange. It's pretty obvious that landing on your heels is going to jar more than landing on your forefeet. Forefoot running has enabled me to run without the knee issues that forced me to stop years ago.
It's very jarring when your heel lands too far in front. Not jarring (for me) when I land with my foot nearer center of gravity. While primarily a mid foot striker I do revert to heel striking occasionally and in particular when running down hill.
Thanks for the video. I was having some serious shin splint issues in my left leg which I was afraid were leading up to a stress fracture. After watching, I realized I was landing too much on the forefoot and altered my stride just slightly to add more heel contact. After just a couple of runs, the bone pain began to subside with no loss in speed or mileage.Still some residual muscle soreness, but not the intense bone pain I was experiencing before.
Great videos with contrast between poor form and corrected form to prevent injury. As a triathlon coach I see all kinds of wacky run form and a lot of injury because of it.
Thank you Douglas for all your in-depth running analysis videos. Almost all other videos on running form only cover some of the basics
Your Welcome!
Great videos, much appreciated.
Great video, thank you!
Am i right to say that the main cause of improved body mechanics on all the examples were the free moving hips.
The hips were the powerhouse of the whole posture. as a result All other body parts were taking care of themselves , just going along for a ride.
For 20 years i was running with my hips held in rigid position, scared of lifting them and rotating from the hips in case i destabilized my lower back.
As a result i have very tight hips and shoulders, imbalances between right and left sides and slight pronation on one foot.
What a wonderful sight of good running techniques. Fluid and effortless, involving every body part including shoulders.
Compared to rigid and s low and overly " made up" posture i run now. Thank you , Douglas, for a different and more natural approach to running.
Elena
True! the hips are the powerhouse and must be mobile to deploy that power. There is certainly a lot of mis-information and understanding about "core power" that's got a lot of people confused about this issue. I wouldn't say all the other parts are playing such a passive role as you suggest here, but certainly supporting rolls of various kinds. Good luck!
Thank you for the reply, Douglas.
I was definitely one of the confused people regarding "core power", along with few specialists i had visited over the years. Such a simple thing and such a profound difference. After many years trying to figure out best running style, it all came together - running WITH the hips. Such a freedom at last.
And the clip you have of a man running- i suppose it must be you - is so inspirational. With such an image you dont need any scientific proof that its the right way to run. Or " fly".
Of course i agree, that all parts are important, but how i see it now -the hips are primary movers, all other body parts are the cogs that follow the movement of the hip.
Thanks for your question and for providing some of the answers :-) I've been and still am confused about the role of the core as well!
thx. made me reconsider the way i was running.
Nice, Douglas! I saw someone running yesterday with their toes hitting first, and I worried about them.
Great video!
Such great content excited to be working with you
My pleasure to help you!
Great video, thank you very much! :)
You are welcome!
Hi great video. I think i'm the arched back runner and I get repeated issues with my hip flexors tightening and that feeds through to my lower back. Although I know this I dont know how to correct it? Particularly at slower speeds (as Im training for an Ultra so run slower/longer).
Great Video. I’ve just started running after the gym and pool now off limits. Unfortunately I’ve managed to get shin splints and am not sure if it is just I’m new to running and it’ll settle down as I get used to the new exercise or if it is bad form/core strength etc. I think I need a video analysis to make sure. Is that something you do online by video clip?
Thanks
Richard
Hi Richard, If you to my website and go to the Skype session page you can find information about video analysis.
Are there any specific cues you might suggest to correctly run with the hips and core more engaged?
Check out Richard Diaz
I didn't understand what is wrong with the last example?
🙏🙏🙏🙏 thank u sir love from india 🇮🇳 are
One of the only sources of truth about forefoot strike, running forefoot for long distances will cause injuries.
Dominant leg calf pain badly as I am forefoot striking
Have you or anyone here ever experienced numbness between the balls of your feet and big toes from running?
What did you do to treat it? How long does it take to heal?
I think running too hard down inclines for a few days is what caused it for me. Thank you for any ideas.
it is caused by running on uneven surface..i already suffered from that..
Does drop on shoes matter? Im using altras zero drops. Suffering from chronic posrerior shin pain/soreness had previous stress fracture on left tibialis posterior
The shoe drop won't be of consequence if you are using your body correctly, it becomes a matter of preference. You want to be sure to be grounding-out through your legs and feet, being sure to feel a relaxed heal contact with the ground. If you look at the structure of the foot is becomes obvious that the big bone in the back is there for a reason, and it isn't to be held off the ground in locomotion. While overdoing the heel contact will cause injury, minimizing heel strike can do the same. Good luck grounding-out.
@@douglaswisoff thanks for the tip this posterior shin splint soreness wont go away but it might be because idk how to run properly will try to go for a minute run and try
Seems like better mechanics come with an increased average speed, which would take some getting used to but ultimately increase the energy flow and tolerance in the body. Cardio gains, for the layperson.
Running mechanics is often an expression of Posture, and poor posture is an expression of once useful, but now useless tensions that have outlived their prior function, but remain expressed by habit in the body and movement. This being the case, often increased speed will look good, and even feel good, but at the expense of useless tension that ultimately will cause injury or hit a performance wall. All that being said, good mechanics learned at an easy pace by learning how to relax on the run, may take a little time to learn, but in the long term is the best option. Cheers
Hey do you reply to youtube comments?? I need sum help with my running from
Yes, I do, and to find out how to get help go to: radiantrunning.com/contact/skype-sessions/.
Are you sure that is the center of mass while running, because in physics, you dont assume that its in the middle of an object. What about center of gravity? And more?
The perspective needed to appreciate these video is more from the artistic realm then the scientific one. I care little for statistics, calculations, force plates, double blind studies, etc. While I appreciate the scientific world view, I have found it, in my work as a movement trainer for runners of all abilities, very limiting. It isn't the way that most people learn, quite the contrary, most people learn by feel, then visual and lastly conceptually. And so statements I have made in the videos are a reflection of having worked with thousands of runners and finding over and over what works and what doesn't in terms of keeping runners healthy and doing what they enjoy as best they can. I have read born to run, the original journal study on evolution and running, all sorts of anatomical texts, etc, and still when the rubber/foot hits the road, each person is a little different and what is going to help them get healthy and remain healthy and performing to their potential is my interest, not a bunch of numbers. Thank you so much for your comments and if you need any help or would like to talk to me, give me a call.
@@douglaswisoff As a student of science, we have rules that we must convey science in an understandable way. Thanks for your opinuom though, but in my opinion, i appreciate all ways of understanding of science and the art together. Artistic science.
@@user-zo3wy4we3t Thank for the dialog. I appreciate and honor you opinion. Happy Trails!
@@douglaswisoff happy trails and happy new year fellow old man!
@@douglaswisoff You should have said centre of gravity. The foot should land under the centre of gravity. Where the foot strikes is more important than how.
2:28 the runner has a "fixed" dorsiflexion of the foot and is heel striking badly.
I advise runners to stand on a skate board and push off with one foot. Thats where the foot should land. Overall a very good YT.