Whether you’re new to running or a seasoned athlete, you’re probably hoping to hit your personal goals this season without being hampered by injuries. One of the best things you can do to ensure that you don’t have any running injuries spring up during the best part of the running season is to make sure that you educate yourself and take all the necessary precautions to avoid potential injuries down the road. Perhaps you’re looking to improve your running style or extend the gains you’ve already made, there are a few things you can do to ensure that you make large improvements to your running and gradually improve your effectiveness as a runner.
The great thing is that implementing a few of these simple changes won’t require a massive overhaul of your running style, and a few minor adjustments to how and when you run could make large improvements over time. Whether you’re looking to increase your stamina, run further, train for that upcoming marathon, get back in shape, or beat some of your personal records from the previous running season, you can find something useful in these small changes we’ve highlighted below.
It’s important to remember that as you gradually implement these small changes into your running routine or running style, that effective change often takes time. Becoming an effective runner that can run for long periods of time without feeling those routine aches and pains often takes time and while it won’t be easy, you’ll be glad that you worked hard to improve your running style in the end.
Before you begin to make small incremental changes to your running style, form, or exercise routine, it could be beneficial to get an assessment from a trained healthcare professional. At Results Physiotherapy, our trained and qualified physical therapists can perform extensive fitness and functional assessments to ensure that your running form and fitness level are on par with the level of exercise you’ll be doing while running. In addition, our physical therapists can help prescribe at-home exercises to help you restore function, improve your strength, and work towards decreasing the pain you’re feeling while running. If you’d like to get an assessment from one of our physical therapists, Book an Appointment Today!
Now that you’re ready to begin getting back into the swing of things and improve your running performance we’ve identified several key things you can do to drastically improve your running. Here are eight things to think about that could make a big improvement in your running performance while decreasing your risk of injury.
One of the first things that you could potentially change to improve your running is the way in which you actually make contact with the ground or more commonly how your foot strike is structured. You may not realize it, but the way in which your foot impacts the running surface and carries your momentum forward could potentially have a big impact on the comfort of your run, how long you’re able to exercise at a certain pace, and the ability for you to excel while running. It could all potentially boil down to whether or not your foot strike is impacting your performance, and whether or not you should potentially change how your foot hits the ground with each rotation.
Foot strike, which refers to the area of your foot (and shoe) that strikes the ground first, continues to be a topic of considerable debate in the running world. You can either run with your heel contacting the ground first or your forefoot/toes and anywhere in between. The majority of runners run with a heel strike, while there has been growing popularity to change to forefoot striking. Some individuals might even say that the best running method is the midfoot strike where you plant each step at the center of gravity.
Supporters of a heel strike pattern (where your heel contacts the ground first) argue that this method is easier to tolerate and not as important as other techniques such as step rate, step length, and posture. However, those that support a forefront strike believe it prevents overstriding and utilizes elastic energy from your calf to propel you forward. So which one is right for you?
Ultimately, everybody runs differently, and no single way can be considered the “Gold Standard”. If you’re struggling to identify what type of foot strike you have, odds are that you have a heel strike pattern, as 85% of recreational runners use this type of foot strike pattern while running.
However, if you are experiencing pain with running, or you feel like you’re hitting a plateau with your running, consider making small changes to your foot strike over time. This is usually done by straightening or bending your knee, changing your step length, or how far you lean forward.
Increasing your Step-Rate or Cadence, the number of steps you take per minute, can have a significant benefit in improving your performance and running form, as well as potentially reducing your injury rate.
One of the things that most runners struggle with when getting back into the swing of things is actually picking a pace that they’re comfortable with. Some individuals believe that they should run as fast as they can for as long as they can, while others believe in the teachings of the tortoise where slow and steady wins the race. The truth to the matter is that the best step rate is somewhere in between where you can comfortably train and prepare your body for the long run distance ahead and get the most out of your jog or run at the same time.
Increasing your running speed by increasing your step-rate will also help you improve your endurance and stamina over time. By quickening your pace, you’ll find that over time you should be able to run further than you initially could and you won’t have as much fatigue or muscle soreness as you did before.
If you are dealing with pain when you run or want to increase your performance, research suggests increasing your rate by about 10%. So, if your current rate is 160 steps per minute, then increasing it by 10% would be 176 steps per minute.
The easiest way to track step-rate is by using one of the many apps or smartwatches available on the market. Many of these devices and/or applications will help you keep track of your step-rate and give you some pointers on what your historical performance looks like. You should be able to review these applications or devices and quickly tell what your step-rate is, and identify whether or not you’re on track to improve your average step-rate or if you need to take it up a slight notch.
If you don’t have a smartwatch or application you can use to track your step-rate, you can also do this manually by counting the number of steps you take in 60 seconds while running at your regular pace. If you are having a hard time counting each step, just focus on counting one foot, then multiply by 2 at the end. If you’re struggling to count one foot for a whole minute, you can even count all of your steps for fifteen seconds and then multiply by four.
Note: Increasing your step rate likely means that you will be decreasing your step length (the distance between the first points of contact of both feet), if you are maintaining a constant pace.
It’s natural for us to think that in order for us to go faster, we need to take bigger steps to get there. While this may work for short distances or if your name is Usain Bolt, the reality is with distance running, shorter steps conserve energy, makes your running more efficient, and reduces the rate of injury.
When taking bigger steps, the further away your leg swings in front of you, the more the forces from the ground will travel up that leg which places “brakes” on your forward momentum. By using more energy with each step, fatigue will set in quicker and your friends will likely be waiting for you at the finish line. Nobody wants to see that.
One way to decrease your step length is to quicken your pace like we’ve highlighted earlier and make sure that the running style you’re using is comfortable. You shouldn’t feel like your running style and form are out of sync because you’re taking these exorbitant strides when you’re running. Instead, take comfortable steps at a reasonable pace that feels comfortable with each step.
There is no single “perfect” way to run. Most of us just want to improve our fitness and achieve personal goals with our friends with the least amount of pain and injury. However, research shows that shorter, quicker steps seem to be the best way to go.
When running, you want to make sure that your form feels comfortable and isn’t sounding off on any alarm bells. If you’re starting to feel pain or aches and pains throughout your run, it’s important to realize that these are often warning signs that your body is trying to tell you. Think of them as messenger pigeons that are being sent from your body to your brain that something is wrong and it needs addressing immediately. One of the quickest ways to potentially injure yourself or significantly slow down your running performance is when you’re running with poor form.
When you align your form and ensure that it’s working for you and not against you, you can improve your running performance over time. Improving your running performance by ensuring that you’re using a proper running form might help you shave off crucial time when you conduct your next marathon or give you a leg up on your competition in your next competitive race.
One of the quickest ways to make sure that you have a proper form when running is to relax your shoulders and reduce the stress that you’re feeling or experiencing while running. Your run should always feel natural and if you feel like you’re forcing something, you probably are. Let your arms flow naturally and avoid crossing them in front of you as you run. For more information on how you can improve your personal running form to ensure that you are running with a proper form, Book an Appointment Today with one of our Physical Therapists who can help you improve your running form!
Improving your running performance can take some time, but one of the sure fire ways of improving is to actually make a plan to run consistently. One of the biggest hurdles for runners is actually sticking to a routine schedule to run or jog. If you’re looking to increase your ability to run at a steady pace for a decent amount of time, run further than you have before, or improve your times on the track, then you need to make it a goal to actually train and exercise routinely.
Your body will respond based on the actions you take. If you begin to run more often, your body will naturally begin to build more muscle, increase your aerobic ability, and prepare itself for frequent runs in the future. If your schedule is sporadic and you’re only going through the motions every now and then, you’ll find that your gains are limited and your ability to run longer, faster, and more efficiently will take longer to develop.
Work towards improving your consistency by getting on a schedule that you can routinely follow. If you’re struggling to get on a schedule, you can always build your way up to the routine. Start with one to two times a week, and then gradually work your way up to running 3 to 4 times a week.
Muscle imbalances can cause issues over time due to the fact that your body tries to compensate for areas in which certain muscles are weaker than their counterparts. Over time, this compensation due to a lack of strength can lead to pain while you run. To avoid this, you should incorporate more strength-building exercises into your routine to reduce the number of issues that can develop due to a lack of muscle strength.
The key to building strength or improving your existing muscle strength is to focus on including simple exercises that help you build functional strength and activate areas that are weak or mostly inactive. To learn more about ways in which you can build strength and improve your existing strength, Book an Appointment Today with one of our Physical Therapists who can help guide you and educate you on potential strength exercises that you can incorporate into your regular fitness routine to build up strength to improve your running performance!
We’ve all wanted to run further and faster, but in many cases getting there can be a different story. One of the best ways to improve your overall running performance and only requires a small change during your normal run routine is to gradually extend your run each time. If you’re looking to train for a marathon or run further each day, then the best way to do that is to extend your running route a bit on each of the days you go for a run.
You can choose to either increase your route by distance or by time. If you choose to extend your route by distance, try adding a little bit at a time until you can gradually run further. If you’re looking to extend your routes by time, then add time in 30 seconds to 1-minute intervals.
Over time, you’ll notice that with each successive run you’ll be able to run longer and further than you did before. If you find that you’re figuratively hitting a barrier, work on comfortably completing your run for one distance. Once you feel like you’ve grown a little more comfortable and can regularly achieve that distance without any major hiccups, begin extending your route once again.
One of the best ways to ensure that you’re gradually extending your run is to track your performance. Whether you’re using a smartwatch or an application like we’ve highlighted above, try to track how you’re doing, where you’re going, how long your run was, and the time of the day in which you completed your run. Take notes where you felt like you were struggling, what you feel you should improve upon, and detail overall notes on how you felt the run went.
When tracking your performance, it’s best to pick the same route each time in the same location to see how your performance is improving over time. Attempting to track your performance with multiple routes or landscapes might skew the results and could dishearten you when it seems that you’re not extending your route when in reality there are other contributing factors that could be impacting your overall performance.
Tracking your running journey and gradually extending your run is a great way to increase your overall athletic performance while running.
Listening to music while you’re running can be a great way to clear your thoughts and focus on the run and task ahead, but it can also lead to poor running tempos and an irregular pace. There’s nothing wrong with listening to music while you run, but you want to try and build or select a playlist that will help you keep a steady pace and tempo as you run. Try to build or find a playlist that is specifically designed to match your step-rate.
If you’re a fan of some of the more popular music applications you can get on your phone or smartwatch, then you should be able to navigate to some workout and running playlists that will help you select music that will help you keep a consistent tempo and pace.
If you’re like the rest of us, you probably tap your feet when you’re listening to some music. Your body does this subconsciously as you run as well, and you can find it incredibly difficult to run at one pace while the beat is on a much slower pace. Don’t sacrifice your progress cause you’re listening to a slow song and then a fast song immediately after. Choose and listen to music that will help keep your stride on track and ensure a smooth run.
The more you challenge yourself while running, the more your body needs to rest and recover. It’s important to ensure that you’re not only sticking to a routine run schedule, but that you’re also putting emphasis on letting your body recover when it’s not running and going through rigorous physical activity.
Make sure that you’re eating well, getting plenty of sleep, stretching appropriately, and avoiding overuse is an important step in making sure that you’re able to increase your running performance over time.
Ultimately, running should feel natural and efficient. Your body is unique, so don’t be afraid to make small changes and see what works for you.
