Monday Minute #3: Improving Running Velocity and Cultivating Reactive Running Technique
Running 201 on Speed and Running Form
Running Faster: Let’s Keep it Simple.
Everybody wants to be fast, and I’m sure everybody has an opinion on how to get there. But at the end of the day running speed is really just a product of one simple equation:
Speed = stride length x stride frequency
Simple, right? Well, not really. Because further confusion comes in with various different interpretations that will inevitably come from the equation. If stride length is one of the two key factors to running faster then of course that just means if I extend my stride a few extra inches, or if I’m taller with a naturally longer stride, then I’ll run faster, right?? Again, not quite. I’m sure everybody has at least at some point in their life heard it referenced that the runner with several inches of height on them will inevitably run faster because of the monster stride length they’ll have when they run. Well, the data, and eyeball test actually don’t back this up.
Sorting through the Minutia
From a distance runners’ perspective, it does not take long before you realize that most of the runners in the 5k and 10k at each Olympic and World Championship finals are generally around 5 and a half feet at best. To be exact, the top 3 medalists in the 2020 Olympic 10,000 meter race were 5’ 7”, 5’ 6”, and 5’ 9” respectively. So, our observation alone tells us that having a longer stride is not merely a result of having a longer limb moving through the gait cycle. What is much more likely is that increased stride length is a product of increased strength that propels the runner forward and further when they have a fluid and efficient gait.
Likewise, trying to manually manipulate stride frequency can get messy. Most runners will try to aim for the magic number of 180 strides per minute as the benchmark for having an ideal cadence. But what is so special about the number 180? The answer is nothing. The number 180 came from legendary Coach Jack Daniels when he observed elite distance runners at the 1984 Olympics and counted their strides per minute and noted that on average most of the runners had a cadence of at least 180 strides per minute. As a general rule, I would say that runners should try to aim for a cadence of at least 160 and should expect for it to increase as they run at a faster pace (if not, it could mean their stride length is simply increasing, as reflected in the above equation on running speed). What matters most however is understanding what stride frequency is a litmus test for, and in essence, it reflects overall efficiency. The runner who overstrides (a common mistake many runners make) will end of having more ground contract time with his lead foot, and concomitantly, the contralateral limb will take more time and have more ground to make up as it swings through before placing the other foot down. Most commonly, this is the primary reason why some runners have a lower stride frequency than others, and the first aspect of your form that you should look at when trying to decipher why your cadence is low.
What Actually Matters: Instilling Reactive Running Technique
In “Running: Biomechanics and Exercise Physiology Applied in Practice” by Frans Bosch and Ronald Klomp, Reactivity is defined as: “the uptake of energy from forces working upon the body and the subsequent use of that energy to create movement”. In competitive running we’re looking to maximize this principle of reactivity and eliminate any biomechanical flaws that blunt this fluid transfer of energy as the runner moves through the gait cycle. So, what does this principle of reactivity look like when carried out in running? One could go on and on discussing the dos and don’ts that go into perfecting running form, and many books have been written on it (one of the best I just mentioned above). But I’ll just briefly point out some details with respect to how a runner optimizes reactivity by using the picture I included below from Bosch and Klomp’s work as an example (excuse my personal scribble).
1) The runner’s posture from the pelvis extending upward is in an upright position, devoid of any backward lean that would blunt forward momentum
2) The rearfoot is perfectly perpendicular to the lower leg, which itself is almost perfectly perpendicular to the thigh
3) Upon landing the foot strike should be beneath or only slightly in front of the center of gravity, allowing fluid transition to the swing phase and preventing any excess ground contact time
4) The lead foot is in a neutral, rigid position, that will allow adequate transfer of elastic energy from the Achilles tendon to propel the runner forward
For me, instilling this reactive running form is very important for anyone that wants to get faster and bring their running performance to the next level. As I briefly touched on with my previous newsletter, I’ve been trying to go away from some of the traditional running form drills and move more towards work that helps cultivate reactive running form. The optimal drill for working on this would be Wickets, which involve running through a set of hurdles with emphasis placed on the foot landing beneath the runner’s center of gravity as they land in close proximity to the hurdle.
Pictured: A runner that I worked with in the Fall running through a set of Wickets, with emphasis being placed on simply “putting the foot down” over the hurdle and beneath one’s own center of gravity.
Furthermore, I include many other drills as part of the warmup that I believe both instill reactive running technique, work to optimize muscle tension, and loosen up the body in all 3 planes:
- Lateral side shuffle
- Karaoke’s
- Simple skipping
- Jog with B-skips
- Single leg hops (reactive)
- Double leg hops (reactive)
- Zigzag hops (reactive)
- Bounding
- Skipping with speed progression
- Strides
At the end of the day, running faster isn’t easy, but it’s simple! The difficulty today lies in finding the right information amongst all the clutter and knowing how to utilize it.
The Monday Minute is intended to be a short-form newsletter that is not intended to be fully comprehensive and all-consuming, but rather a gateway to further discussion. Want to chat more about any of the following topics? Reach out! Have questions or training ideas you would like addressed in future Minutes? Send them in! And last but not least, do you know anybody that would be interested in personalized running coaching? Spread the Word! Thanks for reading, and I hope you all have a great start to the week.