loss of coordination in leg

foomiler

RE: loss of coordination in leg 8/13/2007 3:25AM - in reply to hillrunner8

hillrunner8,

I have the same experience. I've been doing quite a huge amount of barefoot running, and somehow my coordination seems fairly ok. The way my feet land on the ground feels awfully different from when I have shoes on, even minimalist shoes.

I'm not entirely sure abt this, but it appears that when we run barefooted, we alter our entire gait to a more bent upper body and knee angle when we land on each foot. We also land more on the balls of our feet. Maybe in this position, the way our body is angled, we stick our butts bk out a bit more as part of our body's natural suspension/shock absorption system. In this way they are more active than when we run with shoes.

I've come across studies abt countries w ppl who r too poor to buy shoes and so they walk & run around barefooted. It appears that these ppl have none of the common running-related injuries that we shoe-shod ppl have.

I think God knew what He was doing when He made us. Our feet r naturally equipped to handle ground forces in such a way that does the rest of the body no harm. I think that natural unshod running helps our bodies to perform what it was meant to right from the start, and that ensures a healthy all-rounded activation of the various muscle grps that we have been discussing so far in this forum.

I mean, how many animals complain of a loss of coordination in any of their legs due to some muscular shut-down? They travel in their natural unshod state and do just fine. Consider also the aborigine tribes that still exist in more or less primal living habits in various countries. All barefooted, or shod in animal skin with no cushioning qualities. And how many of them run around in circles at top speed regularly in pursuit of faster running times whilst in their natural habitat?

I think if u check out all these other threads abt minimalism/barefoot running, u will get a better idea. Don't have to take my word for it, but when we run in more built-up shoes, we tend to rely more on push-off beginning from our lower leg muscles, then leading upwds in the chain to the upper leg muscles, before we hit the glutes. But when we run barefooted (or close to it, in very thin shoes) we tend to tread more gingerly over the ground, relying more on picking up or pulling up our lower leg using our glutes/hamstrings, rather than trying to generate forces with our feet.

The next time u run barefooted, try and get someone to video you, and also when u run in cushioned trainers. Maybe u can get a better idea and maybe share with us new understanding that we don't yet realise.

What mlbfan24 mentioned abt hills is again very familiar. I think some other guy also brght this up briefly earlier on. I'm guessing that we activate the glutes more when we run up hill. I know how many coaches r looking to train their athletes ankles, calves and quads as well as overall leg drive when they use hill running, particularly Arthur Lydiard's original intention for 'hillsprings' or hill bounding. The emphasis is usually on encouraging a more powerful push off from the lower leg, and to have higher knee lift. However as we have seen on this thread, our hip flexors r suffering badly from this teaching.

If u take the original idea behind hill training, u get a running cycle that starts from the ankle/calves/feet at push-off, then the quads/hip flexors come in to lift the knee up and forward, with the hamstrings and glutes just coming along for the ride until footstrike. How much glute activation is there in such a running style? How can we make the smaller hip flexor group do the work of the way larger and stronger gluteus complex? The result is they overwork and wear down.

But when consider Italian coach Renato Canova's take on hills (yes, the guy who coaches steeplechase king Shaheen), it is done more as 'half-squats', with the view of activating yr glutes and yr nervous system, we can see how hill running can make be helpful in our problem.

Then there r runners who have too much 'back kick'and little knee lift, in that they 'over-activate' their hamstrings in the attempt to maximally follow thru on the lower leg's push off, in view of creating a greater stride length and forward thrust. Again the glutes r only along for the ride, rather than play any initiating role in the stride cycle.

Some of my teenaged runners do not buy into what I say, and only believe in training/activating their leg muscles, so I did a test for them. After 5 400m repeats at abt 5k race pace w adequate recovery, I have them note how their various leg muscles feel. Some feel it in the quads, while some more in calves and ankles. Then I had them go an all-out final 400m, aiming as if to clock a PB, and they ALL experienced glute pain. This is bec they rarely activate those muscles, preferring the cosy feeling of heel-striking, knee-crunching long distance shuffle even when running 5k pace! However when they r forced to sprint, the glutes come into play automatically, but they tire out badly bec they r so weak from irregular recruitment!

Footwear, running style/technique, running speed/pace; I think all these come into play. Even if u do not do much sprinting, but u do run a lot slowly barefooted, u r probably still activating yr glutes more than when u run slowly in cushioned shoes. But of course not as distinctly as when u run faster. Just my theory, not well-researched.

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