Even when doing fast paced running I have very low back kick and knee lift. Are there any stretches, workouts that I can do to increase in these areas?
Even when doing fast paced running I have very low back kick and knee lift. Are there any stretches, workouts that I can do to increase in these areas?
bump
Right:
Butt kicks, Strides, High Knees, Quick Strides.
Butt Kicks-Obvious this one. You simply kick back all the way to your buttox.
Strides- Doesn't really help with your stride but might help indirectly due to having to go faster and naturally giving more kick.
High Knees- try and bring your kness as high up as possiblee.
Quick Stride- Basically kick back near your buttox and when your foot strikes quickly push it off the ground.
I had the same problem as you, I had no kick and literally pushed forward. Now I have a pretty good kick and go alot faster.
thanks, I'll try this, anyone else have any advice?
It sounds odd, but pool running might help.
I'm just returning to running after 2 months in the pool and I'm shocked by how much my form has changed. I was always a shuffler, but now my knee lift is much higher and effortless, as is my back kick.
I think your hip flexors and hamstrings get a solid workout in the pool, much more than on land, due to the increased resistance of the water.
Paige is what you would call a super shuffler. This efficient stride has helped her run well in the marathon, but it is now becoming a limitation in her performance ability—she’s stuck in one gear. After years of running over 100 miles per week coupled with marathon-focused workouts, her stride is now limiting her development. (I suspect you have seen runners like her. They squat when they run and seem stuck to the ground. They are efficient and smooth but not very dynamic or fast over short distances.)
Then McMillan tries to change her stride.
Sad ending tho - she gets hurt.
not my name wrote:
Even when doing fast paced running I have very low back kick and knee lift. Are there any stretches, workouts that I can do to increase in these areas?
It really doesn't matter. You have a high stride rate that is why you have less back kick and knee lift. You will get faster if you can effectively lengthe your stride, but don't change your basic running style.
In the timeless words of Steve Buckhantz:
"Noooooo....Not possible...."
Some of it may be how you are built and how your body works most efficiently, so be careful with altering your running form.
But I can't see any downside to working on getting stronger hips and glutes as long as you aren't sacrificing actual running and are doing it in a gradual, sensible way so you don't get hurt or too sore. You may find that once you are stronger in your hips and glutes, the running form issue takes care of itself.
In addition to everyone else has said, try donkey kicks. Here's a video that includes a demonstration based on some of Coach Cook's drills -
Also, look at Jay Johnson's Myrtle routine, which demonstrates donkey kicks and other exercises that might help build up hip strength and flexibility -
You should not try and change your mechanics, your body runs as effeciently as its designed. Your training is what will improve your running.
If you're having success don't change. Your form has worked so far for Gebre Gebremariam.
Plyometrics. The P90X plyometrics workout is good for developing both strength and range of motion, but there are probably hundreds of routines beneficial to runners.
I have a very high knee lift, please walk to towards me and lean forward
To all the people saying stick with your running form, have you ever seen an elite not kick back? Or atleast an elite man? I rest my case.
fast hill repeats. and lots of em
Really??? wrote:
To all the people saying stick with your running form, have you ever seen an elite not kick back? Or atleast an elite man? I rest my case.
That's like saying did you ever see an elite with a low VO2 max? Probably not, but you still have to answer the question of what you can do to improve VO2 max.
People may be able to change form successfully, at least within a certain range, just by trying to move their body in a different way, but I think experience shows that changing form beyond a certain range may be futile given the limits of some people's musculoskeletal structure, or at least may be likely to lead to injury.
That's why my advice is to be cautious about changing form and first make sure you have tried things that have a lower chance of causing injury, like drills and building up hip, glute, and quad strength and giving your body a chance to find better form naturally as a result of greater strength and range of motion.
Had the same problem- very low to almost non-existent knee lift, very little back kick. Shuffled along. Was causing some chronic injuries because of this. Went to get my gait analyzed and came away with 3 very big points:
1- think more about raising your heels upon push off. At first it felt like I was almost prancing on my runs, it was really awkward feeling and I would tire out after about 1/2 mile at first (even at a slow pace).
2- Core strength- not just sit ups and planks, but dynamic core strength. This also ties in with correct posture. The way I was standing and sitting was increasing the strain on my hamstrings and low back and in turn increasing the tightness in my hip flexors which in turn was making me run with little hip motion.
3- Strengthening your extensor muscles- meaning glutes, hamstrings, calves, etc. My quads and hip flexors are strong but my glut medius and hamstrings are weak. Glut medius produces a ton of power for your stride. The one major thing that I have changed is adding in the hip machine and hamstring curls 3-4x per week and I can tell a difference in my stride. I feel more opened up and like I am actually getting use out of my butt and hamstrings.
I could go on forever about this but if you have any more questions let me know.
Really??? wrote:
To all the people saying stick with your running form, have you ever seen an elite not kick back? Or atleast an elite man? I rest my case.
Did it never occur to you that the elite (and everyone else) run with the form that is most natural and efficient for their own body idiosyncrasies and that the fact that the elite tend to look similar (there are exceptions - see Alberto Salazar) is because they have bodies that are particularly well suited to high level running and NOT because they changed their form to conform to some imagined ideal?
Really?
Duncan Kibet barely kicks back at all, and I'm pretty sure he could beat you at anything from 100 to 42195 meters. Maybe even 50000.
Just run.