All the faster runners I know...

My feet never leave the ground. Is this bad?

sundog wrote:

I've noticed that most, if not all, of the faster runners I know have a very distinct form. Even when running slow their feet continue through with motion after the foot strike and come up and almost touch their butts. In other words, even when they are running an easy pace they are not shuffling. One would think this extra motion is not necessary but when you watch them run it looks amazingly smooth and efficient.

My motion is the complete opposite. Even at faster paces my feet do not continue very far after the foot strike. Is this something worth studying and working on?

Yes, practice bringing your feet up higher during running, and with drills. Make sure you get a good springing motion with your feet and ankles.

Some top distance runners do not bring their feet up (backlift) much, but they have a very fast turnover, 200 strides per minute or more, even during a Marathon.

And some have a slow turnover, such as those gals running the first three laps of the womens 1500 semi. Their turnover rate was about 150 at this juncture, only picking up to the 175-180 rate during the last lap

good backlift

do you mean bringing your knees higher or your feet higher on the backedn of the stride like when you bring it up to your butt?

The very very best runners have very good backlift and a very fast turnover.

Gebreselassie and Bekele, for example. Of course their physique plays a large part in this, short powerful legs.

Hey "agreed", thanks for providing the proper term "backlift" for this part of the stride. Now, maybe I can search around for some more info. Does anyone know of any good links or books that provide instruction on proper "backlift"?

The key thing is that following a higher backlift you bring your lower leg through to the front under your butt. This means that the pendulum effect has a shorter arm which means the leg comes through faster and therefore gives you a faster cadence than running with straight legs. This is particularly noticeable in sprinters for obvious reasons but it's also important in the longer races. You're effectively halving your leg length from a mechanical point of view.

Not to disagree with your observation but would this apply to those runners who are tall? It seems that most the elite distance runners are under 5'9. Just wondering if this running form would work for those who have really long legs (35 inch inseams or more). The few tall/long legged runners I've seen don't seem to get their heels up much at all, unless their running 1500 meters or less.

true up to a point. Have you noticed Ndereba though? she hardly backlifts at all for a small runner, but does over 200 strides per minute.

Don't worry about the f)(*$&(*$ number of strides, go do some workouts and drills and your strides and times and worrying about non-important things will take care of themselves.

During the first 15 laps of the mens 10000 Bekele had a stride rate of 155. Only at the end of the race did he kick it above 180.

I counted 175-200 and a kick of 220

Go back and recount. Put it in slow mo and then count.

ok i will

Bekele runs the early part of the race at sr of 180+. The last laps @210+.

agreed wrote:

The very very best runners have very good backlift and a very fast turnover.

Gebreselassie and Bekele, for example. Of course their physique plays a large part in this, short powerful legs.

Short legs? Do you need corrective eyewear? Almost all elite distance runners have legs that are proportionally longer than those of normal people of comparable height. Look at pictures of Geb. He's short, but his legs start somewhere near his armpits.

Count Mottram in the race. Doesnt take as many strides. What a generic statement to make about what it takes to be fast.