How to improve running posture
Improving your running posture can prevent running injuries and help increase speed. can prevent injury and it can even help you to run faster. Athletes such as Marilyn Arsenault from Canada hold clinics to help people improve their posture and enjoy the sport more overall. Here are some great tips for you to improve!
Beware of Heel Striking
If your feet are landing in front of your hips, it’s far more difficult to push forward off of you feet when they are positioned like that. When you strike your heel on the ground you are making it harder to propel yourself forward. Not only this, but it can hurt your heel and knees. Try thinking of striking the ground with the middle of your foot, rather than your heel. Many of those who train also suggest running in minimalist footwear or as close to barefoot as possible. Minimalist footwear will make you more aware of your heels and the movement of your hips.Focus on Your Range of Motion
Your mobility is going to be a large part of your success as a runner. Increased mobility will help you stay healthy. A great way to improve this is to work on Active Isolated Stretching. This method of stretching helps to lengthen individual muscles which makes it easier for your body to engage them in addition to increasing your flexibility and range of motion.Relaxing Your Upper Body
For runners, especially beginners, the idea of trying to run fast and keep your upper body relaxed seems pretty difficult. There are a couple of things you can do to improve this, however.- Keep the angle of your elbows at 90 degrees and do not release them on the back swing. This will take up more energy and cause you to tense up.
- At the end of each mile, scrunch your shoulders up to your ears and then release them again. This will encourage you to relax the muscles in that area.
- In order to cut down on left to right movement and any crisscrossing movements, interlock your hands on top of your head. This forces you to focus on your core and your hips.