How to Run Slow with Proper Form and Technique

I think one of the issues runners have when trying to run slower is they want ... However, when running at a slow pace, it's very difficult to generate hip ... HowtoRunSlowwithProperFormandTechnique CoachJeff Ifyou’realong-timereader,thenyouknowhowfrequentlywediscussthetopicoftakingyoureasydaysslow;andifyou’renewtothesiteorneedarefresher,here’sagreatarticleonwhywebelieverunningslowissoimportantandhowtodetermineyouroptimaleasypace. Ithinkwe’vedoneagoodjobeducatingrunnersonjusthowimportantrunningeasyis. Butthere’sstillanissue. 4outofevery10runnerswhoseetheiroptimaleasypaceimmediatelyaskthequestion–“howdoIrunthatslow?” It’sagoodquestionsincerunningwithefficientformisparamounttostayinghealthy.And,asyoumayhaverealizedyourself,thesloweryoutrytorun,theharderitistorunwithgoodform. So,inthisarticlewe’regoingtoexplainhowyourgait,oryourrunningform,changesasyourunslowerandgiveyou5simpleformcuestohelpyoumaintainsolidrunningtechniquewhenslowingdown. 1.Keepyourcadenceup Whileweusedtothinkourcadence(orhowmanystepsyoutakein1minute)neededtostayat180,wenowunderstandthatcadencewillnaturallyincreaseordecreaseslightlywhenyourpacechanges. The“trick”tomaintaininggoodrunningformwhileslowingdownistomakesureyourcadencedoesn’tdroptoomuch. Irecommendrunnersstaywithin2-4%oftheirnormalormarathonpacecadence(here’showtocalculateyourcadence). Thatdoesn’tmeanyoushouldtrytoloweryourcadenceifyoudon’tfeellikeyouneedto.However,itdoesmeanthatyoushouldincreaseyourcadenceifitdoesdropbelow2-4%ofyournormal. Asanexample,ifyournormalmarathon-ishpacecadenceis170,thenyouwanttomakesureyoudon’tfallbelow164whentryingtorunsupereasyorslowonyourrecoverydays. Howtodothis Simplyspeaking,takeshortersteps. Ithinkoneoftheissuesrunnershavewhentryingtorunsloweristheywanttomaintaintheirnormalstridelength. Stridelengthhasadirectcorrelationtorunningspeed.So,it’sokayforyourstridelengthtoshortenwhentryingtorunslow. IliketoimagineIamrunningonanicepatch. Onice,youcan’ttakelong,lopingstridessinceyourfootwillslideoutbehindyou.Thisforcesyoutotakeshortersteps.Italsocuesyoutolandonyourmid-footandunderyourcenterofmass(hallmarksofproperrunningtechnique)tomaintainbalance. Ifimaginingyourselfonasheetoficedoesn’twork,tryusingametronomeapp.Appstoreshaveaplethoraofoptions,sofindingoneisn’tdifficult.Settheapptothecadenceyouwanttomaintainandfollowtherhythm. 2.Reduceyourarmswing Oftenneglected,yourarmswingcanactuallyhaveagreatdealofinfluenceonyourrunningform. Ifyourarmsswingside-to-side,sowon’tyourhipsandlowerbody. Andbecausearmswingcanhelpproduceapropulsiveforce,themoreyoudriveyourarmsforwardandback,themoreyourlegswillwanttofollowsuit. Yourarmswingshouldthusautomaticallyadjustasyoudorunslower–butforsomerunnersthisdoesn’thappen. Howtolessenarmswing Everyrunnerisgoingtohaveanindividualdegreeofarmswing,sothere’snomagicnumbertoshootfor. WhatIrecommendathletesdoisvisualizebrushingtheirpocketsorhipswiththeirthumbswhentryingtorunslower. Thiswillgenerallykeepyourarmsfromswingingtoofarforwardorbacksincetheyhavealongerdistancetotravel.Plus,sinceyou’veextendedthelever(physicstermforextendingthearmandthusrequiringmoreefforttoswing),armswingwillnaturallyslowdown. 3.HipflexionorLeglift Normally,Idon’trecommendrunnersfocusonhipflexionordrivingthelegforwardwhentheyrun. Ibelievethatkneeliftshouldbeafunctionofthestretchrecoilgeneratedbyproperhipextension. Hipextensionisbasicallyhowfarbackbehindyourbodyyourlegtravelsduringpushoff.Asyourlegtravelsbackbehindyou,itcreatesastretchonthehipflexormusclethat,justlikearubberbandwould,releasesthestoredenergyinthehipflexorasyoutransitiontotheswingphase. However,whenrunningataslowpace,it’sverydifficulttogeneratehipextensionsinceyoudon’tneedtoproducealotofpower.Assuch,youcan’ttakeadvantageofthestretchreflex. Therefore,youneedtomoreactivelyfocusondrivingyourlegforwardwhenrunningslow. Howtodothis Becausefocusingonkneeliftconflictswiththeprinciplesofpropertechnique,Idon’tthinkit’ssomethingyoushouldactivelyfocusonchangingwhenyou’rerunningslower. Myapproachissimilartomythoughtsonmaintainingcadenceasyourunslower–focusonlandingmid-footandwithyourfootunderyourcenterofmass. Formostrunnersthiswillgenerateproperhipflexionsinceit’snearlyimpossibletolandthiswaywithoutliftingyourleg. Seethesetipsinaction Hopefully,thisarticlehasgivenyou3importantformcuestothinkaboutwhenyourcoachorplanasksyoutorunslow. But,ifyoualsowanttoseethesetipsinaction,we’vemadethishelpfulvideoforyou… Letusknowinthecommentsifyouhavequestionsoranytipsofyourown! WhoWeAre Yourteamofexpertcoachesandfellowrunnersdedicatedtohelpingyoutrainsmarter,stayhealthyandrunfaster. Weloverunningandwanttospreadourexpertiseandpassiontoinspire,motivate,andhelpyouachieveyourrunninggoals. GETSTARTEDNOW GETFREETICKET References SomeOtherPostsYouMayLike... ChangingyourStrideFrequency “Quickfeet,quickfeet!”Myhighschoolcoachusedtoshoutaswelaunchedintothelastlapofatrackrace.Moreoftenthan ReadMore» ProperRunningForm:DoesGravityHelpYouRunFaster? Inlastweek’sarticle“HowDoesCadenceAffectInjuryandPerformance,”wesawhowmakingasmallchangetoone’srunningmechanicscanhavea ReadMore» IsYourStrideFrequencyLimitedByYourHeight? Ifyoufollowrunningresearch,youprobablyknowaboutalltheevidencethatsaysmaintainingahighstridefrequency(orstriderateorcadence)can ReadMore» LeaveaReplyCancelreplyYouremailaddresswillnotbepublished.Requiredfieldsaremarked*CommentName* Email* Website Facebook Youtube Instagram +1(857)342-3521 874SMainStreetSanLuis,AZ85349 support[at]runnersconnect.net AboutUs OurStory MeettheTeam Contact Learn 5k&10kTraining HalfMarathonTraining MarathonTraining Injuries Nutrition MastersRunning Beginners Products FreeInsiderMembership TrainingPlans MastersMembership StrengthTraining RaceDayFueling ImprovingFormCourse NutritionforRunners 2020byRunnersConnect,Inc. Poweredbytheloveofrunning JoinOurWeeklyNewsletter