Coaches Who Look at Proper Running Form
1 Comment June 14, 2007 / Posted in Mindful Running, Running Form & StyleThe following are collection of running coaches who have focused on running form and style.
They have shared their thoughts and wisdom through their writings and websites. The caviat being: Runnicus be wareacus. I am more and more leaning to the import of gravity in running and that it is gravity that plays a most significant role in horizontally moving one’s body at running speeds over the surface of the earth.
If that is true and can be shown that there is no toe off/ push off as Romanov and Fletcher’s research holds, it will show the importance of a correct or proper running form to increase speed, or distance, while preventing injury.
The issue remains that people will hold onto their positions. To confront means to search for the truth. And since our positions are always interpretations of reality, it is more a matter of a dialogue of increasing our understanding of the body in motion.
DaVinci said several hundred years ago as he observed people in motion: Walking is a controlled fall. If that is true, then running is a controlled fall at a faster speed.
So the issue: if elite runners can move gracefully over the surface of the earth, what stops all runners from adopting a sense of moving gracefully over terra firma without the firma creating the terra on the road to infirma…especially if one falls.
Each runner is an experiment of one. If one will run mindfully and realize that the less vertical displacement in horizontal movement the better. While weight lifters will realize that in lifting mindfully the less horizontal displacement in this vertical movement the better.
If you march in place you will notice that you do not hit on your heels first, nor your heals. Rather the ball touches first followed immediately by the heel touching down.
If you continue to march in place by lifting the legs and touching down ball/heel, And you lean your erect body forward from the ankle a half a degree; you will still be marching in place and you will be living DaVinci’s observation…a controlled fall.
The more the angle from the ankle increases the faster the fall and the more distance is covered and the quicker the following leg has to be brought through in order to maintain “a controlled fall.”
Ozzie
My post to Runner’s World Beginner’s forum
These are the people I’ve come across who have been thinking and writing about the phenomena called running:
If you think you’re doing something correctly and if incorrect it may be years before it shows up as an injury.
As I’ve said for years: Running is a dance. You can do it gracefully or clumsily. Go for the grace!
This is what I’ve collected in the past few year regarding people who have throught about proper running form and share those insights at various running and training venues.
Update: People who are thinking & teaching about Proper Running Form and Style
People I like who think: proper running form and style These are some of the people who I believe share or shared a life long learning process regarding proper running form and style:
There’s a truth that weaves through all about being able to teach running as a skill, a graceful dance, and something that one can educate oneself to do.
Besides liking my own folklore on running form and style, in no particular order, these are some others who I think have shared their view of good running form and style with a good many people:
Dan Lieberman Ph.D. PI in Harvard’s Dept. of Evolutionary Biology on Running Barefoot Just Google: Barefoot Running Dan Lieberman
John Gilbody’s preseving Gordon Pirie’s work:
Nicholas Romanov, Ph.D. POSE Method Method
Danny Dreyer’s ChiRunning
Coach GP’s Run Tall Run Easy
Luca Speciani’s Zen & the Art of Running
Arthur Lydiard’s books
Hal Higdon’s coach Fred Wilt.
Percy Cerutty (so little remains of his wonderful folklore) who was admired by a wonderful Indian coach, Mohammad Ilyas Babar.
Tom Miller (running friend from the 70′s, got his Ph.D. in Exercise Physiology, also plays with form and style)
Barefoot Ken Bob of RunningBarefoot.org
David Sypniewski of BarefootRunner.com
Ozzie Gontang and his promised: Proper Running Form and Style (ebooklet to be published in next few months) based on my 34 years at the San Diego Marathon Clinic and 12 years as Maintainer of the rec.running FAQ, and 33 years as a Running Therapist
Also check out Vibram Five Finger Running Shoes and the shoes of Vivo Barefoot
[...] and Arthur Lydiard are a few of the coaches who were so moved and moved me. These are Coaches who look at proper running form. Add the science of evolutionary biology to “homo runnicus like hellicus” and Dan [...]