Episode 1 - 5 Skills for an Efficient Running Stride - The Women’s Running Lab Framework

Episode Summary:

In this episode of the Women’s Running Lab Podcast, we dive deep into the biomechanics of running and how understanding these principles can enhance your performance and reduce injury risk. As a self-proclaimed running nerd with a passion for simplifying complex concepts, our host explores how pain and performance in running are influenced by a multifactorial mix of social, emotional, mechanical, neurological, and physiological factors. The discussion emphasizes that running is a uniquely human experience and highlights the importance of addressing both visible and invisible aspects of running, including psychological and physiological factors.

The episode introduces the concept of energy management in running—how to accept, store, and utilize ground reactive forces efficiently. Listeners are guided through five essential skills for an efficient running stride, which are crucial for optimizing performance and making running more enjoyable and empowering. The host explains these skills in detail, offering insights into how they contribute to a more effective and powerful stride.

Key Takeaways:

1. Complexity of Running and Being Human:
• Running and being human involve complex interactions between social, emotional, mechanical, neurological, and physiological factors. Understanding that  these can all play off one another is an important foundation to healthy movement.
2. Importance of Energy Management:
• Running efficiency is not just about the energy we put into the system (nutrition, cardiovascular training) but also about how well we store and release ground reactive forces. Training should focus on improving this energy storage and release to reduce overall energy expenditure (aka. improve running economy).
3. The Five Essential Skills for an Efficient Stride:
• The Stack: Proper posture and alignment (ribs over pelvis) to enhance core stability and range of motion.
• Stand on One Leg: Mastering mid-stance to effectively load and organize the body for force production.
• Rotate: Utilizing pelvic rotation and counter-rotation of the torso to manage ground reactive forces and improve stride efficiency.
• Extend: Efficient hip extension, maintaining knee flexion through the stride to maximize propulsion and minimize load on the low back and knee.
• Energy Storage: Building strong tendons and practicing isometric, plyometrics and coordination to optimize energy storage and release with each stride.
4. Holistic Training Approach:
• Strength training, mobility work, and plyometrics should all be integrated to address these skills. This approach not only enhances performance but also makes the training process more fun and empowering.

Tune in to explore these concepts in more detail and learn how to apply them to your running routine for better results and a more enjoyable experience.

Time Stamps:

[00:00] - Introduction

[02:22] - Importance of Energy Management

[05:02] - Skill #1 - The Stack 

[11:46] - Skill #2 - Standing on One Leg (Mastering Midstance)

[14:20] - Skill #3 - Rotate

[20:05] - Skill #4 - Extend

[22:35] - Skill #5 - Energy Storage & Tendon Health

[25:00] - Wrap-Up & Closing Thoughts

Resources Mentioned:

• Foot and Ankle Fundamentals for Runners (now The Foot Fix): Ditch those frustrating foot symptom flare ups for good by addressing the underlying cause! 
• The Runner’s Lab: A 2 hour virtual masterclass to gain a deeper understanding of the physics and physiology of running and what that means for your body and your training so that you can unlock your full running potential. 

Quotes:

“Maybe it's the engineer in me, but I look at this as an energy problem.I think of energy for running as having two parts. One part is the work that we put in.We eat the food, we breathe the oxygen, and our muscles do the work. The other part is the storage and release of ground reaction forces. The human body actually does a really good job at this. [Part of] the goal of training, in my opinion, our strength training, mobility training, plyometrics is to get better at this part. The better we are at this part, the less work we have to put in to go the distance or to hit that pace.”

“I think this is where so much of strength training for runners misses the boat with all the booty bands and the clamshells. Yes, stabilizing through mid stance requires a strong glute med. But if we're talking about organizing our center of mass over that stance leg, remember I said it happens through internal rotation of the pelvis and length in those glutes. All the band walks and the clamshells, they are all shortening that tissue. We need to be able to come through length first.”

Follow Along Between Episodes on Instagram and if you enjoyed this episode please give a share and tag me in your stories!