Posts Tagged ‘biomechanics’

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ChiRunning: Week 4

In Cardio-Running on February 9th, 2010 by

Last week was my fourth week of ChiRunning Practice, and things went pretty well. I increased my total mileage for the week to over 10, and didn’t experience anything more than very minor ITBS discomfort. I just focused on form, and ran, and that was that.

So things are going smoothly, and I have nothing particularly exciting to report with regard to progress on form or anything. I just kept practicing the posture, the core engagement, perfecting the lean, and keeping the calves relaxed, and things fell largely into place.

Title: ChiRunning: Week 4

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ITBS Update: What is Working

In Iliotibial Band Syndrome (ITBS) on February 4th, 2010 by

I had a flare-up of Iliotibial Band Syndrome (my first one), in my left leg, about six weeks ago. The pain occurs when I run, usually 1.5-3 miles into my runs. Not being one to enjoy the interruption in my training, I have researched the hell out of ITBS to find the answer, but I have been disappointed to learn that there is no fast cure, recovery can take months, and frequent recurrence is common. read more…

Title: ITBS Update: What is Working

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ChiRunning: Week 3

In Cardio-Running,Training Methods on January 30th, 2010 by

After my third week of ChiRunning practice, I have a little new progress to report, but my body is still catching up with my form.

Body

I talk about ITBS and calf tightness in my updates on ChiRunning practice, but I want to emphasize that I have not perceived them as being a major obstacle to my running since I began ChiRunning Practice. Before ChiRunning practice, my ITBS would become like an ice pick stabbing into the outside of my leg, just above the knee with every step of my left foot. It flared up within 2 miles of the start of my run, and after the run would become several times worse, so that it was difficult to walk and especially to walk down stairs (although by later in the same day, it usually felt back to normal after some icing). The tightness in my right calf also occurred before ChiRunning, so that is also not new. It has not generally been bad enough to force me to stop running, although I find it better to err on the side of caution and stop when my sense of ITB twinges of tightness in my calf pass a certain threshold. I do not try to be a hero. If I feel it and it seems not be improve when I make the recommended and logical adjustments in my form, I cut the run short. I’d rather run less voluntarily than to injure myself and have no real option to run. So, here are the updates on the two types of injuries or physical problems I tend to experience when running that I am hoping ChiRunning will help me eliminate. So far, it seems to have helped me manage the ITBS, but I still have some work to do with regard to my calves. read more…

Title: ChiRunning: Week 3

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Cadence in cycling and running

In Cardio-Cycling,Cardio-Running,Training Methods on January 27th, 2010 by

There is some of evidence that there is an energetically optimal cadence at which athletes can cycle or run that allows for better performance in endurance events.

Cadence became a big deal in cycling with Lance Armstrong’s return to the sport after his battle with cancer. His style involved a lot of “spinning” at higher cadence, particularly on hills. As his performance improved and peaked, other cyclists caught on, and began to work on increasing their cadences as well, and now sustained cadences of 90-110 rpm’s (sometimes more) are common among cyclists in longer races. Less getting up out of the seat and muscling up hills with brute strength of the quads, and more  sitting in the seat and spinning in lower gears.

Cadence is also important to runners. Indeed, cadence is related to running speed, and there has been research showing that trained female runners are most energy efficient when running at about a 9 min/mile pace, while trained male runners are most efficient at about a 7 min/mile pace (on a treadmill). As increasing your running speed requires either a change in stride length or cadence, or both, depending on individual biomechanics, it can be inferred that an optimal cadence is approached in trained runners at these optimal speeds. read more…

Title: Cadence in cycling and running

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ChiRunning: Week 2

In Cardio-Running,Training Methods on January 22nd, 2010 by

Today I completed the last run of my second week of ChiRunning practice, and here’s how I think I’m progressing.

  • posture: check!
  • core engaged, hips level: check!
  • hips rotating back: somewhat; still working on it
  • cadence 85-90: check!
  • upper body relaxed: check!
  • balanced lean from the ankles: check! (well, for the most part)
  • midfoot strike: check!
  • calves/feet relaxed: still working on it

read more…

Title: ChiRunning: Week 2

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ChiRunning: Week 1 – Stop spilling Chi

In Cardio-Running,Training Methods on January 13th, 2010 by

Chi is essentially ‘life force.’ Whether you think of inefficient biomechanics as spilling life force, or simply wasting energy, the forms taught in ChiRunning are intended to improve your biomechanics. ChiRunning is based on the assumption that the typical adult runner has poor biomechanics and inefficient running form that both waste energy and perhaps make them more susceptible to a variety of injuries. ChiRunning enthusiasts claim that the approach cures and prevents a variety of overuse injuries of the foot, ankle, knee, hip, and even the back, through improved posture and running technique. read more…

Title: ChiRunning: Week 1 – Stop spilling Chi

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ChiRunning: Is it the answer?

In Cardio-Running,Training Methods on January 8th, 2010 by

I will admit that I do not have much patience for injuries that keep me from doing things I enjoy. When I started running again after years off (roughly 20 years), running at first felt forced and uncomfortable, and I was sure I could make some adjustments to improve the experience. The way I saw it, to improve the experience of running and performance, a runner must become better conditioned AND more efficient biomechanically. You need strength and endurance, but also an economy of motion to conserve energy and avoid placing undue stress on muscles and joints.

Most runners pay a lot of attention to conditioning, but neglect biomechanics, and many of them end up with “overuse” injuries (I believe) as a result. As for me, I’m a mechanic; a technician. I like to figure out how things work, whether it’s my car or my body, and find ways to make them work better and more efficiently. Within a couple of months of my return to running, I made what I thought were great strides in my running and completed a couple of 5K races, finishing much better than I had anticipated. I thought, hey, I’m getting this running thing figured out, but that’s when the injuries started. First, I had to take a week off to soothe a strained popliteus muscle, and a month later I was sidelined by iliotibial band syndrome. read more…

Title: ChiRunning: Is it the answer?

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