Many people at Rising Fitness in Houston, TX, stay active and exercise on their day away from the gym. They might walk, dance, or bike on their days away to boost their progress. One popular exercise is running. It’s exhilarating and fun to compete against yourself for distance or time. They can experience problems if their running technique needs help. Those issues can affect their health and ability to do their regular exercise program. When you improve your running technique, you can avoid injury.
Your posture plays a big role no matter what your fitness routine is.
Whether you’re lifting weights or running, good posture is vital. Good running posture allows the body to work more efficiently. If you have a desk job, you spend long hours sitting. It can deteriorate your posture and cause rounded shoulders with hips flexed. That creates tight hip flexors and causes other muscles to weaken. That affects you when you run. Your body needs to have the ability to flex fully, but your posture doesn’t allow it. It only allows you to run with your hips in a semi-flexed position. Do hip flexor exercises to help with an anterior pelvic tilt.
Check your stride.
People who workout regularly are often surprised at how sore or tired they get when they begin a new fitness regimen. Running is just that. Just like any fitness routine, you need to focus on your form. If you’ve been running for a while, pull back a bit and identify areas where you can improve your form. Avoid over-striding. Your knee should be flexing right above the ankle when contact is made. If you can see your ankle ahead of your knee, you’re over-striding. It helps to increase your stride frequency. It encourages your body to make the stride shorter.
Improve your core strength.
A strong core improves your stability and balance. That reduces the potential for injury. Improve your glutes. Both muscle groups directly affect your running. They help maintain lower body stability. Muscle imbalances and weaknesses can cause hip, back, and knee injuries. It can affect lower leg muscles while you run. Our trainers can help you build core strength with a personalized routine.
- Learn proper breathing techniques. Your breathing pattern should match your running rhythm. Breathe in through both your mouth and nose simultaneously. Take full breaths to maximize your oxygen intake.
- Focus on your body as you run. Run in a straight line. Don’t rotate your body from side to side as you run. It slows forward movement and depletes energy.
- Find the perfect cadence. If the cadence is too slow, it causes over-striding and bouncing. You want to reduce any bounce. If you bounce one extra inch in a marathon, it’s like adding one extra mile.
- Keep your upper body tension at a minimum so you can swing your arms easily to maintain power, balance, and rhythm. Your arm motions should match your speed. The faster you run, the bigger your arm motion should be.
For more information, contact us today at Rising Fitness Gym