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What can we learn from this? Can an athlete’s increased awareness of how his or her foot should land lead to effective change? Most likely not; but here’s the skinny on a few things that might:


• Land effectively. Place your foot on the ground, rather than just dropping it out of space. This entails accelerating your foot downward in a slight pawing move so that your foot is moving backward relative to your body just before contact. This will reduce shock and braking and provide you with a better pivot by having your contact point closer to your center of mass. This also will help minimize the quad-killing up-and-down motion in your gait.


• Try to land with your foot as close to flat as possible—too much toe in the air, with a subsequent slap from an excess heel strike is bad for your body and bad for your run. Roll your foot from heel to toe as if your sole were curved like a partial wheel. Similarly, do not point your toe downward and have your foot in an excessively plantar-flexed position either.


• If you do land on your forefoot, especially as a triathlete, be sure to allow your ankle to flex or spring load down sufficiently for the heel to take some of the put-down weight—don’t stay up on that midfoot throughout the stance/support phase.


• Imagine stiffening (but not locking) your ankle so that the arch and Achilles’ tendon can load like sprung steel or rigid carbon fiber in order to release this elastic energy milliseconds later in a release off the surface in toe-off.


• Pay attention to your shin. Whether you land on your midfoot or heel, if your shin is leaning rearward, even slightly, you are running with the brakes on—it has to be vertical at 90 degrees to the surface.


All of the above are best learned through specific drills, rather than trying to tweak your gait while running. Increase your gait awareness while you run; even have someone videotape you so that you have a better sense of what you are doing. You’ll soon realize what’s least jarring and most kind to your body. By trying to run soft with good spring, you’ll bring in the elements that make best use of your legs; you’ll return to the feel of what your legs do most naturally, and that’s run!


Certified & internationally respected, coach Bobby McGee has produced a DVD, (TRIATHLON, The Run) that extensively explains the running gait and provides specific drills pertinent to this article. Also check out his books, Magical Running (sport psychology) and Run Workouts for Runners & Triathletes (workouts & training plans). For more information, visit www.BobbyMcGee.com

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