Runners Arm Swing: More Important Than You Think

As I ran today some of my focus shifted to my arm swing. We run with the whole body, not the parts. Running develops around our vertical axis as if there were a straight line running somewhere down through the center of us. We don’t run with the arms. We don’t run with the legs. We run as an integrated whole. The legs have to be integrated with the upper body. The arms have to be integrated with the torso and the legs. So if we draw our attention to any of these parts, they give clues to the whole pattern we are developing and indeed influence the whole pattern. 

Arm carriage should be somewhat compact. 

Sometimes the arms are carried very low. I was aware of this today and experimented with having at least a 90 degree bend. Sometime we see the loose fists of the hand are carried into a position quite far in front of the runner almost as if the runner is trying to pull themselves forward with their hands. But this tends to throw the back out of alignment and waste energy. Sometimes the arms are carried very wide to the sides, but this doesn't facilitate the spiralic use of the spine seen in the best runners. Sometimes the arms are not moved all that much, but are almost pinned to the sides or chest causing the runner to rotate at the hips but loose a good connection to the ground, dissipating the power of good hip extension and failing the use the spine and back well.

Sometimes the arm swing is out of balance because for instance there is a swing to the front but not much back swing. This got my attention today. There should be a neutral position of the arms and then a swing forward and backward from there as you run, otherwise the position of the spine and even the head carriage are effected.

It is best to have a compact arm swing and one that is not purely side to side or purely front to back, but one that has a forward and slight diagonal across the body as the hand rises, without crossing the body’s center line. This way you are congruent with the spiraling rotation of the spine when running.

The important point:

The important idea is this: The arm swing is not a minor detail that is tacked onto the run but is a clue to everything we are doing in the whole running movement.  It influences everything in our running. Look at the picture above for a good example of what we have been talking about.  Enjoy getting cues from your arm swing about your use of energy, head carriage, balance, ground contact, use of ground forces, hip extension and overall ease. Have fun looking back and forth at the details of arm swing and the resultant whole pattern.

This Is How Records Are Broken

Above is a picture of Perry Newburn who just ran across the country from New York to Los Angles in record time. He turned 60 years old during the run.  How did he do it?  That is what I wondered today. I didn’t just wonder in a general way about how much humans can do. I wondered specifically what was he doing with his self organization, his running form. I watched video on youtube of Perry running. There is an overall sense of efficient movement over the ground when you watch him. Then the details – He was great movement in the shoulders, hips, and spine, no over striding. My impression is that he moves like someone who is comfortable with himself and what he is attempting to do. He looks like he comfortably rotates gently down the road (yes, I know he must be tired) but like all masters, he makes it looks easy. Thank you Perry, by expressing your gift you have inspired on a basic human level and have also spoken to points I would like to improve in my running. 

Let us all give a big congratulations to Perry on his accomplishment!!!!!  

Try this:

Have a friend read this to you or do this by yourself. Pause at times to notice more.

I have mentioned this basic movement before, but let us go back to it afresh. Stand upright and relax. Now swing your arms in a loose, relaxed arc around yourself, to the left and to the right. Pay attention to doing this movement in a loose easy manner. Now notice that this movement can be felt throughout the entire body from head to foot. Make the motion smaller, lighter, easier. Can you feel that the movement starts in the shoulders and arms?  Can you notice what happens in the feet? Can you notice that there is a different movement in the left foot than the right foot as you swing your arms lightly? Most importantly can you notice the movement in your spine, in your waist, in your hips?  Can you lessen the movement in the arms and shoulders and bring more awareness to what moves in the middle of you?  Whatever you feel in the spine and waist, can you make that easier to do by letting go of whatever rigidity you normally hold here. Now most importantly can you make this an integrated movement with no one part of the body being emphasized more than any other?  Now bend your arms to 90 degrees or more. Begin a gentle rotating movement again. Of course the arms will not cross the midline. Make this more and more integrated from head to foot.  Experiment gently. Remember it is easy to overdue things we are giving new attention to. Play with this movement. Now watch the video of Perry below and then take it for a run. Have fun! J

Watch the youtube video here:

http://youtu.be/oVO5JkvK_Is

Being Skeletal:The Secret to Power and Ease

 

Yesterday I was back on the Pacific Crest trail hiking and running. It was a great opportunity to get reacquainted with my skeleton, my support framework. Without a skeleton in would be impossible to move the way humans do. Without gravity it would be impossible to propel ourselves over the ground. Notice the alignment of the entire skeleton from head to toe in all of the above pictures. In the first picture of the skeleton above it is even possible to see the spiral motion that happens throughout the skeleton in good running alignment and movement. 

We could think of pushing off our feet to propel us forward, but the feet are not designed to be the source of propulsion, they would quickly be overwhelmed if given this task. We could think of pushing with the legs to propel us, but even the legs would tire quickly and overuse of the leg muscles removes fluidity and can promote injury. We could think of using the core musculature, but even this cannot be done efficiently unless we have an understanding of how to use our foundation, our skeleton. Without a skeleton we don’t run. Without gravity we don’t run. The skeleton and gravity combined connect us to the ground or surface we are running on. When we transmit the forces involved in running in such a way that they make good use of the skeleton and the ground, we run well, using no more muscular effort than is necessary. Running this way is not just a case of good alignment but good alignment in motion, which is a coordinated use of the skeleton throughout the running stride. 

Here are two things you can do to prepare for a run and to get in better touch with your skeleton.

      1.      Walk around and get a general sense of your walking.

      2.       Now stand in place and think of your bones. Go slowly and notice how your bones support you. How much muscular effort does it take to stand? Scan from head to foot, notice each vertebrae, your pelvis, you legs and feet. Take your time, don’t rush through this. Where could you let your skeleton support you more? Where do you feel your muscles working hard? Walk again and compare to the first time you walked. 

      3.      Lie on your back on the floor. Have your knees bent and your feet hip width apart. Take both knees a little to the left. Can you notice that one knee travels farther in the direction of your feet than the other? Keep your feet hip width apart.  Don’t let them stack one on top of the other as you move them to the left. It you wanted to take the knees farther to the left, go very, very slowly and notice what happens in your pelvis, then in your low back, then in your ribs? What happens in your shoulders? Turn you head to the right a bit and notice what happens as you do this movement. 

      4.      Keep doing the movement very gently bringing the knees to point to the ceiling and then bringing the knees to point to the left. What is your right shoulder doing as you go a bit farther to the left? What is you upper back doing?  Can you feel a spiral developing from head to foot?  It is important to notice if you are getting longer as you do this movement. Do you have an overall sense of lengthening? Rest when you want to. Doing the movement more gently will hasten the learning process. Can you feel how the running movement might move through you, through your skeleton?  Repeat these movements on the other side. Remember there is no magic in the movements. The magic is in where your attention is while you do them. If your intention is to feel better alignment of the entire skeleton then that is what you will begin to learn. 

 

5    5.      Enjoy! Remember, keep it easy, keep it light.  And may your running be fun and rewarding. 

       

      Visit us at http://www.transcendent-running.com

 

Flexible Bodies or Flexible Minds: Less down time for runners

No matter what your age, level of experience, or current fitness level is wouldn’t you like to experience less downtime as a runner or hiker?  Though our ages may vary across a wide spectrum, and our structure may be unique, there is a common factor that we all possess, a common resource that we all have.  It is the brain. We can use both the conscious and unconscious processes of the brain to improve. Perhaps you follow the commonly recommended ideas about stretching and strengthening. Simply doing static or even dynamic stretching cannot improve your skill level. Only by increasing your awareness of the details of what you are actually doing, can you engage the learning process and use your best resource, your own brain and nervous system, to help you keep going in the long term. 

“I desire not flexible bodies, but flexible minds” – M. Feldenkrais

 Here are some tips:

1.  Put your feet on the ground. Whether you are a walker or a runner, you can only improve through experience.

2.  You move as an entire system, not a collection of parts. Notice the terrain above. It is rather rocky. It is not only the feet that must adapt to unusual terrain or circumstances but the entire body from head to foot. Stand on two feet and leaving your feet where they are begin to turn a little to the left and the right as if to look over your shoulder. Notice that there is movement from the foot to the head. Everything moves. Sometimes when you run, shift your attention back and forth between one part, say your feet, and your entire movement pattern. Shift back and forth between the part and the whole. Make this a habit on some of your runs, what does a shift in the use of the arms do to the entire pattern?  What does a shift in one part do to the overall sensation of ease? How do you feel the next day and how does your feeling relate to the details of what you were doing, to the tiny experiment you did. Keep learning.

     3.  Who are you? Know yourself.  Are you older, younger, taller, shorter, heavier , lighter, a speed athlete, an endurance athlete, currently rested, currently exhausted, injured or frequently injured, healthy, competitive, stressed, male , female, weekend warrior, consistent trainer. What is your current attitude toward running, toward life?  Be honest with yourself.

 

     4.  Know the difference between long and short term goals.  Do not sacrifice long term goals for shorter term ones. Look at the big picture.

      5.  Learn the word incremental.  Changes often occur and need to occur much more slowly and consistently than we think. Keep moving forward but do it incrementally with awareness. Sometimes the starting point is to visualize the movement you want and then only begin to do it a little at a time. 

      6.  Know that the more you know and can feel what you are doing, the more you can use the environment of running and walking as a way of healing instead of something to be laid off from while you heal or as a medium to injure yourself.  Running and walking provide good circulation and good strengthening and learning environments after an overuse injury but only if you know what you are doing, only if you know what to change.

 

S     7.  See a Feldenkrais practitioner for Awareness Through Movement® lessons and Functional Integration® lessons. 

       8.  Contact Transcendent Running with questions and to schedule sessions at:  scottrun400@yahoo.com
      Download our e-book at  www.transcendent-running.com
      Get Started working with Scott at:  www.transcendent-running.com/get-started
      or call Scott at 541-536-4821.

The Neglected Resource: Our Body/Mind

“We act according to our self image” –M. Feldenkrais 

What an idea this is. What a statement and what possibilities it opens for us.

Our action, our movement embodies everything we think and are. If we change our action, our movement, we have a way of changing our self image. What we often think of doing is “changing our mind”. But here is something else. What if we try to change our mind but leave our actions unchanged? This leaves us somehow short of what we want to do. But in changing our actions we have a way of changing our habits and affecting real expansion of our options. Notice the lead runner, Sebastian Coe, in the photo above. Notice the long stride which is created by the coordination of every part of himself in the running movement. See the long spine, the whole body spiral and the confident, powerful posture.

 Now look at the second runner. Can you see what he might be feeling through his action?  He seems to be looking downward, straining somewhat in the neck muscles, collapsing the chest slightly. Does this posture seem as confident?  Is it as powerful? What is this way of acting expressing? At this very moment in time is he expressing, ease or struggle? 

All Olympic runners have spent years training. What if we only practiced quality? This would include times and distances, but also perfecting our movement, our action, our thinking. What if our training included better acting and not just more? What if quality and single mindedness were fundamental elements instead of add-ons? Win or lose you will find that Seb Coe maintained great form and great presence. Perhaps by changing our actions we could learn more to “change our minds”.   Integrated action and a unified mind is the mark of greatness. 

What if we changed our minds about training altogether?  What if training was not merely a physical activity but a body/mind activity, a learning process?  What if we turned the traditional training pyramid around?  Here are the “old fitness pyramid” and the new model.

The old pyramid:  go for it and roll the dice.

The new pyramid! Build a foundation and succeed.  The difference between the two is the emphasis on the brain as the organizer of intention and on the learning process and the cycle of improvement before success. In the traditional pyramid success is achieved through force, i.e. adhering to rigid training and using will power without awareness.  In the second pyramid success is achieved through self- knowledge, unifying the will more deeply and improving body organization.  You can see why there are plateaus and injuries in the first model, as more and more force is applied without and real improvement in action. In the second model there is no end to learning. -Till next time, Scott

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