Awareness in Transcendent Running

What is Transcendent Running and why do we talk about awareness?  What is awareness anyway, and how can it improve my running? Awareness is simply being cognizant of something. But wait, that is just using a synonym to define something. We might say that awareness is our ability to observe ourselves, to become an observer, a gatherer of information. Is awareness a general quality that we develop or is it used to develop specific skills in the Transcendent Running program?

The answer to both questions is yes. Awareness is a general quality that we can develop. Learning to observe ourselves is a skill that could be used to further our aims or find improvement in any area of life that is important to us. A favorite quote is "if you know what you are doing, you can do what you want” (M. Feldenkrais).   How do we know the details of what we are doing besides observing them? In other words paying attention to what we need to know, relying on the greatest computer and the greatest feedback system in the world, the mind/body brain. So we are aware of what we are doing and that is self awareness.

We also have another link in the learning cycle, the environment. What we know, think, and sense are all linked to it. That means many things.  One of them is that our relationship to gravity is a great teacher. We learn all movement in the field of gravity.

 

Transcendent Running can take you on an exploration of the value of generalizing the process of awareness, so that your explorations can include all areas of training, and form. Transcendent Running guides you through the process of expanding your running awareness and increasing concrete skills. It will introduce you to and guide you through lessons that will be based on the Transcendent Running learning cycle which looks like this.


Lessons will be helpful in improving breathing, posture/acture, pelvic rotation and coordination of the running movement through the spine and good alignment and transmission of forces from ground upwards through the whole kinetic chain of motion.

Obtaining the Benefits: Improving your running form: Technique vs. Form; Form vs. Awareness

In recent years there has been a lot of discussion about improving running form. In the past it was believed, and sometimes still is, that a person has a way that they run as an individual and the way a person runs cannot be changed.  It seems to me that this is tantamount to saying that humans, possessing the most complex nervous system on the planet, cannot learn anything new.

So, what is running form anyway? According to the dictionary it is; the shape, outward appearance, or mode in which a thing acts or exists. (freedicitonary.com)    Running form is thought of in the ideal. It could then be thought of as “good form”.   Often a person will ask, “Do I have good running form?” There is no doubt that there is benefit in this. It is good to have a model to study or aspire to. But if our form were always ideal we would not have to discuss it any further. 

So, what is our individual running form anyway?  It is the actual shape of our actions. If we were to take a video of our running and play it back, what we would see is our actual running form at the time the video was taken. We would see our actual shape, form and actions in real time. 

Humans are characterized by their peculiar upright stance.  Unique among all animals they stand, walk and run from an erect posture.  Humans, therefore, must run on two feet, with a high center of gravity.  To move forward they must shift their weight from one foot to another.  In order to run efficiently or faster one must find the optimal mix of cadence and stride length.  Also proper use ratio of larger to smaller muscles groups must be realized. Wasted energy must be minimized. We could go on, but it quickly becomes evident that certain biological constraints in bipeds necessitate certain commonly applicable principles. With so many things needing to take place in the efficient walking or running gait, certainly we must be able to use our ability to learn to improve at least some of them. 

Enter technique.  Technique is a systematic procedure by which a complex task is accomplished. (freedictionary.com)  There are a number of popular systems and techniques that are purported to teach us better running form. Some of them can really be quite helpful.  Having realized that it is possible to learn and to improve our movement patterns, and having now obtained a useful systematic technique, we may begin to develop greater skill, and enjoy the benefits.  Remember how when you were young you used to ride in the family car while mom or dad drove everyone around to do the days errands.  Then you got older and eventually you were old enough to take a driver’s ed course at school Finally you got a license of your own.  Now you could drive yourself where you wanted to go. You had arrived. But it took time to develop a higher level of skill, and more time to learn how to navigate on your own and to finally pay for your own car necessitating you to get your own job, and more and more responsibility for yourself. The process actually never stops. 

Actually a technique only takes you to the first doorway once you realize that progress is possible. So from the external form we progress to a technique and finally to our own expression. The final step in developing our potential as runners is awareness.  What is awareness? Again we turn to the dictionary for ideas.  Aware implies knowledge gained through one’s own perceptions, or by means of information. The information comes from our environment, both internal and external with all that implies. So now we have transcended outward form and even systematic techniques to the place where real learning can take place. It is the place where we have learned to benefit from our very own perceptions. Our form may change from day to day. It is really not a static thing. With awareness we become cognizant of our own now. We know our limitations. We begin to know what we really want and how to get it. We press on toward our own personal potential. It is really awareness that awards us with the benefits of being faster, going longer, or staying injury free.