First off, what does running better mean? Going to be straight up with you, running, no matter your speed, will always prove to be challenging. It’s gritty, requires perseverance, challenges you at any fitness level and leaves you with the satisfaction that only comes with something that’s earned.
In context to this brief piece, ‘better’ means in balance, stronger, and running more sustainably. We know (science!) that your body is capable of being active and healthy throughout the lifespan, if you take the proper steps to ensure it’s functioning the way it was made to. What if you could work hard, run faster, achieve your goals and feel good while doing it? Fewer aches and pains, no hip flexors screaming, and not positioning yourself as ‘the one with tight hamstrings.’
Put in consistent work (it doesn’t have to be much!) and you will see improvements.
How? With these 3 steps:
- Learn to assess how your body moves.
- Give it what it actually needs.
- Build strength (after 1 and 2).
Then… repeat the cycle, over and over. Why? Cause your body is constantly evolving.
Okay, so let’s get into the nitty gritty about hip and core function (Step 1). Low abdominal stability and glute strength is required for your hamstrings and hip flexors to be free to do their thing while you’re running. If you’re missing out on one or both of these ever so important needs, you can count on something else (hint hint, hip flexors, calves, quads, knees, hamstrings, low back) doing more work than they need to. So, in any strength program adding hip mobility plus a variety of lunges and single leg deadlifts is a safe bet.
The steps to getting there? Assessing how your hips function. How do they rotate, move side to side and forward and back? Ensuring both your hips can move in all the ranges of motion they are made to is the first step. Step two: building appropriate strength on top of functional movement.
It gets a little tricky right? Think about this, you want to have mobility - then stability - then strength - to experience a balanced body. The challenge is all of these are specific to our own bodies - so discovering what our unique movement qualities are is more important than ever. If you’re experiencing tightness, it may be that you need to mobilize - or it may be that something nearby needs stability (aka core strength or glute strength).
At Movement108, we do functional movement screens with clients so we can help identify the lowest hanging fruit when it comes to what needs more strength and what needs more mobility. We’re all unique, so ideally we’d all have individualised exercise plans. While we can’t help you identify and improve these things in person right now, there are ways you can make improvements, so things aren’t so desperate when we do get back to the studio.
We developed the movr app as a tool for any movement enthusiast to use, to help you feel and move better on a daily basis. My hope is that runners can use the assessments and curated ‘minis’ to help identify issues and build on weaker areas to make them all-round better athletes. The goal is always for you to experience exercises that were made for your specific needs.
The third step? Building strength, which takes more effort but has longer term value. Creating a workout based on what gear you have is nice, but moving in an intelligent way so your body successfully achieves strength increases is the most important thing you can do.
So, your call to action: Consistently reassess steps 1 and 2, and adding more strength along the way.
Questions or comments? Shoot me a note anytime, I’m always keen on jamming with anyone interested in creating a stronger and more functional experience in their body.
...
Links:
www.movewithmovr.com
www.movement108.com
Instagram: @movement108 @movrofficial @aaronadejong
Offerings:
Movr is free!
While the studio is closed, we have Movement108 Online as our core focus. A weekly membership that gets you on-demand and the option to rent gear.
