There were 2 major contenders, Nike and adidas, that officially announced their efforts to achieve the sub 2 hour record. One down, 1 to go. Nike just made good on their promise to attempt to break that 2 hr mark. Results are in and there is a question. There was no information on drug testing. Can we take their word for it? Considering the result – maybe.
Let’s mention two things before we go further:
- Nike’s attempt to break the 2 hr marathon was about marketing new Nike shoes.
- This article is about marketing a scientific interest in achieving the sub 2hr marathon
- adidas’ effort is also a marketing one
And of course there is a ‘new and improved’ shoe involved and it will be available later this year. While I’m being a bit sarcastic, it must be said that we do need better and improved shoes and it’s good to have so many options and companies willing to invest so much resources into the research and development, into the production and marketing – it is no easy feat. That said, it is healthy to keep in mind what shoes can and cannot give us.
Nike’s attempt was admirable and applaudable and it was fun to watch. It takes guts and often considerable resources to make a bold statement and proceed with the project. But this specific project should have been about athletes, their talent and skill, and not the shoes. There was too much emphasis put on how these amazing shoes will provide everything but the wings, most of the articles out were focused on the shoes. But are shoes still amazing if they are placed on the feet of a runner that couldn’t deliver not because he is not good but because he was chosen for the wrong race? Lelisa Desisa and Zersenay Tadese suffered the consequences of that poor choice. According to Dr. Romanov they were not equal competition to Kipchoge. But then again, could that have been the plan?
It Didn’t Happen Because…
To all the hopeful marathon fanatics out there – it is possible and we might see it sooner rather than later! Here’s the reality that we are working with – there are currently around 180-200 athletes in the world (based on officially published data and footage) that are physically capable of achieving this breakthrough. A smaller group from that couple of hundred runners could actually do it. So there it is – it can happen!
But it didn’t happen this time, and essentially it can all be narrowed down to this:
- There was no attention given to improving technique, no psychological training and zero focus on perception – things that are at the heart of athletic excellence
- There was lopsided emphasis on physiology – something that’s predetermined by genes and cannot be changed. Elite runners are elite because they are already on another level, they were born this way (Lady Gaga is smiling somewhere now).
- There was focus on economy and efficiency – things that are the outcomes, the results of the combination of the above mentioned, but how do you improve the result without improving factors that produce that result?
- There was too much pinned on the benefits of the shoes, the track, the artificially created conditions.
The Chosen Runners
First thing is first – according to Dr. Romanov’s calculations based on publicly available data and footage, only one of the selected three had a fighting chance – Eliud Kipchoge. If you look at their statistics, the numbers show that Desisa and Tadese shouldn’t have been expected to break 2 hrs. Kipchoge displayed a better focus all the way to the finish line.
There is a number of athletes that could’ve been and should’ve been selected in their place, but I guess it’s understandable that since this is a Nike project, the pool of athletes was limited to those sponsored by Nike. And here’s your problem #1 with this project. Yes it’s understandable but, again, it points to business and marketing, when it should be about a scientific pursuit of excellence in athletics that is not strangled by brands and their investments. It would have been a more progressive approach to invite other brands and their sponsored athletes to participate and work out the scope of involvement.
Now if Wilson Kipsang and Kenenisa Bekele were competing – that could have yielded some interesting results! Bekele being Dr. Romanov’s favorite here.
The Running Shoes
This project was about these new shoes and it can now serve as a good example of the limits of any shoe. After all that considerable investment and all this intellectual investment into the intricate design of these shoes – the shoes made no significant difference. Actually they made no difference at all. I was hoping that we’ll see a “belief” factor at play but no. The athletes either didn’t believe at all that the shoes would make them faster or did believe and yet it made no difference. Either way – fail. But they will be available, correction – their less appealing general public version – will be available this summer for $250 and I’m sure sales will do just fine regardless.
The Running Conditions
Some excited celebrities went as far as to compare this project to placing a man on the moon. Ah…. no. Nothing like it. If only because these guys going in the outer space do not have an armada of ships in front of them to protect them from occasional debris, nor do they have pacing ships, etc.
There is nothing exciting about this artificial setup. It is nothing like the real deal. Even the shoes were “designed specifically to suit the exact surface and conditions of the Formula One race track in Monza, Italy” where the athletes made their sub-two attempt. Wow, stop the presses, are you kidding me? I’m sorry, what was the point of this attempt again? Right – selling shoes.
The Work Ahead
And there is plenty. But no it doesn’t involve specially created shoes, windless artificial environments, breathing masks, etc. Before there can be real benefit derived from these, there must be a solid foundation that involves better training, better coaching, better understanding of what complete training process involves and how to create better training regimen in order to groom a champion and not just rely on his or hers talent. Too many athletes break down at a very young age without ever realizing their potential. Too many peak and fade away well ahead of their time.
Hopefully, adidas will step up their game having now witnessed what Nike’s attempt produced but considering they’ve already been at it for a while it is doubtful any changes that could yield significant results can be made in time for their public attempt.
In order for any runner to break through to another level, they must understand that it can only happen if they improve their perception and technique. There are limits on many things but these two areas have no limits.
That ‘zone’ that everyone knows about, that elite athletes write about in their memoirs, where they effortlessly set world records but it just happened, they couldn’t do it voluntarily afterwards. That zone, that special state is achieved by improving perception. Of course, being on elite level their perception is already way above an average runner, but compared to physiological aspects, perception has layer upon layer of levels and can be continuously improved. Similarly, technique can continuously be fine tuned. Technique is that gateway that either prevents an athlete from expressing his or hers full potential and hinders natural abilities, or provides the best outlet for the best expression possible and we all benefit – we get to bask in the glory of magnificent athletic achievement.
This process of developing perception and improving technique is incredibly fascinating and is a never-ending source of personal discoveries and continuous progress and growth. But many just hammer away those miles.
Food For Thought
Sometimes I wonder, what if while we are passionately discussing this and arguing over what’s possible, there is a person somewhere out there that quietly runs a 1:55 marathon once a week because it’s a fun thing to do. But we don’t know about it because that person didn’t enter a race and nobody is there to clock that breathtaking event. If nobody witnesses the event – does it change history?
According to Dr. Romanov if we take our terrestrial gravity, other forces, body and mind into account, it is possible to run a 1hr 27 min marathon. But chances are it will take us a long while to get there, like another 200+ years… Unless we are willing to switch the focus off the shoes and onto the things that really make a difference!
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If you were to attend one of the Pose Method seminars on running technique you’d hear something many don’t expect to hear – an instruction of the participants to not focus on their footstrike. “Forget about footstrike! Pull, pull, pull!” If you’ve already attended the course, you know why, and for everyone else, the answer is simple – how your foot lands is a byproduct of your technique overall so there is no need to focus on it.
Over the years, the debate about running technique went sideways and into an unintended territory of footstrike. You’re a heelstriker! No I land on my midfoot. Wait, but forefoot is better! It should come as no surprise to anyone that as we run we sometimes land on various parts of the foot depending on the road, the terrain, whether we’re speeding up or slowing down, making a turn, a u-turn, a zigzag or going for a straight shot. So referring to anyone based on how they claim to land is silly. That’s besides the fact that most of the time those claims are not supported by their own video footage.
Without a question, our forefoot is better built to accept the bodyweight load. While landing on the front part of your foot is the way to go, that should not be the focus of learning or teaching someone how to run.
Why should we not focus on how we land? Because the part of the foot that we land on isn’t as important as where we land, but even that should not be our focus. A bigger picture should be taken into account:
- How does the body of a runner move relative to the point of support?
- Where is that point of support relative to the general center of mass?
- What is going on with your technique overall?
When teaching or learning how to run we must not separate our feet from the body and the body from the environment it is in.
Focus on Footstrike = Focus on Landing = Wasted Effort
Focus on footstrike also forces one to focus on landing which usually results in forced landing ahead and that is not a good thing. Besides, why focus on something that we do on a virtually instinctual level? It’s going to happen anyway so what gives?
Try to push someone lightly as they are walking or standing, or even running. The direction of the push does not matter. This is what is going to happen next – the person will reposition their foot or both feet to maintain their balance no matter how clumsily but without giving it a second thought, and most likely not even realizing they are doing it, all the while looking at you. You will feel and see their entire focus in their stare. I encourage you to experiment but it’s probably safer to do this with a friend! Again, running drills and exercises would help you not be clumsy when repositioning your limbs.
Our body always strives to maintain balance as a whole where limbs play a supporting role. If you were to focus on how you place your feet and arms when you stand or walk you’d look pretty awkward and odd.
Focus on the Running Pose = Efficient, Effective, Minimal Effort
In order to understand where our focus should be as we run, and why, we must understand that running technique is more than just footstrike. It is the movement of our entire body, but most importantly, it is how that movement happens. It surely isn’t just about putting one foot in front of the other. That approach is the reason for a ridiculously high rate of injuries among runners.
The Running Pose is the single instance in the entire cycle of the running stride that is critical to perfect running. It is distinguished from the thousands of positions in the running cycle in three critical ways: balance, potential energy and resilience. When a runner maintains the running pose, he /she automatically lands on the most appropriate part of the foot for that moment in time and space given the terrain, speed and other circumstances. Most of the time that would be directly underneath our body. If you are on a trail – you might end up landing a bit to the side or have to leap here and there, I trust you get the point. The key is to stay compact and ready. Your running pose should be ingrained into your pattern of movement to the point where you don’t even think about it. And this is where we can (at least we should) clearly see the importance of running drills. Preparation for the actual act of running is everything.
The right approach to movement requires a concept. Without a concept all we have are bits and parts that take everyone into different directions and further away from where it should be. When teaching or learning how to run we must not separate our feet from the body and the body from the environment it is in. We move in tune with the forces that are present. Our feet will surely land on their own so maintain focus on how you move. Focus on your Running Pose.
One of the most important yet simple and thus overlooked and undervalued aspects of Pose Running is the springness position, aka the S-stance. So it comes as no surprise when you see someone doing the ‘figure 4’ aka the Running Pose while standing on a completely straight leg with a locked knee.
The Springness Position, aka the S-stance, aka the Running Pose is a position of readiness – your joints unlocked and your body ready to move in any direction at a moment’s notice. This is why this position is the foundational point and also the position that most of the Pose technique drills start from.
Here’s a video clip from our online course “Beginner’s Guide to Pose Running”. It’s very simple, practice along or whenever you’re able. Get in the habit of getting into the s-stance and staying relaxed when you’re drilling or warming up or training, etc.
The Origins
The S-like shape of the Running Pose was conceived to emulate the rear legs (bent in all joints) of animals who can run both fast and far.
Look at these photos demonstrating a variety of animals at speed. In each case, the rear legs are bent in all joints. There is no full extension, no complete unbending in the joints. This is completely natural running. And it merits further study to understand its implications for human movement.
The Benefit: Resilience
The principal asset of the S-like stance is that it facilitates optimum muscular elasticity. Elasticity is the ability of muscles to perform work, specifically to contract rapidly after an immediately prior extension. Nature’s design for running, the S-like stance, keeps all the connective tissue – muscles, tendons and ligaments – in a resilient, elastic state. Connective tissue that is not stretched to the limit remains supple and able to work efficiently.
Here’s a test you can perform at home with a dog or cat. First, try to stretch one of their rear legs to a fully straightened position. It’s virtually impossible. Nature has designed these legs to remain bent, keeping everything nice and relaxed.
Then, dig your fingertips into the thigh muscle of the animal. You might expect to feel a very hard muscle and be growled at by animal in pain. Instead you’ll
receive an impassive stare and feel very pliable muscle tissue. You can actually press all the way to the bone without causing any discomfort to the animal whatsoever.
It’s funny, but we are conditioned by the media to think of “rockhard” muscles as representing the ultimate in strength when in fact the opposite is true. The muscle that is the supplest and most elastic is the one capable of performing efficient work. Conversely, a rock hard muscle is laced with scar tissue and is too stiff to work efficiently.
The Benefit: Maneuverability
While we still have the dog or cat around, we can take note of yet another feature of nature’s running design – no heels. Dogs, cats and other animals don’t strike the ground with their heels because they don’t have them. Natural selection has forced them to run on the front part of the foot.
In the same fashion, in the Running Pose the runner is supported on the ball of the foot, with the leg bent in all joints (especially the knee joint) and the heel slightly above the support or lightly touching it. Most importantly, the weight is always kept on the ball of the foot. The Running Pose is lifted directly from nature and maintains all the connective tissue in a state of optimal preparedness to perform efficient work.
Please don’t confuse this with the directive to run on your toes. The emphasis here is on keeping your bodyweight focused on the front part of your foot where the heel operates at its own discretion and acts as a balancing support when necessary by also bearing some of the weight when needed.
Your ability to maintain the s-shape is especially important in sports where there are sudden twists and sharp turns, and zigzagging going on.
Benefit: Reduced Energy Expenditures
When standing, or going about daily tasks, notice how locking joints puts more stress on you compared to when you keep your joints slightly bent at all times (notice, if you bend your knees too much you will experience the opposite effect). While running, for example, when you remain is the pose as you change support from one foot to the next, you maximize the use of your muscular elasticity and resilience and thus reduce your energy expenditures. In fact, a 1964 study indicated that mechanical efficiency of running increased up to 50%, due to contributions from elastic storage and return of energy.
You must coordinate your muscles into an integral system to the point where it feels absolutely natural. That takes time, focus and effort but obviously it is worth it.
Benefit: Better Timing
Another beneficial aspect of the compactness and elasticity of the s-shape is its natural facilitation of better timing. Timing is everything. Just ask a sprinter that started moving out of the blocks a fraction of a second too soon, or an acrobat that was off by just a tiny bit. Similarly, correct timing in movement, and as part of running technique specifically, allows for your body to operate like a well oiled perfect machine in sync not just internally but also externally, with the environment. Timely pull of the foot makes running easier and also helps avoid a whole lot of injuries.
How high should you pull your foot up when running and with how much effort? To know the answer to this question, one has to understand the purpose of the action of pulling your foot up when running. This is where the importance of understanding the ‘why’ is highlighted again. Reading the theory and understanding it through and through is not about complicating what most of us wish was such a natural form of locomotion – running. Contrary to that common assumption and in my opinion, gaining full understanding of the subject is actually about gaining freedom. Freedom to effortlessly do what needs to be done because you know exactly what is happening, you know the rules and you can work with them at any speed on any terrain.
Required Height
To put it simply, the necessary height of the pull will sort itself out. You do not need to think about it, all you need to do is make a slight effort to pull your foot up high enough to clear the ground and so it allows for change of support because running is nothing but ‘change of support’ while falling forward. In the Pose Method of Running, the pull is the last element of the technique that allows for the most efficient transition from one foot to the other. All you need is to execute the action of pulling correctly – everything else will be done for you. Trust the natural forces.
Minimal Effort
Effortless running is achieved through biomechanically proper technique because such technique works with and uses the natural forces such as gravity. By its very definition, effortless running requires or should take less effort. So, if all we need to do is change support in order to run, then the ultimate goal is to do that action with the least possible effort. Narrowing down all required action to a single action of pulling in the Pose Method of Running gets us closer to running with less effort, and actively working just one group of muscles – the hamstrings – fits the purpose and serves it well.
You will notice that putting less intentional effort into pulling your feet up by utilizing the hamstrings only, will help you do it correctly. You will also notice that such an important thing as high cadence is easier to achieve, if you don’t strain to pull your feet all the way up.
Putting less intentional effort into pulling your feet up by utilizing the hamstrings only, will help you do it correctly.
The general rule is – you’re better off pulling your foot up less than more. If you pull too high and/or too hard you will waste energy and will tire your hamstrings and might get injured. Think about the typical injury for sprinters – pulled hamstrings. Keep in mind, that the exaggerated motion of the pull, demonstrated in the running drills, is strictly for learning purposes, to help your body learn better patterns of movement required for running.
What about other muscles? Leave them alone. All you need is to do one action – pulling your feet up with your hamstrings – to set everything in the right motion with minimal effort.
Various Speeds
When you run faster, your foot will end up higher. I say ‘end up’ because you are not supposed to be putting any effort into pulling it higher or leaving it lower. That’s too much to think about especially in sprinting where everything happens way before you can think about it. If you’re thinking about it, you are already too late.
When you run faster, your foot will end up higher.
(This is happening on its own and due to the forces already in play, Bolt is NOT PUTTING EFFORT INTO PULLING his foot up this high.)
There is no need to put any effort into forcing your foot so high. The entire trajectory of your foot will determine itself based on your speed. All you have to do is focus on maintaining your running pose.
At a slower speed your feet will be noticeably and naturally lower. When jogging, your running might resemble shuffling. Your feet will be at their lowest height of the pull.
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Bicycles and cars roll right down the road, but what about runners? Given the analogies used in some of the chapters of the book, it probably won’t surprise you that the movement of the wheel is an ideal representation of the biomechanical essence of running. In chapter 13, we compared the torso of the body to the cab of a car, but we said virtually nothing about the wheels under the car. Here we go…
The 3 Key Points
The wheel is one of the most perfect appliances in existence. Despite its apparent simplicity, the wheel is a complex mechanism with three mechanical properties that have significant implications for human movement.
- First, the wheel is mechanically effective, in that it facilitates forward movement with minimal vertical oscillation.
- The second significant property is the relationship between the support point of the wheel and the body (General Center of Mass or GCM) it is moving. During the entire cycle of a wheel, the distance between the support and the body it is moving never changes. Similarly, the relative position of the two also remains constant.
- The final critical detail is that the point of support is constantly changing, no matter what the forward speed of the wheel might be. Further, the forward speed of the body being moved is exactly proportionate to the speed at which the support point is changed.
The Unicycle
To give a visual representation of these mechanical properties, let’s simplify our car analogy a little bit and think of a person riding a unicycle. In this analogy, the “body” is both the frame and saddle of the unicycle and the rider perched on it. Underneath is a perfect moving circumference, the wheel. At any point in the rotation of the wheel only one point on the wheel is in contact with the ground. This is the support point, upon which rests all the weight of the body.
“Unicyclist riding.” The movement happens when the unicyclist leans towards desirable direction
Reflecting the first critical mechanical point, as the unicycle rolls down the road, the wheel is turning, changing support points, but there is no vertical oscillation. The rider’s head remains perfectly level. Why is this important?
As they say on TV, let’s go to the tape, specifically the broadcast of the 1981 New York City Marathon. As Tim Noakes explained in his 1991 book, “The Lore of Running”, the broadcast included a dramatic sequence of Alberto Salazar, then the world’s top marathoner, as he crossed the Queensborough Bridge. In the angle shown on TV, only Salazar’s head and shoulders were visible above the bridge wall and it was clear that his head was remaining absolutely parallel to the top of the wall. In other words, there was no vertical oscillation created by his stride, no energy wasted in lifting and lowering the body. The “Salazar Shuffle” was indeed an efficient means of forward locomotion.
The Wheel Concept
Going back to the unicycle, we note also that as the wheel rolls forward, neither the distance between the point of support and the rider nor their spatial relationship changes. The point of support is always directly beneath the saddle, the torso and ultimately the head of the rider. This relationship is the most efficient for retaining forward motion in the horizontal plane, minimizing any potential braking effects.
Going further, we can look at the rider’s feet as the pedaling motion goes through its cycle. Whenever a foot is at the bottom of the pedal stroke, where is it? Directly beneath the rider’s torso, with the leg slightly bent. Remove the unicycle from your mental image and what do you have? A runner in the Running Pose, both legs bent, support on the ball of the foot with the body in a straight line above the point of support. Landing with all the weight of the body directly above the point of support on a leg, that is bent to minimize shock, substantially decreases the load on muscles, ligaments and joints and thus decreases the chance of sustaining injury.
Key to Faster Running
Now put the rider back on the unicycle to consider the final critical mechanical property of the wheel: the proportional relationship between the speed at which the point of support is changed and the speed with which the body moves forward. Very simply, the faster support is changed, the faster the body moves. The lesson here is that the faster a runner’s stride, i.e. the faster he changes support from one foot to the next, the faster his forward speed will be. Stride frequency, not length, is the key to faster running.
It is true that while the wheel constantly changes support from one point to the next, the human can’t duplicate this exact biomechanical efficiency, given only two feet to trade the support. However, we can approach the feeling of uninterrupted change of support. The faster we change support, the more we can visualize our legs as a wheel. We can indeed roll down the road, just as we suggested at the top of this chapter.
Confirmation of this comes from practical studies that demonstrate that elite runners have a faster stride rate than run-of-the-mill athletes at all distances. In his 1997 book Daniels’ Running Formula, the respected American coach Jack Daniels noted that there is data from his many years of practical observation that indicates elite runners tend to run with a stride frequency of not less than 180 strides per minute, which he links to good technique.
The Takeaway
If you look at this statistic “backwards”, i.e. first noting that elite runners run with high stride rates, the critical importance of perfect form and efficiency becomes obvious. It is simply impossible to maintain such a high stride rate over any significant distance with poor form. There’s a common phrase race commentators use when the form of a competitive runner begins to deteriorate in the latter stages of a race and it couldn’t ring any truer. “It looks like the wheels have come off,” they say, and when you look at the runner, you know exactly what they mean. The form and efficiency are gone and the runner is now struggling to finish, no longer a contender for victory.
The meaning of the wheel concept is really very simple: to move with wheel-like efficiency, we must minimize bounce (vertical oscillation), land with support directly under the body and maintain a high stride rate. The Pose Method of Running is designed to accomplish all three of these goals.
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We use the word ‘standard’ on daily basis, we’re all very familiar with its meaning. Here’s a quick sample of the meaning given in a dictionary just so we’re on the same page:
standard |ˈstandərd|
noun
1 a level of quality or attainment
2 an idea or thing used as a measure, norm, or model in comparative evaluations: the wages are low by today’s standards | the system had become an industry standard.
• (standards) principles of conduct informed by notions of honor and decency: a decline in moral standards.
• a form of language that is widely accepted as the correct form.
• the prescribed weight of fine metal in gold or silver coins: the sterling standard for silver.
• a system by which the value of a currency is defined in terms of gold or silver or both.
Standard Exists Everywhere
A ‘standard’ is, basically, an approved and generally accepted model of something, a rule or principle that is used as a basis for judgment, an average or normal requirement, quality, quantity, level, grade, etc. When Apple develops their gadgets – they have a standard they follow. When car makers build their creations – they follow standards in car manufacturing.
There are standards being taught and displayed in all sports. Not all are necessarily correct, according to my understanding of movement and in my humble opinion, but there are standards nonetheless. In running, however, we are all suddenly unique and all have different techniques and styles. Does that not sound a bit strange? It does. And it is. Of course we are all unique individuals, but let’s not confuse our personalities and styles with technical standard in movement.
Benefits of Having a Standard
What does having a ‘standard’ offer us when it comes to human movement in sports, and in general?
- Precise model to learn. With a standard model to learn, a student avoids the potential pitfalls of a wandering mind. Experimenting on top of a learned standard is quite different from experimenting without the basic foundation. While the first is full of advantageous discoveries, the latter is full of confusion and easily avoidable mistakes.
- Precise model to teach. If there was no standard, all teachings or attempts to teach would be disorganized, scattered, unfocused, etc. There would be no way to determine what’s a mistake and what is not. There would be no way to offer clarity of the subject to a student. Teaching would be an impossible task.
- Ability to identify and correct errors. This is probably one of the most important attributes of any model of any ‘standard’. When there is a clearly identified and put forth model for a standard, any deviation from that standard is easily seen. That is precisely the definition of an ‘error’. In order for something to be labeled an error there has to be a clear standard according to which something is classified as an error. One does not exist without the other.
The claim that there is no correct running technique or any other correct sports technique is unfounded and is not supported by science. Moreover it does not make any sense. Unless we figure out how to defy gravity or it suddenly changes the way it works – we will abide by its current standard of operation that has not changed since our planet came into being.
The laws of operation of all natural forces with gravity at the helm consequently lead to a particular set of rules in movement of a human body. This standard branches out into standards in human movement when participating in various athletic activities or simply moving around. Movement related misuse injuries and pain are our signals that we’re deviating from the already existing standard of movement. Whether we choose to acknowledge it or not, won’t change this standard. Plain and simple.
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