Common Running Form Mistakes | DOR Podcast #91

DOR Podcast #91: Common Running Form Mistakes and a Look at New Balance's Streakfly/Takumi Sen Competitor

Runners are constantly looking to refine and improve their form. Today, Nate, Matt, DJ, and Andrea give you some advice on how to avoid common running form mistakes. You'll learn about the role of hip extension the running gait cycle, how to measure and gain hip extension, and it's impact on shoe choice. They also review New Balance's entry into the 5K/10K racing shoe market, the SC Pacer. This racing flat features a full FuelCell foam midsole and a full-length carbon plate. How does it compare to the Nike Streakfly and the Takumi Sen 8? Have a listen!

Listen to This Week's Podcast Here!

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Video

Chapters
0:00 - Intro
2:12 - The Subjective: What's your performance trainer/workout shoe?
2:35 - New Balance SC Pacer Review
20:35 - Motor planning and its effects on shoe preference
29:23 - New Balance's Energy Arc and the effects of plate shape
33:55 - Hip extension and its placement in the running cycle
41:22 - Commonly problematic form cues
49:10 - Measuring hip extension and why runners might be lacking it
59:19 - What happens if you lack hip extension
1:05:24 - Strategies for gaining hip extension
1:10:00 - The intersection between shoe types and hip extension
1:16:50 - Wrap up
1:17:42 - Bonus track

Science Blog:
The Important Stories Our Outsoles are Trying to Tell
By Chief Editor/Founder Matt Klein

Outsole wear patterns have become a big part of the running industry. The internet is filled to the brim with blogs, social media posts, and videos on how to read outsole wear. Something that we feel is important to understand is that there is currently VERY LITTLE actual published research on this and that the majority of posts are anecdotal.

Wear patterns tend to give hints about how the foot is functioning rather than if the shoe works for the runner. We think a lot about wear as what type of runner we are, but there are more important stories that an outsole can tell. While this is only briefly mentioned in the research, we often look for asymmetrical wear patterns. Generally more wear on one shoe versus the other makes us suspect either weakness, abnormal biomechanics or possible leg length discrepancies. Most individuals will land harder on sides that have poor eccentric strength and will instead use joint loading instead of muscle loading for shock attenuation. While asymmetry to a certain degree in the human body is normal, excessive is not and can (but not always) be predictive of injury risk. However, this can also occur if you tend to run or turn asymmetrically in some fashion.

An example being if you run on a track exclusively in one direction. You are constantly going one direction, which places asymmetrical loads on each side of the body. That is why we are huge proponent of doing workouts both ways on the track for athletes to reduce risk for asymmetrically induced overuse injuries (a common issue we see is sacroiliac joint issues, but this is anecdotal). Another great example of this is running on the same side of the road all the time. The slope of the road can act like a wedge and will cause asymmetric loading if you don't find a level surface or make sure you spend equal time on the other side.

Stop worrying about what the bottom of your shoe looks like (unless it is worn out) and think about how you are moving instead!

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