Why Everyone Should Sprint: Part 2

In the first installment of this series I talked about some of the benefits of sprinting. And by sprinting I don't mean jogging or long slow distance running. But if you haven't sprinted in a while there are some key form pointers to help you get into the flow once again. 1.As far as sprint posture is concerned ( and really all running) you have to think of all the major joints being in alignment. In other words, if you were to draw a line it would run straight through your ear, shoulder, hip, knee, and ankle joint when your 1 foot is in contact with the ground. 2. Think of pushing into the ground not striving to "lift" your knees. High knees is a function of one of Newton's laws--for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. 3. When accelerating your foot strike in behind your COM and your body is angled at about 45 degrees. It is what is called backside action. 4. When at, or near, top speed foot strike should be as close to directly under your COM/hips as possible. That is the most efficient footstrike. If the foot lands in front of the COM that is effectively a braking action not to mention very jarring to the whole kinetic chain. 5. At all points/phases you should think of relaxation as that will facilitate optimal speed. If you are tight in any facet it will tie you up and you won't be able to move freely and efficiently. Think of running at 90% of maximum effort if that helps. 6. Good sprinting arm action is critical to smooth, efficient sprinting as well. Basically, you want to think of your hand going from hip pocket to eye socket. Front side arm has the elbow at 90 degrees or less and backside arm action has the elbow at about 135 degrees. These aren't precise angles but ball park estimates. 7. Arm action comes from the shoulder not the elbow. Don't "T-Rex" it! 8. Try to minimize much arm action across the centerline of the body. It is less efficient and may cause unnecessary rotational forces. 9. Warm-up thoroughly before doing any sprinting. The more intense the training the longer and more intense the warmup must be. And I don't mean just stretching but a warmup that gets progressively more dynamic and aggressive the further you are into it. 10. Start out easily. Err on the side of caution if you haven't sprinted in some time. Sprinting is the ultimate expression of power and athleticism and as such is tremendously demanding on the body. So ease into any new regimen with doing some striders before anything more aggressive. For the first few weeks striders may be all that is necessary to get started. I hope those tips helped in getting you started safely in any sprint program. As kids most of us loved to sprint and run fast. We can still reap the benefits of sprinting as we get older if we proceed with caution and common sense. Train hard and train smart! http://fitnesstogether.com/media for our website and all of our links.