In part 1 I talked a little about how running and jogging are completely different animals and how jogging has really given running a bad name in the fitness and strength and conditioning world. Now I?m going to go into a little more depth on how we can apply this to achieve weight-loss and to improve sporting performance.
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Getting Fit to Run?
Now I don?t want to dive into the mechanics of running too much here as it?s taken a lot of study and practice on my ?guinea pigs? (not actual guinea pigs of course =P), for me to develop a thought process and an understanding of the mechanics and movements involved in running and I am still learning! However, recently with my running clients I have tried to change their mind set away from ?running to get fit? and more towards ?getting fit to run? ? essentially looking at running the same way we look at any other sport. This involves training and conditioning the body to deal with the forces involved in running, so when we get out on the track or road my clients are ready for it and not just getting lucky by not experiencing any pain.
Recently my love of running has been rejuvenated by a surge of runners coming to me with all manners of running issues. I am now remembering why I ran so much when I was younger. It is an inherently pleasurable feeling having the timing of everything come together. Think of your body like an orchestra with your brain as the conductor, monitoring and trying to control the rhythm of everything: your feet hitting the ground; driving your arms in sequence to propel you forward; generating power through your core; timing your breathing to fit in; and bringing it all together into one beautiful melody. Now, when it all comes together it feels great and running is so easy and natural. But, when the timing and rhythm is off, it has the same effect as a rubbish orchestra. The conductor will eventually just spit the dummy and give up. Now, combining this with the knowledge that pain is an output of the brain rather than an input of the body, I think it?s no coincidence why rubbish technique will lead to pain and injury, not even so much from the traditional mechanical point of view but from a neurological point of view. This is the where the magic of my job comes in ? coaching the body and training all the different parts of the body to come together and sing from the same hymn sheet ? improving movement mechanics will give the brain no reason to give a pain response.
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Running and weight loss?
So how does this fit into weight loss training? Here it is: Running with good technique gets the body moving, doing work, burning fat and all that stuff that is so heavily promoted. Personally though, I think the true value of running for weight loss is that it?s a great way of relieving stress and is a chance to get away from the world and forget everything. Essentially, if the technique is bad, running can increase stress by increasing the likelihood of injuries (physical and systemic), followed by an inability to exercise (psychological stress) and then eventual, inevitable weight gain. But if the technique is good, running is a great way for people to tackle or evade their everyday life problems, even for only a short time, and therefore can significantly help to reduce stress (which leads to reduced cortisol levels and puts the body in a more optimal fat burning state).
Running for (most) sports conditioning..,
First of all the reason I put the ?most? in the title is this: I firmly believe in the ?train the way you play? philosophy, and if your sport involves no running (golf is a good example) then running will provide little or no benefit to enhancing physical performance. If it helps from a psychological aspect then this is a different story, but right now I want to stick to the mechanical effects of running. So I want to use rugby as a prime example, where huge amounts of training time is put into resistance training (especially Olympic lifting, barbell and dumbbell work etc.). Whilst I do believe this type of training is important, I also believe that a lot of benefits can be achieved by spending some time working on running technique ? when you give the big Forward the ball you want him to RUN through whoever is in front of him (not pick him up over his head!), and if he runs faster, or more efficiently, then he will have a greater chance of success over and over again, right? The same goes for the tricky Winger who darts right and left with real speed to get around his opponent ? if he is more technically skilled at running then his chances of success are much greater.
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Listening to and studying from the best athletic coaches has made it clear to me that running is a skill. It is not something we are just born to do (despite that book title) but something that must be worked on and practiced. If you want to be a better runner then go and learn the skill of it. I promise it will be worth it: reduced injuries, reduced stress, greater fitness and neuromuscular control (skill)?. just don?t expect to get it right first time!
So, to conclude, you could say that: cr*p jogging (or just ?running? to the uneducated or inexperienced trainer) can be very bad, but good running can be awesome for so many things!
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