Patrick said:Dave Chandler said:Notgiven said:I've talked to people who use this running
method/technique(www.posetech.com).
Running Research News had an article about it within the past couple of
years that indicated it was baloney. I can access it and summarize it
for you if you want to email me backchannel.
I'd like to read your summary of that article (or better, the article
itself). If you do take the time to summarize it, why not post it here?
Don't think it's off topic, and your efforts would be much appreciated.
Based on my limited knowledge, the running form recommended by barefoot
runners (Ken Bob Saxton, runningbarefoot.org), Danny Dreyer (Chi
Running), Dr. Romanov (Pose Method), and Gordon Pirie (gordonpirie.com)
are all very similar and different than the way I initially learned to
run (my "natural" form, with unatural thick-heeled shoes).
When I watch videos of olympic 5000 meter races or of Saxton, the form
appears very smooth and similar to what I imagine the above four people
are talking about. However, I'm willing to admit that I'm just seeing
what I want to see. Thoughts?
Most beginners have terrible running form. It usually corrects itself by the
time you are doing high mileage training. All of my training partners wear
these "unatural" shoes you speak of, yet all of them run pretty smoothly.
Running smoothly does not require barefoot running, it doesn't require the
"pose method" either.
As for baloney, one of the fallacies of these methods is the believe that
gravity "pulls you forward" (can't remember if that one's Pose, Chi or both).
Anyway, that viewpoint is simply ignorant from a physics standpoint. Gravity
doesn't pull you forward, it pulls you down.
The other myth they peddle is the supposed important of "landing on" the ball
of the foot instead of "landing on" the heel. Again, this is basically ignorance.
Most distance runners lightly touch down with the heel first, but this doesn't
absorb anything close to the full impact since the center of mass is still
falling at initial contact. So it's simply incorrect to say that they are
"landing on" their heel. Center of mass doesn't stop falling until the ball
of the foot touches down. The main problem with the heavy "heel strikers" is
that most of them are also overstriding (which means more vertical motion)
Cheers,
--
Donovan Rebbechi
http://pegasus.rutgers.edu/~elflord/