From building the foundations to developing strength and increasing intensity, get ready to combine the tools you need to run stronger. In partnership with Digme Fitness, check out HOKA athlete Emma Pallant’s top tips below. You’ll be stronger, conditioned and ready to test your limits.
Running is very much like dancing…
In terms of rhythm, if you are rigid and stiff, you won’t be able to flow, so mobility is a super key part to your running. Relax and feel the flow, then your mobility work will be able to functionally get involved in your running.
Be alert…
When you’re doing your strength training, if you aren’t thinking about the right movement patterns, then you don’t build those neuromuscular channels. Take time to do your gym training. Do it when you’re fresher and find it easier to concentrate too, then it will be so much more beneficial.
Get the right muscles to work…
The easiest way to get the right muscles to work is to fire them up before you head out. Activation doesn’t take that long, but it can make all the difference to good running form, to prevent injury and increase speed, so invest that little bit of time pre-run to get into good habits.
The best runners run from their hips…
But this means you need really good core engagement. Injuries mainly come from overloading the lower limbs, so combine a good strong core with good muscle protection over the legs, then you can spend more time running.
Get out of the grey…
The ‘grey zone’ of training is that uncomfortable pace that people do so much of their training in, but where the real benefits don’t lie. The real benefits come from the balance of running easy and hard. The really nice, easy runs help you get into good habits, which then allows you to do the super-hard key sessions to the best of your ability, unlocking the speed that will keep pushing up your VO2 max.
Run your easy runs easy and focus on efficiency…
The more efficient your style, the less energy you waste, the faster you go and the more fun you have. So really slow things down and feel your running when you run easy. Check for dead spots and eliminate any areas throwing you out of pattern.
Take intensity to the next level…
Now the fun begins. When you are well conditioned, you can let loose and start to love the pain. Learn to embrace and teach your body to hold a hard rhythm and pattern when it is hurting the most. Intensity is a lot about breathing out the pain and being strong in the mind.
Test your limits…
The deep, dark place in training is the place of growth. Now you can find your limits, record them and keep coming back to challenge them. Sometimes you will win, sometimes you will lose, but never give up. Failure is only quitting. Not getting through a current limit just means you have to come back and try again.
Photo credit: @thatcameraman and Activ’Images