I started playing around with my running form the other day. I've been doing a lot of reading about how poor form can lead to injuries. I'm sure there are lots of things wrong with my form, but the one thing I really want to work on his my foot strike. There are basically 3 different ways for your foot to land--strike--the ground:
- Midfoot Strike
- Forefoot Strike
- Heel Strike
A person with a forefoot strike basically lands on the ball of their foot. If your heel never touches the ground, you are a forefoot striker. You will see this in sprinters. Nothing wrong with striking like this, but I don't think it comes natural for most of us.
That leaves us with a midfoot strike. A midfoot strike is when your heel and the ball of your foot hit the ground at the same time.
I tried it out for the first time on my 8-mile long run on Sunday. It seemed to go very well. I had to really concentrate because my foot wanted to keep going back to the heel strike. I found that if my mind wandered, I would land with the heel again. Other than that, I think my first real effort went great. After the run, my ankles were really hurting, but I think this is normal when you first change your foot strike--the body has to get used to it.
Yesterday on the treadmill, I made another effort. That one didn't seem to go as well. I found it difficult to do and I kept going back to the heel strike. I am headed outside in the morning and we will see how that goes.
What about you? How does your foot strike? Any advice? Thinking of working on your foot strike?
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