Alignment is a key element for running form efficiency and injury prevention. When you are aligned a higher level of relaxation is possible. These are the two primary concepts in ChiRunning® - Alignment and Relaxation and the balance between them. The more you are aligned, the less you need your muscles. The less you use your muscles, the easier it is to stay aligned. But too much alignment without relaxation and you may be too stiff to move. Or too much relaxation without alignment and you may be too loose to maintain your position.

Here are 4 Components of Running Form (more…)

Recently there has been a lot of discussion on the concept of running barefoot. There are some purists who suggest we should all be running barefoot, period. Personally, I don’t care for the word ’should’ in any context. It implies someone else telling us what to do or be, when we all have to decide that for ourselves.

But can we just go run barefoot? To help you answer this, consider how long it has been since you ran barefoot. 20 years, 40 years, 60 years?; most of us have not been running barefoot since we first learned how to run as toddlers (*). How many years of shoes, dress shoes, high heeled shoes, perhaps periods of inactivity, or of modern running shoes do you have in you? These are just a few examples of all the stimulus the body is adapting to every minute of every day. This adaptation happens slowly and if we want to reverse the resulting changes in posture, muscle strength, flexibility, balance and confidence; then (more…)

In a previous post (Running Motion for a Midfoot Strike), the ChiRunning motion was described as a midfoot (full-foot) landing with a heel lift/knee bend. Along with this motion, it is also very important to keep the legs and feet relaxed.

Running with a relaxed midfoot (full-foot) strike allows a subtle forward lean (fall) from the ankles to propel you forward with no resistance. If the legs/feet/ankles are holding tension, then the hinge (ankle) is stiff which acts as a brake against your forward fall. Relaxation also removes a significant amount of stress from the lower legs and feet. The statistics indicate that 65-80% of all runners get injured each year in some way. And most of those injuries are at the knee and below. Could it be that we are asking a relatively small part of our body to do a very big job? If we can relax the lower legs and feet, then we can (more…)

Life has been pretty stressful over the last week or so.  Of course, the time of year doesn’t help either.  A bit of fire fighting needed to be done and too much time and energy has been spent on it but sometimes you must protect the reputations of others and stand up for what you believe in.  As a ChiRunner, the two most important things for me when running are alignment and relaxation.  So I am very grateful that I am able to run and escape from the stresses of life and spend a highly focused period of time switched on to my running form and how I am moving. (more…)

In ChiRunning, the approach is to land midfoot (full-foot) under your column and create a wheel slightly behind your column with your heels/feet. Visually, this running motion is similar to the Road Runner cartoon.

To create this wheel, the focus is to allow the knee to bend and to not consciously lift the knee. Lifting the knee can bring the leg forward; and allow the foot to move horizontally and land in front of the body. Bending the knee creates an arc with the heel and keeps the heel/foot moving vertically. See the diagram below showing this orange arc. (more…)

Last week, I travelled to Asheville in North Carolina for a ChiRunning  weekend retreat with Danny, Katherine and many of my fellow ChiRunning Instructors.  It was a fantastic weekend with great people, glorious weather and an opportunity to share and learn from each other. The countryside was stunningly beautiful in full autumn colour. Running at sunrise at the Highland Lake Inn was pretty special.  I’ve come back to the UK refreshed, energised and focused.

Back home, it’s week 3 of marathon training so what did the Marathon Training Program have in store for me.  (more…)

The way we stand and move are habits formed over time from our life experiences. Making adjustments to your posture and motion will take time; but with consistent focus and practice, not nearly as much time in which those habits were formed.

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When I first picked up a ChiRunning Book about four years ago - in pain, injured, frustrated and confused; I first realized my running philosophy was a bit off and then I realized my running technique was a bit off also.

On the surface, ChiRunning is about adjusting running technique to improve efficiency and prevent injury. Underneath, ChiRunning in rooted in simple principles of nature that if applied can dramatically change your running experience.  The same is true for ChiWalking and your walking experience.
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Many of us have heard the concept of “running is a metaphor [or mirror] for life”.

There have been many ways to apply and learn from this concept. Just Google the phrase and you will see many posts on the subject.

A few days ago a great quote came across my path:

“Tension is who you think you should be. Relaxation is who you are” ~ Chinese proverb

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