One day, after a gym session, David said…
“Mon, I noticed that you run very inefficiently.”
On a normal day, I would have been fuming for being criticised. On this particular day, just as I was about to break into a tirade, I actually paused and listened to his observation.
“Your feet are landing behind you. This will slow you down.”
He’s right. But I won’t get into the Physics of it all as it is now 10pm. The next time I went on a run by the seashore, I went on a little mindful exercise and actually paid attention to my posture from head to toe.
- Head and eyes straight ahead.
- Shoulders slightly back.
- Chest slightly out (as if there’s a line pulling you ahead).
- Arms at 90 degrees, keep at the side.
- Hips neutral.
- Land mid-foot (not heel, and I’m not a forefoot runner).
This was all quite difficult to pay attention to all at once so I focused on the top first until I was happy with it, then focused on the next one, then the next one. I’ve been running a certain way for years so who knows how long these little changes will actually become very natural.
At the end of that run, I actually found that I was a lot faster than my projected 9:30/mile. This was encouraging. Now I just really have to be mindful of this and the difference it actually makes.
Reach for the Seven Stars 