How to Improve Your Running Form for Beginners

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Why is it important to improve your running form?

Running is a difficult sport. Whether you are running your first 5k or are a veteran marathoner, it requires to you put in a lot of effort in order to perform your best. When running, you will quickly find out that proper running form is very important.

Not only does proper running form help you run faster with less effort, it also prevents you from hurting yourself!

Potential Injuries

In fact, there are many different injuries that are caused by poor running form including:[1]anextlevelyou – Proper Running Form for Beginners

  • Achilles Tendonitis
  • Plantar Fasciitis
  • Illiotibial Band Syndrome
  • Shinsplints
  • Stress Fractures
  • Runner’s Knee

Not only will these cause you a lot of pain in the short term, making it very difficult to run, if you don’t fix your running form, they can cause lifelong injuries that can kick you to the curb permanently!

Needless to say, the most important part of running that you should be focusing on, more than the amount of mileage you put in or how fast you are running, is proper running form.

Not only will it help make your running easier, faster, and more fun, it will also protect  your body and allow for a long running career!

The Running Form Dictionary

running form

Before we get into the nitty gritty of how to improve your running form, we need to go over some running terms. This will help make sure that you properly understand all of the details and get the most out of this article.[2]How to Run Guide – Proper Running Form Tips All Runners Need To Know NOW

Definitions

  • Alignment – the vertical line from your head to your feet that your body should be aligned to when running.
  • Arm Swing – the natural swing of your arms when running.
  • Bounce – the up and down motion of your body when running as opposed to the forward motion.
  • Braking Force – the force applied against your forward motion when running. This is often caused by extending your legs in front of your center of gravity, such as through heel striking.
  • Cadence – the number of steps you take per minute of running.
  • Foot Strike – when your foot hits the ground.
  • Pelvic Drop – when your hip drops too much while the other leg is supporting all your weight when running.
  • Posture – how you hold your body when running, specifically your core.
  • Rotation – the twisting of your body when running.

Now that we have hit you with a bunch of new running vocabulary, just relax and breath.

If you can’t remember all of these terms right away, don’t worry. You can refer back to this section any time you want and before you know it you will be using these terms like an old pro!

Pick Up Your Cadence

Quite simply, your running cadence is how fast you move your feet when running.

Needless to say, it is quite important in order to become the best runner possible.

However, the biggest problem that many beginner runners have is that they are turning over their legs too slow.

Ideally, you should run at a cadence of 180 steps per minute. This cadence has been proven to help minimize the negative impact forces on your joints and bones as well as reduce the stress on your muscles.

Unfortunately, when many beginning runners hear this, they hear “run faster” and do so by increasing their stride length. Not only does this reduce their cadence, it can actually cause heel striking and slow you down.

Therefore, when increasing your cadence to 180 steps per minute, you need to do it gradually.

How To

First, if you don’t have a running watch that tracks your cadence, don’t worry. Simply run at your normal pace and count how many steps you take in 30 seconds. Multiply this number by 2 to get your running cadence.

In general, beginner and average runners tend to fall in the range of 160 to 170 steps per minute. Instead of concentrating of the big jump from your current cadence to 180 steps per minute, you should focus on slowly increasing it.

This will help prevent overstriding.

For example, if you have a running cadence of 160 steps per minute, increase your cadence by 5 to 10 steps more per minute for one week. Every week after, increase it by another 5 to 10 steps until you reach the optimal 180 steps per minute.[3]Runner’s Blueprint – 3 Running Form Mistakes Runners Make & How to avoid them

Correct Your Posture

One of the biggest problems that many beginning runners face is improper running posture. This is especially apparent as they get more tired.

Not only does poor posture make it more difficult to run, it causes much more pain and damage to your bones, ligaments, and muscles.

However, just like sitting up or standing up straight, it takes some practice to have a proper posture when running.

The ideal running posture is that you should be aligned from your head to your feet and that your body should be leaning slightly forward as you run.

Tips

In order to help maintain a proper running posture, there are several queues that you can think of including:[4]Runner Guru – How to Run: Proper Running Form Tips

  • Keep your head still. Don’t let it bounce around while you are running.
  • Look forward and not down at your feet. Focus on keeping your eyes on the horizon in front of you.
  • Stay relaxed. Let your shoulders drop.
  • Engage your abs. Think about pulling your belly button to your spin.[5]The San Sanity – Running Form – Smart Strategies To Improve Your Running Form

Let Your Arms Swing Naturally

running form

When you walk, your arms naturally swing at the side of your body.

However, many beginner runners forget this and tend to keep their arms very stiff when they run.

Not only does stiffening up waste a lot of energy when running, it also throws of your running form.

When running, your arms should swing naturally in a similar manner as when you walk. The only difference when running is that you should bend your elbows instead of keeping them straight.

How To

Start by bending your elbows at an approximately 90 degree angle. When you run, your hands should lightly brush against your hips and your arms are swinging back and forth. Make sure that your arms are swinging from the shoulder and not the elbows. In addition, make sure that your arms aren’t crossing your chest. This will not only focus energy that should be pushing you forward when you run to the sides, it will also break your proper running posture.

Many beginner runners tend to bring their hands up to their chest when they get tired. Ironically, this actually will only make you more tired as you are tensing your muscles more.

Make sure to keep your shoulders and hands relaxed. Don’t clench your fists. Rather, focus on keeping them relaxed or slightly cupped, like you are gently holding an egg.[6]MBIO Apparel – Top 10 Tips to Help You Improve Your Running Form

Pay Attention to Your Feet

running form

One of the biggest mistakes that many beginner runners make is improper foot placement when they run. Many tend to over stride, that is take too big steps when they run, causing them to land on their heels. Running like this not only causes you to put on the breaks when running (slowing you down), it can also cause a lot of pain in your body.

Rather, when running you should focus on landing with your feet underneath your body. In other words, you should be landing on the middle part of your foot, rolling onto your toes, and pushing off.

This doesn’t mean that you should be landing on your toes! If you do you risk getting shin splints and calf cramps.[7]Running Rachel – Running Tips: Proper Form Legs & Feet

Stay Relaxed

It might not seem to make sense, but one of the most important things when running is to be relaxed.

If you are too tensed, you will use up all your energy instead of using it to run faster. In other words, relaxed running is fast running.

Tips

However, how can you stay relaxed when running? There are several queues to help including:[8]Runner’s Blueprint – The 4 Universal Laws of Proper Running Form

  • Keep you back and shoulder loose by dropping your arms and opening your hands.
  • Unclench your jaw. You might not realize it, but when you clench your jaw, you will also tense up many other muscles in your body.
  • Breath deeply. Don’t just breathe from your chest. Rather, focus on breathing from your diaphragm. This will help you take much deeper breaths when running.
  • Make sure to keep your toes relaxed. Not only does clenching your toes use energy, it also puts unnecessary stress on your feet when running.

Check Your Running Form in the Middle of Your Runs

running form

One of the best ways to improve your running form is by checking on it while you are running.

You might find that when you start out on a run that your form is perfect; however, as you get more tired, it tends to break down.

By actively checking in on your running form in the middle of a run, you can better focus on improving it.[9]SkinnyMs. – 9 Ways to Improve Your Running Form

In addition, it will help make you mentally stronger in your race.

How to Check Your Running Form

Now that we have gone through several things you should be checking for when you run, you might be asking yourself how do I check all these things, especially if I am alone.

Great question!

Tips

There are 3 main ways to check your running form:[10]How to Run Guide – Proper Running Form Tips All Runners Need To Know NOW

  • Have a friend watch you. They will be able to see things that you can’t when you are running and can help point them out.
  • Video tape yourself running. This will give you a perfect chance to save and look back at your running form later.
  • Get a professional running coach to look at your running form. They will be best to help fine tune your running form to get the best out of every step.

Drills to Improve Your Running Form

Now that you know what is wrong with your running form, what can you do about it?

One of the best ways to get better at running, is through specific running drills to improve your form.

Following the running principles that we talked about earlier, here are 3 running drills that you can incorporate into your running training to improve your running form.[11]How to Run Guide – Proper Running Form Tips All Runners Need To Know NOW

Butt Kicks

High Knees

Straight Leg Bounds

The Importance of a Proper Running Form

As you can see, a proper running form is crucial not just for professional runners, but for everyone.

Not only does running proper make you faster, it also helps you become more efficient and less likely to experience pain or injury due to running.

With these couple tips that we provided, you should be well on your way to improving your running form.

Good Luck!

Further Reading

If you are interested in other exercises to help improve your running, check out:

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