"Running
becomes…well…a tiring affair, just like sitting or standing for long
periods of time. When we tire we lose focus. And when we lose focus we
slump. As our parents used to tell us, sitting or standing up straight
does make a difference.
So what is that difference exactly? When we are upright, our shoulders
more easily sit in their proper “shelf” without any excess effort. When
the shoulders are in their proper place, the elbows more easily swing
forwards and backwards for a taller, less twisty run posture and faster
run times. Easy.
But when we slump, our shoulders dump forwards and our
elbow trajectory shifts side to side. This side-to-side motion forces us
to battle that excess rotation we previously discussed, and spend way
more energy than we would have to just to run slower. Not good if we
want a faster marathon.
The good news: we can train uprightness and
shoulder position, once again, with our pushup. When executed with the
proper intention, the pushup develops the positional strength and
endurance to stabilize the upper back for longer periods of time. By
screwing our hands into the ground and keeping our elbows by our rib
cage, we can train shoulder stability and resist the internal rotation
and flared elbows that happens with fatigue. So here’s the test. Can you
do 15 butt-squeezed full range of motion pushups? Good. Now can you do
them with elbows in and hold for 3 seconds? Better.
So go ahead. Check
your posture, test your pushups, and watch your arm swing. You’ll be
surprised by the change you can make."
4 hours ago
No comments:
Post a Comment