Walking to race walking step 5

Walking to race walking step 5.

This week I'm going to talk about the straight leg that is one of the big features of race walking.  When your rear leg comes forward and the foot lands mostly on the heel then the leg straightens and you keep it straight until your body passes over it and it becomes the back leg.  The best way I've had it described to me is to imagine your vaulting with the straight leg and your body is riding the leg like a pole vaulter rides the pole.

This same motion is the way extreme mountain climbers walk when going up hills since it allows your legs to go forward the most efficient way and use less energy.  Going uphill with thin air and a pack requires that you walk as efficiently as possible.  That same motion helps the endurance walker do long distance races while maintaining a brisk speed.

So straight up posture, motion starting from the hip going forward, imagine that you are being pulled forward from a rope tied around your hip area, keep your feet going in a straight line and now straighten that front leg untill your body rides over it.

The straight leg is part of what a judge looks for in a race walking competition but for doing our races the straight leg is for better form and faster forward motion without using as much energy.

Thanks for reading.

Dave

Walking to race walking step 4

So far we have explored getting our posture upright and proud, leading with out hips and counterbalancing the forward hip motion with the arm swing going further to the back.  Now this week I want to talk about what the feet are doing.

When we walk more efficiently our feet are going to be landing in a straight line in front of us, as someone mentioned like the drunk test that the police give you.  When you bring that hip forward the leg and foot are going to be there anyway when your doing it properly, but this week it's time to concentrate on that.  Your front stride will seem short to you but it is NOT as short as it seems.  It's just a perception.

It helps to practice the straight line foot steps when you have a line in the road to follow or on a track that has lane lines.  If you go to a track try going down the stadium steps a few times or just walk thinking about going down steps like that.  You walk down steps automatically in a straight line because it's the most stable and balanced way to walk down those steps.

As you walk this week, with straight up posture, being pulled forward by your hips, with good arm swing, getting that elbow back and concentrating on your feet landing in a straight line, the whole motion should begin to smooth out for you.

Your foot plant should be more of a heel first plant, on the forward foot, then the foot rolling forward to the toe when your foot is back and then the toe push off to bring the rear foot forward.  We will discuss this part more next week but for this week a good exercise to do is to walk on just your heels for about 25 yards, alternate back to normal walking and then 25 more yards on just your heels.  This is a good warmup exercise also for before a race or training walk.

Thanks for reading and good walking this week.

Dave

Walking to race walking step 3

Those of you that have been follow this progression from walking to race walking have so far explored the difference that good posture makes and have now become acquainted with paying attention to your hips.  The hip forward has probably made you feel a little out of balance with your stride.  I wanted you to feel that way a little so that when you start practicing this weeks step with the two previous steps it will begin to smooth out for you.  Still a long way to go but each new step should make the whole stride feel smoother and more effortless.  By Marathon weekend you just might be able to take a couple of minutes per mile off your time with about the same effort.

Ok this week concentrate on your arm swing.  As that hip is going forward the elbow, held close to your body, is going back.  A walker's correct arm swing is more to the back than a runners because your stride is more to the back.  So concentrate on that elbow going back as your hip goes forward and keep the posture straight.

You should feel that your stride is short in the front, (it's not as short as it seems), because your not striding out like a runner, your sending that hip forward and that elbow back.  The elbow is going back further than the hip is going forward and your legs will be following that.  So your stride will be longer in the back, on the average a 60/40 split but that varies with each person and isn't important, the important thing is that the stride is longer in the back.

You should also begin to notice that your feet are landing more in a straight line now if your hips are leading the stride.  Remember that rope that is pulling you forward from the hip and as Tracy said your walking tall as though you have a wire attached to the top of your head that is pulling you to perfect posture.

Thanks for reading and good training this week.  "Remember to stretch after eaxh training session.

Dave

Walking to Race Walking Step 2

Last week we discussed the benefits of having good posture when you walk.  Another advantage of keeping that back straight and chin up and level is that you don't get a lot of the aches and pains from exercise.  When you walk or run with your head down, the force of gravity is pushing on the back of your neck instead of on top of your head.  When you lean forward the gravity force hits you somewhere in the lower back.  So along with this weeks step to concentrate continue to keep that posture straight up and walk proud.

As Tracy mentioned our core, center of strength and where the power for fast and efficient walking comes from is a few inches below the navel.  So, for this week imagine that you have rope tied around your waist and you are being pulled forward.  The rope is pulling you forward from that core area so you are leading with your hips.  Straight up posture and you are being pulled forward by the rope around your hips.  Concentrate on each hip going forward and starting your walk step from right there in the hip as it moves forward.

A big part of big successful with fast efficient walking is how you perceive a motion.  What has worked well for me is concentrating on driving the hip forward.  I used to think swinging the leg forward and that was impeding my efficiency, thinking driving the hip forward helped me get the motion right.

Dave

Transitioning from walking to race walking.

Several of our Wish members walk their half and full marathons.  I want to offer those that are interested an easy transition from regular or "power" walking to efficient race walking.  The advantage is that you can walk at a faster pace with less effort than you can with regular fast walking.  You don't ever have to compete in judged race walking competitions to get the benefits of efficient walking.

Each week, starting tonight and then every Monday I'm going to give those that are interested an efficient walking step to work on when they walk that week.  Then each week you will get another piece of the puzzle.  You will lean something new to work on and continue to use what you have learned so far.

I will answer questions and offer individual tips to explain and clarify the techniques that I will present to you.  We have another race walker in our group, Tracy who has offered her help as well.  Tracy will be giving a slightly different view of the technique detail that I talk about each week.  How well you can perceive a technique move will determine how successful you will be with the race walking.  Having a couple of slightly differing views helps a lot since not everyone feels a move the same way.In addition I will post videos and commentary from accomplished race walkers and coaches. 

This weeks focus is posture.  Posture is extremely important to efficient walking.  Gravity pushes down on us all the time and the most efficient way to move through gravity is with a straight up walking posture.  Back straight, chin up and walk tall.  Good posture also allows you to get more motion form your hips which translates to a longer stride.

This week when you walk concentrate on posture, back straight, chin up, walk tall.  Try to get in at least two training walks before Monday.

Another good habit to get into right now is to stretch regularly, at least 3 times a week.  Stretches for the back, different leg muscles, hips and groin are all very important.  You will probably be sore for a while if you haven't been stretching regularly.

Lastly it's time to do some house cleaning.  Make a deal with your self to stop drinking soft drinks and drink cold water instead.

Please respond to this post if your interested in learning to walk more efficiently.  You can post your questions on the weekly thread or directly to Tracy or I on the Wish board or on Facebook.

Thanks for reading.

Dave

Travel Tips

I know that a lot of you that travel probably already do this but for those new to traveling to races and traveling in general, here are some tips.

I buy two of everything I use, toothbrush and paste, deodorant, electric razor....you get the idea.  I put together a kit with all the stuff in it and then when it comes time to travel then all I have to do is throw that kit in the suitcase and not worry about that kind of stuff.  The other day I lost my comb so I just borrowed the comb from my travel kit till I had a chance to get to the store and replace it.  It helps when you unexpectedly run out of something to.  But the main thing is that is one less thing to think about when I travel.

Another thing I do is buy vacation clothes off season and put them away already washed and pressed or folded in a suitcase ready for a trip, I have one suitcase for each season, already pretty much packed.  DisneyWorld in January has been a challenge the last few years since it's fluctuated between 21 and 85 degrees.

I keep a gym bag packed with race stuff and exercise stuff in general  I use it pretty much everyday and keep it packed with a couple of sets of shorts tech shirts and socks.  I also keep it stocked with safety pins, bodyglide and extra shoe laces.

So when I'm ready to take off for a weekend race I just need to throw the shaving kit in the pretty much already packed suitcase, grab the gym bag and I'm ready to go.

Thanks for reading and please share your own tips for making travel packing and preperation less of a headache.

Dave

Focus for Fast

When I'm preparing for a race that I know is going to be tough I often use a mantra to get me over tough spots in training or to help me in the race it's self.  Unfortunately when you let your mind wander you tend to back off on your pace.  We can all go harder and faster than we think we can but it requires concentration.

I thought about this topic as I was reading over the results of the women's 20K race walk olympic trials.  The young women who won had a mantra, "Dream-Believe-Become".  That is just awesome and so very true.

To go fast we must focus on our pace, for some of us fast is a lot slower than it is for others but to stay on our personal fast we have to keep focused on it.  I had one of my best races ever this spring in Louisville, it was 10 miles and the middle 4 miles were in some serious hills.  As I was going as hard as I could up that steep hilly road I was hearing that song from Madagascar in my head, "Got to move it move it".  A Disc Jockey on the side of the road was playing that and it stuck and it worked.  I never let up on those hills and had a great race.

When you need to motivate your self to get that one more interval on the track or one more mile on the treadmill or need to pick up your pace for a kick at the end of a hard race, think of something or someone that inspires you.  For me it's my friends that win races from around the world.  Or I will think of my goals and tell myself "Ok if you want it then right here is where you earn it".

Thanks for reading.