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The relevant part of the article: > When I pressed Kram and Swinnen for their preferred explanations, they pointed out that efficient runners use their stretch
by helge9210 6y ago
The relevant part of the article:
> When I pressed Kram and Swinnen for their preferred explanations, they pointed out that efficient runners use their stretchy tendons and ligaments to store elastic energy to be “recycled” from stride to stride. The push and pull between tendon and muscle is so finely tuned that your muscles stay roughly the same length throughout the stride instead of shortening and lengthening with each contraction. Optimizing this aspect of running is invisible to the naked eye and beyond conscious control, but it may be one of the crucial skills that improve with experience.
- ambivalents 6y agoAnd this: > Is there anything we can say for sure? How about: Yes, you can get more efficient at running. You probably can’t get more efficient at cycling—at least not by an amount that’s worth spending a lot of time fretting about.
- MrFantastic 6y agoYou can spot inefficient runners once you know what to look for. Efficient runners are striding 20 or 30% faster. Usually over 180 strides/minute. If you look at the efficient runners head looks like it's floating smoothly. If you are bouncing you are losing energy.
- johnold 6y agoThis reminded me of watching some Kenyan runners at a local race. I had never seen people that good run in person. I swear they just floated by... Their heads and shoulders just don't look like the move up and down at all. I'll never forget it. A thing of beauty.