Archive for the ‘Fitness Videos’ Category
2003 IFBB Fitness Olympia - 1st
Fitness: Exercises to Improve Running
Jueves, Octubre 23rd, 2008The keys to running faster aren’t mysterious. To crank up your speed, you need to increase two things: your stride length and your stride frequency. Length is the distance you cover in one stride; frequency is the number of times your feet push off the ground during a given unit of time.
Fortunately, your stride length and frequency aren’t preprogrammed attributes like the color of your eyes or the shape of your nose - there are ways to increase both. But you shouldn’t consciously try to increase your stride length or frequency the next time you go out for a run. That effort could quickly exhaust your muscles and cause injury.
What you can do is train between runs using the running-oriented exercises described here. Performed consistently, these movements will improve your running form, not to mention your strength, flexibility and power. In turn, you will automatically increase your stride length and frequency on the track or road - thus boosting your speed.
You should perform one or two sets of each exercise if you’re a novice runner and three if you’re more advanced, using a weight with which you can do no more than 10 to 12 reps. Lift at least twice a week, resting one to three days between sessions.
The Exercises
Heel raise: This exercise duplicates your ankle-joint movement, improving strength and flexibility for a more powerful push-off and a longer stride.
Position yourself on a calf machine, hanging your heels off the edge of the step. With your legs almost straight, raise your heels above the edge and stand on your toes. Hold that position for one or two seconds, then slowly lower your heels down below the platform until you feel a stretch in your Achilles tendons. Repeat. (If you don’t have access to a machine, hang your heels over the edge of a step, placing your hands against a wall or railing for support.)
Squat: This exercise will strengthen your quadriceps, helping you extend your knee farther and thus allowing a longer stride. Strong quads will also keep you from moving up and down too much, which can reduce stride frequency.
Rest a barbell on your trapezius muscle, or hold dumbbells at your sides. Stand with your feet approximately shoulder-width apart and your toes pointed straight ahead or slightly turned out. Slowly lower your body, keeping your heels on the floor and your back slightly arched, until your thighs are parallel to the floor - at the bottom, your knees should be directly above your toes or just beyond them. Hold for a second or two, then drive back up with your quads.
Lunge: This movement, along with the pawback exercise described on page 96, will target your hip-flexor muscles and your quadriceps, allowing a more powerful push-off and increasing stride length.
Rest a barbell on your trapezius, or hold dumbbells at your sides. Stand with your feet hip-width apart, then step forward with a long stride, keeping your back straight and your head up. Lower your body until the thigh of your leading leg is parallel to the floor, keeping your rear leg almost straight but relaxed. Return to the starting position by pressing downward on your leading leg. Switch legs and repeat.
Forward knee drive: This movement duplicates the way your thigh drives forward. It also strengthens your hip flexors, allowing for greater stride length.
Stand in a cable-crossover station and attach one end of an ankle strap to a low cable and the other to your right ankle. Stand facing away from the cable, far enough from the pulley to create tension on the cable when your leg is behind your body. Your knee should be slightly bent, your foot a few inches off the ground. Stand straight and hold onto a stationary object for balance. Drive your thigh forward while bending your knee, keeping your shin parallel to the floor. Stop just as your right thigh passes the vertical position. Complete the appropriate number of reps, then repeat with your left leg.