Earlier this month, I went to Build Sports Performance Center for a Run Gait Analysis.
My goal was to get an expert assessment (with hard data points) on my run form to find and fix any weaknesses.
After running while hooked up to dozens of sensors, I got crystal clear answers.
I’m going to share:
1 big weakness that causes my stride to fall apart
5 all around weaknesses in my stride
2 drills I’m using to correct it all
I’m sharing this because anyone trying to get better as a runner can learn from the improvements I need to make and the drills that were prescribed to me.
Let’s dive in.
Current State Of My Run
Here’s why I wanted to get checked out:
My body feels fine on runs up to 90 minutes, but when I push duration longer, my body starts to break down… fast.
Specifically the front of my hips.
On top of that, I have a really hard time holding a heart rate over 145 bpm when I run.
Yet I can sustain 145 bpm on the bike at a comfortable working effort.
Since heart rate is a reactive measure, that tells me that my body is working harder than it needs to when running at that intensity.
1 Key Physical Weakness
The analysis started with a physical exam that revealed 1 key weak point: weak hip abductor strength on both sides
This wasn’t a big surprise to me. I haven’t targeted this muscle group enough in the gym over the years.
Since starting strength training with Dee Stasulli in December, I’ve done significant abductor work and am working on strengthening this weakness.
Aside from weak abductors, my lower body strength held up well in the rest of the physical exam.
That was a big confidence boost for me.
Run Gait Analysis Video Review
Here are 2 videos from the analysis.
Video 1: this reviews the sensor data with commentary on where my imbalances/weaknesses show.
Video 2: this is the raw footage of my analysis and where the sensor data above was pulled from
5 Weaknesses In My Stride
#1: Excessive vertical oscillation
I waste a lot of energy moving UP and not FORWARD during my stride.
#2 Relatively low cadence
While I’m not overly tall (5-11), I have high hips and long legs.
My cadence is routinely 160-162 and would much more efficient around 172-174.
The best 2 ways to increase my cadence: less vertical oscillation and more forward knee drive
#3 Stiff knee angle at initial contact
This was the #1 takeaway of the whole analysis for me!!!
It explains why the front of my hips are my initial physical breakdown on long runs.
With more knee bend (via knee drive noted in #5 below), I’ll reduce the impact my hips take on each stride, recruit more lower body muscles and also move farther forward with each stride.
The analysis revealed I’m essentially running with the breaks on.
#4 Excessive ankle supination at toe off
The focus here is on my left foot.
Instead of powerfully pushing off the ball of my foot, my left ankle (the one I had surgery on in 2019) rolls outward and I push off my outer toes.
#5 Poor knee drive
Instead of using my knees to drive me forward with each stride, I kind of just “swing” my feet forward.
And since my knees aren’t out in front driving my stride, I also don’t have any forward pelvic rotation.
2 Drills To Help Me Improve
The most important change to implement is more forward knee drive.
If done correctly, it will help fix my vertical oscillation, low cadence and straight knee at impact.
Drill #1: Knees as Arrows
The second tangible change to make is correcting my left ankle supination.
This drill is helpful for keeping the ball of my foot as my primary point of contact (and where I’m applying force from).
Drill #2: Banded First Ray Lunge To Balance
1 set of 12x lunges to single leg balance on each leg
1 set of 12x lunges to single leg balance + heel raise on each leg
Overall, getting form feedback is invaluable in long distance triathlon.
Build has been an enormous help getting me mechanically efficient on the bike and now the run.
And I’m excited to have some things in the works for them help Tribal Training athletes at this year’s Training Camp.