1. Keep your shoulders down. As you run, your shoulders tend to slowly creep up to your ears and it looks like you don't have a neck. Keep your shoulders relaxed.
2. Keep your hands loose. Don't make fists with your hands. When you clinch your fists, your arms tighten up and all you are doing it making it harder for your body to run. If you've ever noticed that your shoulders, arms and hands are sore after a run, most likely that is what you are doing. Stop it! If you notice that you are tensing up during a run, open your hands, bring you arms down and shake them out for a few seconds.
3. Take slow breaths. We tend to want to hyperventilate when we start running at a faster pace. Once again, you are just making it harder for yourself. Take slow, deep breaths and stay relaxed.
4. Take longer strides. If you are on a treadmill, set it on a certain speed and start running. You'll notice that you can either take long, slow strides or short quick strides, while still going the same speed. Which is harder? The same is true for running outside.
5. Don't stomp your feet. Some of us pound our feet to the ground, putting extra wear and tear on our knees and other joints. Take easy strides, rolling from your heel to your toe.
6. Use your arms. Just like in swimming, you need both sets of limbs to go faster. Just because they are relaxed doesn't mean you can't pump them.
7. DON'T WATCH THE CLOCK! Take music with you or watch TV on the treadmill or make up songs or stories in your head. If you are running in a group, something we did in cross-country was to take turns making up parts of a story. Whatever you have to do to keep from thinking about how tired and sore you are. I tell everyone that running is 80% mental. Anyone can run as long as their brain doesn't get in the way. Something I think while running is "run until nothing jiggles... run until nothing jiggles... run until.." :) But whatever you do, don't get "My Sharona" stuck in your head... it's awful!!!!
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