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Everyone has their own stride when it comes to running. Several factors come into play here - height, weight, speed, endurance level and much more. While everyone should stick to what makes them most comfortable, sports magazines often lay emphasis on how certain styles of running can optimise performance.
The two most popular styles of running are forefoot striking and heel striking. Forefoot running is essentially running with plantar flexed feet, i.e. toes point downwards, while heel striking is running with a dorsiflexed foot or toes pointing upward.
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Which style of running is better?
Let’s take a look at both strides and the benefits they offer:
Forefoot running
This style of running reduces impact on the knees and also engages the calves and hamstrings more. However, maximum speed cannot be achieved, as most power for every step is generated only from the top portion of the foot, as opposed to the entire foot.
Heel Striking
Heel striking seems to come more naturally for most runners. It engages the ankles and allows for it to be stretched through its entire range of motion. That's because the foot goes through a transition of the heel hitting the ground first, followed by the mid foot and toes, to launch into the next step.
When not geared with the right footwear, heel striking can cause impact and stress to the knees, shins and even the hips. While there is no evidence that this striking can slow you down, sprinters often do not adopt this style.
Yes, there is an in-between stride known as 'mid-foot running'. As the name suggests, this stride involves landing on the middle region of your foot. This technique is said to reduce the impact on your joints, maximising shock absorption.
Similar to heel striking, this technique is said to also increase the impact to the joints of the heel, knees and hips.
It is argued that even though heel striking is the most natural stride, it could potentially be the most dangerous. However, newer studies have shown that there is little to no evidence to suggest that one style is better than the other. Eventually, the best stride is the one you’re most comfortable with.
If you’re getting injured far too often, suffer from extreme soreness in your joints or are unable to improve your speed while running, it may be time for you to experiment with other styles of running and see what might help. While it can be tricky to get used to, it may perhaps be just what you need to optimise your performance and improve your running.
One way to do that is by practicing running barefoot. We don’t mean ditching the shoes during your run but simply running barefoot on a grass or carpet turf for very short intervals of time to first figure out your footstrike and to correct it if required.
Get yourself a good pair of running shoes, and you really shouldn’t have anything to worry about. Gear up for your run; plug your headphones in, and get moving. As long as you aren’t overtraining, you are careful while running, you really don’t have anything to worry abou.! Have a great run.
