NOT! I'm more like an elephant trotting in the woods with it's ears and trunk swingin'! I try really really hard to be light on my feet and have a consistent rhythm while running but it's not always the case. Between, breathing hard, telling my muscles what to do and watching where I'm going, 'elegance' doesn't come into play at the beginning stages of learning how to become a runner. I guess this is what you need to experience to gain endurance. Like in skiing, Dan would say one needs to move from initiation then to acquisition then to consolidation and finally to refinement stage before perfecting the sport.
I remember Dad telling us when we were younger, that 'your arms are just as important as your legs while running'. Keeping your arms in sync with your feet, moving back and forth at a consistent pace and using your hands to cup the air as you run. I"m not as graceful as I'd like to be and I'm definately not 'Like the Wind', more like 'blowing wind'!
I did however improve my time, today I ran 3 miles, 4.86km in 29:56, avg pace 6:10 /km burned 414 cal, I did my easy run this morning, the one I should of done on Monday because I had to be back home early for a full day of meetings. It worked out well as I needed a short run today.
What is your definition of an 'elegant' runner? Can we be unconventional while running and still be effective and improve? What are the different stages in the sport of 'running'? I guess you can see I'm no longer looking at running as 'an action' that we can all do as humans to one degree or another. I"m really starting to analyze running as a sport. How to do the best training. How to make sure I"m using the best equipment. And how do I get from the starting line to the finish line the fastest.
I guess you can call me a serious runner now! Well once I hit 21 days I think I will officially be a 'runner', at least running every morning will be ingrained as a habit by then. Hopefully all you'll be seeing of me, is my 'Tail Wind'!!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Hi Laura,
ReplyDeleteRunning? Well, let me share some personal observations, and some learned observations from my running friends which I picked up along the way. As you experience your running knowledge, see if some of them come home to YOU!!!
Ah! elegance in a runner. Elegance! Sometine when you get a chance to watch an elite woman runner in a ten km, half marathon or marathon, it is easy to see the most beautiful elegance in the whole world. All good women runners are smooth, graceful and elegant all roled into one. It is simply poetry in motion. Her stride is smooth, pure and elegant beyond words.
How is this possible? Well, with practise, you can do the same. Like learning to ski, you can take lessons and learn it properly very quickly or you can spend years trying to learn on your own. Your choice! Running like a lot of sports if trained properly you can be an artist.
Form; with you learning the proper running form you will become smooth, graceful and yes, elegant. Please study the proper form and learn the sport the easy way instead of the hard way. You will be soooo appreciative.
As far as the different stages, Laura, you are starting in them now as we speak and as you learn and improve your form, cardio, and personal style of running.
There is an old saying with runners; if you want to be a better runner you run more and more and more. Nothing will train you better to be a better runner than more running. This will become apparent as you increase your mileage, or like you young people like to say, kilometers.
Now, I will be honest with you. Most young and some old runners actually think that running fast everyday is how they are going to become a running star. That couldn't be farther from the truth. What you have to take into account is the body your using to run in. Your BODY !!! Like everything and every person you meet you have to show them respect. It is no different with your body. If you listen to your body, really pay attention to your body, really respect your body, really protect your body it will treat you better than you can ever imagine. However, and I have to say this, if you do not consider and respect your body and chose not to protect your body by allowing some easy days ( runs ) along with hard days, it only stands to reason that your body and/or your mind will break down on you just when you needed it the most. DOESN'T THIS SO NATURALLY MAKE VERY GOOD COMMON SENSE???? Of course it does. So Laura, when you are doing an easy day, do an easy day. Don't just pretend and not do an easy day, because the truth is you know you can go a whole lot faster. Your muscles, check this out on the internet, have a whole lot of layers, i.e. from your bones to your outer muscles, i.e. quads and hamstrings, there are many muscles that have to build on each other. Some of them will build better with slow running and some of them will build better with fast running. But you need to build all of them for strength, endurance and speed. So again, easy day, hard day. Now listen to your good old experienced POP!!!
God bless,
Dad
Ok got it...two days of easy running I promise! Thanks for all the great comments. This is really great stuff. Keep the comments a comin'
ReplyDeleteLove you DAD! L