Thoughts on running faster (long)

Bored at the factory today?

In all seriousness...interesting

OK, bro, bottom line for me...

Just some background on cadence....The most efficient, fastest runners roll at a target 90 cadence.  So, being a smart dude and all, I measure my cadence...84.  So during winter treadmill workouts, I throw in cadence intervals at 90+ footfalls a second...it's painful!  I think the max human cadence is probably around 95 for extended periods, assuming some level of speed.  Try, once, getting on the treadmill and holding 100 cadence.  Damned near impossible, and hopelessly inefficient...you're cutting strides short for the sake of cadence.

Instead of focusing on stride length and cadence, I'd volunteer that stride length and cadence are symptoms, or measurements that predict speed, but not ends that you manage during training.  The factors that matter the most, IMHO, are the power applied during the push, and resistance (i.e., when you apply power, how much actually ends up on the ground vs. the amount wasted inefficiently through bounce, slip, lateral motion, etc). 

With this as a hypothesis, to improve running speed, I'd focus on applying additional power to the equation (leveraging power gains from hills, intervals, weightlifting, etc) and minimizing resistance and wasted motion (chi running, stride and footstrike analysis, bounce minimization, etc).  You improve power put to the ground, and how much of it's translated into forward motion, and either stride length or turnover will go up, guaranteed.

As an aside, I've always had a corollary (hijak) question:  People train for a certain pace. At this pace, your stride is a certain length.  To go faster, they may need to change basic stride mechancics, upper body carriage, body lean, etc.  How do you know you've hit this point, and how do you transition to the 'new, faster' stride?

Here's a great article on this subject from Triathlete Magazine.  Gist of the article is that shorter, quicker strides correlate to much more efficient running.  I've tried it and it works, at least for me.  When I first started counting my strides I was at about 76-80 one-foot strikes per minute, or 152-160 total.  I shortened my stride and took the cadence up to about 88-92, or 176-184, and sometimes even higher, and I was pretty amazed at how much easier it was to keep a faster pace for a longer time.  At the end of my runs I wasn't nearly as tired and the next day soreness wasn't an issue either.  The key was to shorten my stride, not keep it the same length and try to up the cadence.  Worked for me, might work for others too.

OK, the link didn't work so I'll just paste the article in here.

Stride rate: What gets measured gets done
By Marc Evans

February 14, 2005 -- As a coach, I break down athletes’ running competencies into a few areas, none more or less important than another. Athletes need to demonstrate efficiency in these core areas to be good runners in my opinion, and low stride rates are an omnipresent technique flaw in many triathletes. This article provides a number of stride-rate improvement methods, describes why it’s important and how improving your stride rate can improve running economy. And economy is related to the amount of consumed oxygen at a given speed so, improving economy means less oxygen will be utilized at the same speed.

The longer the foot and ground contact time the greater amount of increase in vertical velocity (upward movement). This increase produces a decrease in horizontal velocity (forward movement), and this corresponds with protracted ground and foot contact times, thereby, slowing the stride rate, increasing vertical displacement and braking force. A runner wants forward movement--not upward--and a purposeful effort should be made to achieve this result.

Braking force is the product of overstriding where the lower limbs land in front of the pelvis, thus slowing the cadence. To mimic this sensation, and to hopefully implement what not to do, take a very long step forward with your right foot from a standing position. You will note when your foot hits the ground that there’s a pronounced “stopping” of movement. Now, stand with feet together and take short step, keeping the pelvis over the right foot as it moves forward. Note how un-weighted and neutral your body feels. Also, the left foot is freely ready to swing forward. That’s what it feels like to run efficiently with the body neutrally balanced over the pelvis as the spine and head remain unweighted during each foot strike.

This characteristic of good runners can be learned progressively by most triathletes seeking to improve running economy. Stride rates in the low 80s or less are often found in novice runners. Stride rates in the low to mid-90s are typical of skilled runners and triathletes.

World-class runners from 5,000 meters to the marathon demonstrate stride rates of 90 to 95 right-foot contacts per minute (180 to 190 total for both feet). To be sure, there are many styles of runners, but one common shared characteristic among top performers is stride rate. And triathletes are no different. Bear in mind that the stride rate (at any running speed) should be very close to the same tempo. Whether warming up, at race pace or over a long-distance endurance run. Your running stride rate, cadence, frequency of stride needs to remain between 90 to 95 right-foot contacts every minute. And to achieve this, the length of stride is shortened when running slower and lengthen when running at race pace.

In elite distance runners, foot-strike contact time with the ground is very brief--just a few milliseconds of lightly placed, quick, catlike steps. And the foot contacts the ground under the pelvis with a mid-sole to forefoot (not the heel). With these images in mind here are a few measuring techniques to help you achieve a more economical stride rate.

Prancing 4 x 4 x 20 meters
1. Begin stepping (like you’re prancing on hot coals) quickly and lightly on the balls of the feet. The arms move in exact timing with the foot strike.
2. Count the number of foot strikes while slowly running (prancing) forward 20 meters.
3. For the next and subsequent 20 meters increase the number of total steps taken by 10 percent by increasing the speed and quickness of the steps.
4. Repeat the 4 x 20 meters four times with each set, increasing the number of steps during each 20 meters.

Running High Knees 4 x 4 x 20 meters
1. Begin running with high knees (knee and thigh parallel with hip) with the arms and legs working in a coordinated timing manner.
2. Count the number of foot strikes over the first of four 20-meter marks.
3. For the next and subsequent 20 meters increase the number of total steps taken by 5 to 10 percent. To execute this properly the foot movement from terminal stance to contact must be done quickly.
4. Repeat the 4 x 20 meters four times with each set, increasing the number of steps during each 20 meters.
5. Maintain an increasing lightness of foot to ground contact during each interval. A useful tip at toe off is to bring the heel quickly through the lower calf and return the foot quickly back to the ground.

10 Second Strides
(increasing and decreasing strides)
1. Walk for 20 meters quickly, bringing the heel through the back of the calf after toe off.
2. Run for 10 seconds counting the number of times the right foot contacts the ground.
3. Repeat No. 1 and No. 2 while increasing the foot contacts by one up to five repetitions or a maximum of 20 right foot contacts in the 10 seconds.

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist, a coach or even a running guru with all sorts of imaginative running drills to develop stride rate competency of good running form. And there’s no question better runners simply run with faster cadences. It’s that simple. And learning how to monitor, develop and maintain optimal running cadence is simple to execute as well.

Coach Evans was the triathlon’s first professional coach beginning in 1982. He coaches triathletes individually from his offices in Menlo Park, Calif., and can be found at www. evanscoaching.com. In addition, Coach Evans was the 1989-90 USA Triathlon Head Coach and is the author most recently of Triathletes Edge and Endurance Athletes Edge. He is the inventor and patent holder of the SPEEDO SwimFoil and Contour training paddles.

This article originally appeared in the March 2005 issue of Triathlete magazine, available at all Borders and Barnes and Nobles bookstores plus your local triathlon shop.

Edited by Flyboy 2005-11-18 1:09 AM

Everytime I look at your chart my eyes glaze over.

Additional thoughts....

Higher cadence is a good thing.  But I don't believe that 90 should be everyone's magic number.  Body dimensions and physique must play some type of  role in determining your ideal cadence.  Assuming our fitness levels are roughly equivalent and we are running the same pace - my coworker has a 30" inseam.  I've got a 33" inseam.  It costs him less energy to turn his legs over than it costs me.  I'm moving more mass than he is.  But, he's also got a shorter stride length than I do.  I go a little bit further every step.  Should both my buddy and I be working on obtaining that same 90 cadence or would you expect that a shorter legged person should be able to obtain higher levels of turnover? 

I keep thinking about our four legged friends that chase us from time to time on the bike.  Some of those little *** dogs have short little stubby legs yet they are a blur when they're chasing you because they can turn them over so fast.  A big dog running at the same speed has longer legs and can chase you at the same speed yet his legs are turning over slower.  Their cadence and stride length is different yet ideal for their body types and dimensions. 

Wooo Hoooo!!!!  I hear ya!