Walking to Race Walking Step 3

[windwalker]

Walking to race walking step 3



Those of you that have been following this progression from walking to race walking have so far explored the difference that good posture makes and have now become acquainted with paying attention to your hips. The hip forward has probably made you feel a little out of balance with your stride. I wanted you to feel that way a little so that when you start practicing this weeks step with the two previous steps it will begin to smooth out for you. Still a long way to go but each new step should make the whole stride feel smoother and more effortless. By Marathon weekend you just might be able to take a couple of minutes per mile off your time with about the same effort.

Ok this week concentrate on your arm swing. As that hip is going forward the elbow, held close to your body, is going back. A walker's correct arm swing is more to the back than a runners because your stride is more to the back. So concentrate on that elbow going back as your hip goes forward and keep the posture straight.

You should feel that your stride is short in the front, (it's not as short as it seems), because your not striding out like a runner, your sending that hip forward and that elbow back. The elbow is going back further than the hip is going forward and your legs will be following that. So your stride will be longer in the back, on the average a 60/40 split but that varies with each person and isn't important, the important thing is that the stride is longer in the back.

You should also begin to notice that your feet are landing more in a straight line now if your hips are leading the stride. Remember that rope that is pulling you forward from the hip and as Tracy said your walking tall as though you have a wire attached to the top of your head that is pulling you to perfect posture.

Thanks for reading and good training this week. "Remember to stretch after eaxh training session.

Dave

 

[dsnyfan21]

to add, the arm is at about a 90 degree angle at the elbow and the arm is relaxed. Another check while you are walking when you do your "self check" is to make sure you aren't holding up your shoulders. The shoulders should be relaxed and allowing the arm to swing nice and easy like a pendulum. Also the arms should not go out to the sides, it is a front to back swing - think of yourself in a very narrow hallway and your elbows cannot touch the walls. Also there should never be a cross over in the front of your body with the hands. (the left hand when coming forward should not cross into the right half of your body and the same for the other) All of this is to help with your forward motion and to not waste motion that will not help you. I like to have a very lightly closed hand position with the thumb on top. With a good arm swing this too can help to propel you forward in a swifter fashion.
Keep practicing, keep moving and do your check lists. The more you do this it will become second nature. Stretch good afterwards on those warm muscles.

 

[drummerwife]

Thanks so much for all the help. You've given me much to think about and work on as I'm training. I have one question though. I walked my first race Sat (10k) since I changed from running, and my pace was 13:24. My training pace is around 14:20. When I used to run I would feel like I left everything out on the race course, yet when I did this race I felt like I had so much left in the tank. Any idea why that may be? TIA

 

[windwalker]

Thanks so much for all the help. You've given me much to think about and work on as I'm training. I have one question though. I walked my first race Sat (10k) since I changed from running, and my pace was 13:24. My training pace is around 14:20. When I used to run I would feel like I left everything out on the race course, yet when I did this race I felt like I had so much left in the tank. Any idea why that may be? TIA

Walking and race walking, even though they are great exercises don't beat up your body like the pounding of running that's why you feel like you could just keep going.

Glad to help, sad that so few people are interested though. I have several world class race walker buds that do their miles any where from 6 min to 8 min per mile for distance and still the sport doesn't get much interest here in the USA. It's much bigger in New Zealand and with the Aussies. The European and South American walkers get a lot of support as well. I started race walking when I developed a cronic achillies tendon problem and couldn't run any more but came to love the sport.

Dave

 

[Anne34]

I would love to race walk instead of running too. I have been doing C25K and feel beat when I get done.(doing 2 1/2 miles in 30 min) I walked 4 1/2 miles yesterday (right about 15 min miles) and felt so much better after this longer distance -- just like the previous poster.

BUT, I just can't seem to get my hips the way you seem to explain -- I am no way walking in a straight line. I really wish there was someplace/class that I could take to learn how to do this correctly. I would love to get my time down and do this instead of walk/run combo.

 

[debbieandroo]

Thank you for these threads, Windwalker.

For several weeks, I've been trying to implement the various aspects of race walking -- shorter strides, upright posture, arm swing, etc. However, I never felt that this helped me go faster. In fact, I seemed to be much slower. I wanted to keep doing this the right way but was getting discouraged. The smaller steps seemed counter intuitive, especially since I have such short legs and need all the help I can get in the stride department.

Then, I walked in a 5-mile race Sunday morning. I was trying to pass several ladies who were just ahead of me so I shortened my stride and quickened my pace to move past them. At that moment, it all clicked - and I was able to go faster.

That was just in the first mile. I kept trying to do this throughout the race and, while I didn't end with a faster pace, I was less sore than after a 5-mile race I had walked two weeks before. In fact, I ended with an identical time for both races - for the first race, the weather was perfect with no humidity and I was really energetic, for the second, the air was super thick and muggy and I was just getting over a summer cold. I should have been much slower for the second race - perhaps it was my new stride that was the reason my pace stayed the same.

I tried to do the same in tonight's walking clinic but the heat was probably working too hard against me.

Anyway, I'm looking forward to practicing more of this type of walking. Next time, maybe I'll pass some runners!

 

[windwalker]

I would love to race walk instead of running too. I have been doing C25K and feel beat when I get done.(doing 2 1/2 miles in 30 min) I walked 4 1/2 miles yesterday (right about 15 min miles) and felt so much better after this longer distance -- just like the previous poster.

BUT, I just can't seem to get my hips the way you seem to explain -- I am no way walking in a straight line. I really wish there was someplace/class that I could take to learn how to do this correctly. I would love to get my time down and do this instead of walk/run combo.

Anne, there is a good web site for instruction, search race walking 101, that's Tim Seaman's site and he gives good information and diagrams. There is another site World Class Race Walking, Dave McGovern's site but there is no information there just his bragging about how wonderful he is.

The Warrior Princess who holds the american record for the 50K told me this about hip motion and it helped me get it right. Imagine your trying to wrap your hips around a pole as you walk. It takes a while, it's not a sport that comes to you over night.

When your leading with the hip then the feet should be landing out in frount of you in a straight line. I was going to make this the next step, finding a white line in the road and make sure your feet are landing in a straight line and not out to the sides. When you do the hips right then the feet should head that way easily.

I've been race walking for about 7 years and I'm still learning and improving.

Dave

 

[windwalker]

http://www.eracewalk.com/Tuto01/Tuto0101.htm

 

[indygirl99]

The Warrior Princess who holds the american record for the 50K told me this about hip motion and it helped me get it right. Imagine your trying to wrap your hips around a pole as you walk. It takes a while, it's not a sport that comes to you over night.

When your leading with the hip then the feet should be landing out in frount of you in a straight line. I was going to make this the next step, finding a white line in the road and make sure your feet are landing in a straight line and not out to the sides. When you do the hips right then the feet should head that way easily.

I've been race walking for about 7 years and I'm still learning and improving.

Dave

When you say your feet should be landing in a straight line do you mean my right foot should hit the white line every time straight up OR one foot in front of the other like the cops make you do for the sobriety test?

This thread has been helping me when I am out training. Thanks.

Also did you see that there was a race walking team that completed the Hood to Coast relay race this last week. They are hoping to encourage more race walking teams for next year.

 

[windwalker]

Yes kinda like the test the cop gives you when he thinks you are drunk. I'll go into more on that with next weeks step.

Thanks for reading

Dave

 

[EMHDad]

I just noticed this topic. I missed the first 2, but went back and read them. I do not wish to walk my training and races. I am a jogger. I like hitting a 10 minute mile. However, I do practice a run/walk method. I have struggled with my walking though. I am either going to slow for my liking or causing too much stress on my legs and feet(as much or more so than the actual running, which defeats the purpose) I am going to try and follow the advice given and hopefully give my stress relief to my body during the walking portions without sacrificing too much time. Thanks again. I'll be following the rests of the posts!

 

[John VN]

Not meant to hijack just to encourage...

I just noticed this topic. I missed the first 2, but went back and read them. I do not wish to walk my training and races. I am a jogger. I like hitting a 10 minute mile. However, I do practice a run/walk method. I have struggled with my walking though. I am either going to slow for my liking or causing too much stress on my legs and feet(as much or more so than the actual running, which defeats the purpose) I am going to try and follow the advice given and hopefully give my stress relief to my body during the walking portions without sacrificing too much time. Thanks again. I'll be following the rests of the posts!

Out of necessity, bad knees, I had no option other than walking. Numerous times in the past I have expressed my very high respect for race walkers like Dave and Tracy but I am just not physically capable of race walking so I speed walk.

That being said, let me mention to EMHDad and others, when you perfect a walking stride I believe your jogging times will improve as you Galloway your race.

Only recently have I been able to start jogging and running. I am able to jog at a 9:00 to 9:20mpm and then walk at 9:30mpm then back to a jog. My legs feel totally different when walking and I give those jogging muscles a little rest without giving up much time when walking. My fastest walking mile has been 8:16 but the effort expended to attain that speed is far in excess of that required to run that time. I know because I just matched it running the final mile of a 10K training walk/jog/run that I did last week.

To walk fast and comfortably takes concentration and time. As you effortlessly glide past joggers and runners with their poor form you will feel empowered beyond comprehension. Trust me, I feel it every time I kick into a sub 7:00mpm walking sprint when I need to pass slower joggers/runners.

The once tortoises become the hares with training. Good luck to all.

 

[Anne34]

http://www.eracewalk.com/Tuto01/Tuto0101.htm

Thanks for the video -- it helped a bit to see it in action. I don't think I'll ever be able to sway my hips like that though!!

 

[EMHDad]

walking question:

I tried the race walking technique. My quads ache and my shins were killing me! I am not getting this when I run/jog or walk casually. Is this a result of bad technique or simply the use of muscles in a new way that need to be built up? Am I making sense? Any thoughts?