Better posture for faster running

Running posture is one of the first things to change when it comes to technique, and since our whole movement changes based around the position of our torso, it makes sense to get some quick wins here.

Improving posture consciously when running is actually quite straight forward. If you’ve ever been on a running course, worked with a coach or run with a club, you’ve likely done some basic drills on this.

“Imagine a balloon attached to your head, pulling you upright” is the way I first heard this posture focus being taught. I use this too, as it’s a very obvious and visual cue, but also throw in the option to imagine being a puppet on strings being pulled upright. If you think about a string puppet being dragged along the floor, you even get the idea of driving forward with the hips under the shoulders.

As an intervention with an immediate positive impact, this will be great, but there’s more to posture than conscious thought alone.

If you think about correcting posture, you likely imagine some combination of stretches and exercises. You’d be right in thinking this is the way to bring improved posture to your life, but perhaps not with the exercises you think.

Stretching the chest is a common first step, and that’s perfect. Without movement in the front of the body at the shoulder, we can’t retract (pull back) our shoulder blades as much as we’d like for running. Shoulders that are pulled forward by tight chest muscles, will shift our weight too far forward and hunch our backs, making our technique less energy efficient, causing slower run times.

Next, we need to work the upper and mid back muscles from several different angles using pulling exercises such as rows, pull-aparts and pulldowns (or pull ups). With these muscles strengthened, you’ll gradually hold a more upright posture without trying (subconsciously improving posture), which will make conscious work on this even better, but continue to help even when you’re in the heat of a race and forget about everything but getting those last few miles done.

Although I’d generally suggest focusing on strength first to get the improvements to begin with, the balance of muscular strength and muscular endurance will depend on the distance you’re training for. A 5k runner will need more strength and less endurance than someone running marathons, so the amount of resistance and duration of the exercises would differ.

If you’ve ever found yourself slouching towards the end of a race, struggling to get uphill well or control your downhill running, working on the advice I’ve given you here will make a big difference in allowing you to move better and run faster.