5 Simple Ways for YOU to Run Like ELIUD KIPCHOGE 1: Be conceived and born in Kenya 2 Run to and from school 3 Eat organic unprocessed foods 4 Live and train in high altitude areas 5 believe in yourself
Just thought I’d share, for those looking to try these out. I mimicked Kipchpoge’s form and incorporated these tips into my 1st run in a week, out of curiosity. It was odd how quickly I was moving along, and it took some getting used to, because it felt almost like I was flat-footing for the duration of the run. Maintaining a consistent cadence and stride length resulted in an overall consistent pace, and I was able to match and almost exceed the pace of my average 5K, even though I’ve been increasing my distance incrementally for a couple of weeks now. That means that instead of losing progress over the course of a week, I progressed simply by altering my running form. Previously, I would land strictly on my toes as a sprinter would, but manipulating my weight distribution made toe planting obsolete. Now, I’ve averaged 6:35/mi, even beyond 5 km. I implore everyone to follow the tips in the video as closely as you can - the results may not be immediate, but they will be significant.
Instead of trying to mimicking this running gate. Please learn a,b, and c skips. And learn hurdle drills. Over time you’re running gate will improve with drills.
Thank you! Excellent analysis and also really appreciate how you have your 5 points summarized in the "show more" area. 1. Footstrike 2. Stride length and overstriding 3. Cadence & contact time 4. Torso rotation 5. Relaxation
James , 76 year old man runner who watched this video 2 days ago and ran the fastest 3 miler in probably 2 years! I always have been a mid foot runner but have been consumed with stride length. Knee pain has been my companion for months recently. But striking out this afternoon on a country road I felt like a runner again and not a plodding goofball. My knees felt bulletproof! I had a ball running for the first time in 2 years THANK YOU 😊
Honest question .... You're picking on that one runner's form, saying it's "what we don't want to see" ... Yet, he's a world class runner. His "bad form" is clearly working for him, so does that throw into question all the advice we're getting about "the best" form? Perhaps form is entirely dependent on your own physiology.
You can't really question the physics here. He'd be putting less pressure on his joints and probably have a better running economy with Kipchoges form. Maybe he just increases his stride length over his capacities to keep up with Kipchoge🤷🏻♂️
awsome analisys. no.6 reeeeally important... watch how, right before touching the floor, his foot is not moving forward. It touches the floor with zero speed (relative to the ground). In order to do this, he must pull his foot back (you can see the foot decelerating). Since he is moving at 21 km/h forward, the foot must be brought back at -21km/h in order not to skid in any direction on the flor. Some of us usually skid forwards (hitting the brakes in every stride, usually due to exagerated forefroot striking), some of us, backwards (due to trying to sprint). Well, he does none of that. The foot hits the floor with 0 velocity. This comes from very good skipping tecknique and usage of the glutes... I'm still trying to work on that... lol - it helps to run on the dirt... you can atually HEAR wether you're skidding or not.
@@stayontrack well, not skidding at all is the way to go. it's the hardest part (for me, so far, at least). if you run at 15km/h your foot should move backwards at 15 km/h (relatively to you) at the moment it touches the ground. if the foot moves too slowly, backwards, say 10 km/h (relative tou you) you skid in the worst way and are breaking with 5 km/h difference to the ground. if the foot is too fast (say 20km/h) you're wasting energy because you skid backwards (with 5 km/h)... unless you have extra strong legs, are doing a sprint and you're running spikes on a track. so taking you're not sprinting a 100m, rather doing medium distance onwards, the foot should hit the ground at exactly 15 km/h relatively to you to hit the ground at 0 km/h and for the minimum contact time possible. just... hit and jump... like a hopping ball...
@@MrShadow205 you're probably running with too much of a "high heel" stance, like running on your toes (at least when you wrote this comment, sorry for the delay). I've had that when I fisrst started swapping a heel strike to a front foot strike. I would run on my toes. I would feel the skid motion forward due to the movement of the foot going from that "pointing down" to the "flat position", every single step. my calves would have to work, not only on taking the normal running impact, but also on dealing with that strange movement of the foot. I then started to try a more relaxed ankle approach, focusing on the rest of the leg and not the foot. I found my foot would hit the ground where it was supposed to, and in the position it was supposed to, without extra skidding or soreness afterwards.
@@diogoalmeida8211 I can see your point put personally "pulling the ground", which makes the rocks skid behind you usually is what i do. I think if i would try to have no skidding at all i would be forced to get more vertical movement. But I do agree that skidding can be too much, like you said if you're putting too much power into it
Great video, completely mind boggling pace to run sub 2 hour marathon. Most people couldn’t keep up with him on a road bike. Very informative explanation of running form, don’t think enough people give it the consideration it deserves in their training. Amazing to think he’s so good he’s causing the 4th place finisher to over-stride. Exciting times on the horizon in distance running I think.
Shoot you're right! In high school I averaged 9mph on my cheap walmart bike and that was a 1.5 mile ride. No way I could've maintained 13.1mph for 26.2 miles, not even close. I'd be hours behind
James, you probably have no idea how much of influence your videoes make on a new runner living way far from you. Thanks a tonne, mate. Keep helping us. We need you.
James, I want to thank you for this video. It has helped me recover from crippling shin splints. Since training for my first marathon a year ago, I've had shin splints (posterior/inside of my leg) I tried lots of rest, but after only a few runs, I would be in pain again. If I kept running or training for a week, it would flare up to pain so bad I couldn't run, and I'd again be back at square one. I've tried everything, and I am sure everything helped a bit (insoles, stretches, strengthening exercises, less asphalt running, etc) but it was my FORM that had to change for my shin splints to actually heal. I was an under-pronator and a heel striker. I had someone take slow motion footage of me from the front, back and sides, and compared myself to THIS video. I saved this video in my "Running" playlist and reference it all the time. Changing my form has been hard, because I always ran how it felt natural to me. But I now have better knee drive, higher knee lift, and I strike mid-foot instead of heel striking. I'm still working on it, but now I can train 4-5 days a week, week after week and month after month, without debilitating shin pain. I'm just some random person who, like you say here, can't imagine running a single mile at Eliud's marathon pace, let alone an entire marathon, but you've helped me so much. Thank you!👍👍👌✌️👍
I love to read this!! I'm right in your boat right now, manhandling my running form to try and get back to running daily, weekly, and monthly. Sure am tired of these dastardly shin splits
This happened to me too. I finally decided to fix my form after a couple weeks of minor shin pain and not being able to run. After just my first run yesterday, I didn't have any shin pain and could run for way longer. Today I ran probably a mile and a half non-stop around my neighborhood (I'm a beginner runner and I could only run for a straight-away or two before something in my core burned and having to rest.) Form completely changed my running!
Ya, I ran for 20 years as a heel striker because my middle school coach said "that's just how some people run, and some of the best in the world run that way". Injury after injury after injury, just couldn't break 5km without getting injured. Finally, after a bunch of reading, I took the winter of 2018/2019 off and just jumped rope to build my calf/Achilles strength. Toe running since (after watching this I'm probably going to get new shoes, I think I've gone as far as I can without going to a mid-strike) and injury free for 4 years now. Ran my first full length marathon last fall.
I'm currently fighting with crazy shin pain; as you said, I tried stretches, I tried icing, I think I have tried everything that I could, even resting. Whenever I went to run again, my shins would flare up. I will change my running form too. Thank you for the affirmation that it was my form, not something else.
Shin splints are growing pains. Nothing more ! Ive been a runner from age 14 to now.. age 65. I went though two years with shin splints. Theres nothing you can do for them other then grow out of them. No different then side aches. I had extreme side aches for nearly 3 years. Nothing I could do to change it ! Primary......I learned very early....do not do stretches before a race !!!!!!! First........I started following everyone else doing stretches. I always had craps. I though long and hard about it. I tried no stretching before future races. Never had a crap since ! Stretching causes muscles slight trauma........which often flares up mid race ! There is no need for stretches before a race....for that matter to warm up. Thats what the first half mile in the race is about .
I've been landing more with the midstrike and it's awesome how it feels. Just felt to change how I landed after many runs on the balls of my feet. Lifting my legs higher helps me to take longer strides and I can use much the same amount of energy but gain more speed. Of course they run so much more and train hard! Not to mention they are skinny as a rail!
Thank you very much. I've gotten more severe injuries over the years. Case in point, last night another ligament completely tore on my toe shuttering me for yet another 4-6 month rest. It has become chronic. Watching this, I see what I've been doing wrong on foot strike. Next time I am able to run and as I relearn to walk, I will use the mid foot. Let number 20 be the final injury.
Kipchoke’s midsection strikes, alignment of center of gravity along with smaller angles of bend at knees and ankle plus the slight rotation of hip suggest that he is using more of glutes instead of quadriceps and calves.
1:37 look at the 3rd guy. and his landing position of foot. Most of us would named that as bad becase of heel first contact. BUT if he is able to run with eliuds tempo, he cant be bad runner.
Very interesting. I did the minimal amount of sports science in school but I love to run and when I get back into it I will remember this advice and work on my strides.
he's incredible! his running gait is truly mesmerizing. if only I could run as gracefully...as a former swimmer, I tend to lean back and be a bit top heavy in the torso area :( working on it tho!
I've improved my running by adopting certain elements of Kipchoge's (and other elite runners') form. Pulling the heel towards the butt just enough to break contact with the ground while dorsiflexing the foot has been particularly helpful.
What a great video. I used to do T&F over 16 years ago and now that I'm getting back, I want to get an idea for what a goot technique looks for. Thanks for the work!
Look at his foot striking the ground, he also lands on the outside of the foot and then transfers to his big toe to push, a bit like a torsional movement through the metatarsals, I think it's also a way to mitigate and lessen shock to the joints
I’ve been watching lots of videos on cadence and I think the key point I’d missed that you point out well is it’s not just small quick steps picking feet up but important to have limb stiffness in legs so driving force into the ground to push you forward horizontally rather then too much vertical movement. That’s definitely helped me with my pace for same HR effort. Surely sub 2 hour can’t be far off now for me either....
As 3km, 5km, 10km Grand Prix I say you have to focus on rolling your hips like an Olympic walker, get your knees high and drag yourself forward starting with heel through to push off with your toes, maybe use your arms throwing them up level with your chin if running around an athletics track throw your left hand as high as the top of your head and right hand chest height around each bend on the track, basically the 3 separate events are sprint at %90 you need to plan on a 1.5 year ready to compete timespan training Mon, Wed, Fri.
These videos are great. So happy they came up in my feed. Really solid info that I feel I can learn from and use. Already watched about 7 in a row and subscribed. Can’t wait to put some of this in practice. Thanks James, look forward to more.
I am a frequent runner. I just finished a marathon below 3:15h with a cadence of about 190 (normal for me). I probably have to work on my rythm which probably will lead to worse results, but I'll take it for long term success. thanks!
A lot of this is a relief to see, because I've been working HARD on my running form the last two years and seeing huge gains, but I keep feeling like my foot lands too far in front because all the videos I've seen say it needs to be under my body. However, the front half of my stride looks a lot like EK's here. It's landing slightly in front of my body mass but the knee is over the ankle and I'm landing center of foot and not heel or toes (unless it's a steep hill then it's toes). I just need to improve the kick portion of the stride.
The way Kipchoge lands with his foot, it is not mid foot!! because when the sole of the shoe lands straight on ground the foot in side is actually lean forward. so when you see a runner step mid foot in this Nike Shoe which has a huge drop, the runner is in fact running totally forefoot.
That’s because the sneakers these runners are wearing have such high/thick heels. He’s Kipchoge is definitely landing forefoot, but it almost looks midfoot, because of the thick sole on the shoe. I bet if he was in sandals or even just barefoot you’d definitely see the forefoot landing more better. Such a graceful form!
So helpful…. Once I went to get running shoes fitted, and the guy who was helping me said I need to land on my heel and roll my feet…. Since then I had suffered plantar fasciitis and trying to get back to mid foot strike.
I'm curious about Kipchoge's foot landing position in terms of ankle inversion and toes pointing slightly outward at touch down. Looks to me like this results in a pretty pronounced amount of pronation as he carries through stance phase... dare I say "overpronation." I use the quotes because I am a skeptic about the categorization of some pronation as excessive versus a lesser degree as "neutral." It seems a rather arbitrary distinction, difficult to measure quantitatively (since the motion happens in fractions of a second), and may not be altered by various forms of technology in stability shoes such as "medial posting" or "guide rails." I think a large part of it is just a false classification system embraced by the shoe industry to market products, and pushed by podiatrists to sell custom orthotic inserts (both parties have substantial conflict of interest in terms of selling something). Should we as runners even be thinking about such a small and fast motion at the end of our extremities? Or is it counterproductive to address specifically when there are larger gait mechanics at play up higher in the kinetic chain which may be potential targets to improve running efficiency/economy? It would be interesting to compare footage of him in marathons pre-vaporfly, when he was using the Nike Streak or other more traditional racing flats, to see if the high stack of soft zoomX foam may be contributing to more pronation. I don't mean to come off as overly critical -- this is one of your best videos in my opinion. Appreciate all of your great content James, and any insights you may have on Kipchoge's pronation here.
Good video. Green guy over reaches because his other leg flicks back so the other leg has to set a brake to wait for it to catch up or else he trips. Also why his hips are so bent forward no hip flex can have that much range behind the body . Need to remove wt off the back leg sooner.
I cannot thank you enough for posting this video analysis; sooooo useful. Will start utilising all of it on my next run; already looking forward to it :)
If you watch the twin brothers of New Zealand on "Vice" who went to Kenya, they have practiced that motion of running with stride, just like this guy, so it's a 80/20 where the 20% of his running is a slight spring type of stride. It's amazing when you watch some one run with that type of stride. Also your so right the cadance is important too, but one thing is that they actually use a beat/ryhtum type of running. It's amazing learn it.
I am currently documenting my marathon prep over on my channel and one of the biggest questions I have around form is, How do you keep yourself honest on those long easy runs? What I mean by that is, I find my form gets a little sloppy when the goal is to log those long easy miles.
Hey Matt! Which marathon are you training for? This video addresses exactly what your describe re maintaining good form on long easy runs: ruclips.net/video/R7TpxcNwkgQ/видео.html
While it is important, we generally swoon and analyze form more than it will actually benefit us. At the end of the day it is not going to be nearly as important as your physiological condition and how fit of a person you are.
Awesome analysis James , one more thing to notice is from the front side , the way he runs his foot is always in the mid of his body . As a result of which his centre of mass is always contained in the body , thus more stable run
@@algt1tan_wolf73 he's talking about, in sideways position because of the knee bend his COM comes down which makes him stable . But what I'm talking about is how he runs when seen from the front .
Kipchoge and Bekele have almost the same form except for Bekele's pronounced forward lean. I think he does it to compensate for his lesser height in order to cover more ground than his competitors. Am I right, James?
Excellent analysis. I switched to 'barefoot' (Merrell Vapor Glove) about 1,5 years ago and exactly what is shown here happened to my running form. I used to be the guy behind Kipchoge, now I am him (in form, not in speed, although my speed has gone up). Especially the leg flexing somewhat less is very recognizable - the heel strike promotes more of a 'sitting' form while the mid/ forefoot strike is much more upright. In my case, remarkably, my patellar tendonitis which used to be a recurring problem on 'classic' shoes and old form, has now disappeared completely. I currently run about 25 km/ week comfortably and without any soreness afterwards.
excellent analysis of running techniques, i noticed that more knee bend = more rise and fall of the body, which is using energy to combat gravity in a vertical direction , which wastes energy. Eliuds energy is used more efficiently for forward movement.
@@JamesDunne It's excellent. We can always improve and learn from the best in the sport. I'll link this video in one of upcoming videos, it was so great and insightful.
Thanks for the video! I'm 32 years old and trying to run ONE mile at Kipchoge's marathon pace (Sub ~4:34), current PR 4:44 this is very helpful. I'm 5' 5" but probably a little shorter legged than him but I feel that we have a similar frame, shorter legs high turnover. He and I are nearly identical in our toe strike. Valuable to consider relaxed form and the center of gravity.
The stiff limb discussion is very interesting. It's kind of like by having a lower ground contact time you're putting less energy into the spring (leg) and therefore waste less in storage / release.
I'd argue that short contact time = increased stiffness = less energy lost. This is quite an interesting watch to learn more about limb stiffness: ruclips.net/video/HnMoi98AbI8/видео.html
Fun fact: in marathons place 1-200, it look like this: healstrike about 2/3 landing on heals. 1 of 3 landning on mid fot. About a few 1-5% landing on front foot.
I think its interesting that Kipchoge clearly goes through the heel strike motion with his foot but his foot sort of hovers for a bit so he touches the ground with the balls on his feet. Rolling your feet is effective to keep high speeds for long durations, but it has downsides, like it can be harmful for the foot and a longer duration of friction. Eliud must have trained his running technique for years to hit it with such perfect timing every step he takes. Incredible to see
Seems a lot of people doscussing the "heel strike" of the other runner. Watch the video closely and focus on him. He has the greatest dorsiflexion of any of the runners and even though the heel of the shoe hits the ground you can see he is still airborne when this happens and the foot falls in time with his body to essentially land the same as the other runners. I think its a bit of an optical illusion to compare what his feet are doing to a casual runner who has heel strike.
if focusing on footstrike and cadence works for you, more power to you. But I think the "real" secret to his form and any optimum running form is up higher, in the back, particularly the mid and lower back. Mis-alignment aka tightening in the mid-back will have a chain effect into the lower back and screw up everything on down. Focusing on footstrike, in this context, is futile. For those of you who don't suspect any problems here, you can skip the rest of this. I used to take a yoga stick and hold it in the crook of my elbows across the upper , mid-back. It first made me aware of all the tightness there. Holding the yoga stick horizontally, apply a little forward pressure, across the mid back aided me in feeling the tightness and releasing it. And as soon as I released there, in the mid-back, I could feel a release in the lower back. Of course you don't run this way. It's just a way to get a feel for what's happening.
Every one of the runners I see every day landing on their toes in minimalist shoes need to watch this slow-mo footage of his mid-foot landings in well-cushioned shoes.
His arms are so high which helps to pull him along. His elbows aren’t flaying about. His upper body posture is great which provides a downward base for his legs to work from. His upper body hardly moves from a slightly forward lean. His whole body is being used in a coordinated way like a ballet dancer, even till his fingers.
All these people are amazing runners, surely. Don't you think that the fact that some of them are "overstriding" and "heel striking" points to it perhaps not being as detrimental to good running as often thought?
Completely agree in terms of heel striking at least not being all that bad. I wrote this a while ago to elaborate: www.kinetic-revolution.com/dont-believe-the-heel-strike-hype/
5 лет назад+2
@@JamesDunne But at 2:56 you're describing Kitata's form as "breakes being slammed on stride by stride". Sure Kitata is like whole 2 minute slower than Kipchoge, but talking about breakes regarding his running sounds, well "interesting".
Its not about which part of your foot, its about where do you land your foot. Theres no right or wrong with fore mid or rear foot as long as you land under your body.
The idea that running heel is bad running forefoot is good but you have to be Usain Bolt, uid foot is better. all that is shit. scientists got it wrong. the kenians ethiopians proved that running fast is all about putting work and incredible momentum . relentless pushing the body.
If you have flexible ankles, you wont be taking all the impact on your heel. The force wont travel up and jarr your knee or hip, it won't "decelerate" you. You already have forward momentum so as you roll your foot forward, it will help with the push off.
I'm quite amazed to see an elite runner (Kitata?) run with what seems to be really bad form: over-extended heel-strike, butt-kicks (compared to Eliud whose foot is much lower before his next step), i.e. lower cadence, right? I'm no elite runner, but I think my technique is very similar to Eliud's :).
🔴 WATCH NEXT ➜ Secret to running faster without training harder (NOT WHAT YOU THINK): ruclips.net/video/ItW5R-dakG8/видео.html
Eluid has such beautiful form.
stunning!
I agree every runners forms so unique I think
Ik
Unlike me
Eliud 😊
5 Simple Ways for YOU to Run Like ELIUD KIPCHOGE
1: Be conceived and born in Kenya
2 Run to and from school
3 Eat organic unprocessed foods
4 Live and train in high altitude areas
5 believe in yourself
Lasting Impression + EPO+ TESTO
Lasting Impression ... I like this analysis 👍👍👍
Rationalizing your own laziness. Bravo!
..and buy some green Vaporflys
@@graememorrison333 Those were prototypes unique for running at kipchoge's preferences.
Just thought I’d share, for those looking to try these out. I mimicked Kipchpoge’s form and incorporated these tips into my 1st run in a week, out of curiosity. It was odd how quickly I was moving along, and it took some getting used to, because it felt almost like I was flat-footing for the duration of the run. Maintaining a consistent cadence and stride length resulted in an overall consistent pace, and I was able to match and almost exceed the pace of my average 5K, even though I’ve been increasing my distance incrementally for a couple of weeks now. That means that instead of losing progress over the course of a week, I progressed simply by altering my running form. Previously, I would land strictly on my toes as a sprinter would, but manipulating my weight distribution made toe planting obsolete. Now, I’ve averaged 6:35/mi, even beyond 5 km. I implore everyone to follow the tips in the video as closely as you can - the results may not be immediate, but they will be significant.
I am flat footed naturally so do I still have to work on my form?
@@distancerunner6211 yeah. It’s not only just the feet but the whole body including posture and the arms too
Instead of trying to mimicking this running gate. Please learn a,b, and c skips. And learn hurdle drills. Over time you’re running gate will improve with drills.
His foot is also supinated when he hits the ground, and then he rolls on the forefoot.
"flat-footing for the duration of the run" Could you please elaborate on what you mean by this?
I am a Kenyan and I am proud of my fellow countryman Kipchoge and all other world record beating runners we have produced
Thank you! Excellent analysis and also really appreciate how you have your 5 points summarized in the "show more" area.
1. Footstrike
2. Stride length and overstriding
3. Cadence & contact time
4. Torso rotation
5. Relaxation
James , 76 year old man runner who watched this video 2 days ago and ran the fastest 3 miler in probably 2 years!
I always have been a mid foot runner but have been consumed with stride length. Knee pain has been my companion for months recently.
But striking out this afternoon on a country road I felt like a runner again and not a plodding goofball.
My knees felt bulletproof!
I had a ball running for the first time in 2 years
THANK YOU 😊
Honest question .... You're picking on that one runner's form, saying it's "what we don't want to see" ... Yet, he's a world class runner. His "bad form" is clearly working for him, so does that throw into question all the advice we're getting about "the best" form? Perhaps form is entirely dependent on your own physiology.
You can't really question the physics here. He'd be putting less pressure on his joints and probably have a better running economy with Kipchoges form. Maybe he just increases his stride length over his capacities to keep up with Kipchoge🤷🏻♂️
because he's very good, doesn't mean his technique is good even tho theses 2 factors are correlated they are not causation
It's more 'in spite of' than 'because of'
Bad form??? He has excellent form he WON & Under 2 hour Marathon.
@@ronaldweed4599 doesn't mean he has good form just because he won, this is all just physics and one form is more efficient than others.
awsome analisys. no.6 reeeeally important... watch how, right before touching the floor, his foot is not moving forward. It touches the floor with zero speed (relative to the ground). In order to do this, he must pull his foot back (you can see the foot decelerating). Since he is moving at 21 km/h forward, the foot must be brought back at -21km/h in order not to skid in any direction on the flor. Some of us usually skid forwards (hitting the brakes in every stride, usually due to exagerated forefroot striking), some of us, backwards (due to trying to sprint). Well, he does none of that. The foot hits the floor with 0 velocity. This comes from very good skipping tecknique and usage of the glutes... I'm still trying to work on that... lol - it helps to run on the dirt... you can atually HEAR wether you're skidding or not.
This explains why my feet slides forward every time they land on the ground. Also sore calves after every run.
Diogo Almeida so you should be skidding but only backwards (not in front of the hips)
@@stayontrack well, not skidding at all is the way to go. it's the hardest part (for me, so far, at least). if you run at 15km/h your foot should move backwards at 15 km/h (relatively to you) at the moment it touches the ground.
if the foot moves too slowly, backwards, say 10 km/h (relative tou you) you skid in the worst way and are breaking with 5 km/h difference to the ground. if the foot is too fast (say 20km/h) you're wasting energy because you skid backwards (with 5 km/h)... unless you have extra strong legs, are doing a sprint and you're running spikes on a track.
so taking you're not sprinting a 100m, rather doing medium distance onwards, the foot should hit the ground at exactly 15 km/h relatively to you to hit the ground at 0 km/h and for the minimum contact time possible. just... hit and jump... like a hopping ball...
@@MrShadow205 you're probably running with too much of a "high heel" stance, like running on your toes (at least when you wrote this comment, sorry for the delay). I've had that when I fisrst started swapping a heel strike to a front foot strike. I would run on my toes. I would feel the skid motion forward due to the movement of the foot going from that "pointing down" to the "flat position", every single step. my calves would have to work, not only on taking the normal running impact, but also on dealing with that strange movement of the foot.
I then started to try a more relaxed ankle approach, focusing on the rest of the leg and not the foot. I found my foot would hit the ground where it was supposed to, and in the position it was supposed to, without extra skidding or soreness afterwards.
@@diogoalmeida8211 I can see your point put personally "pulling the ground", which makes the rocks skid behind you usually is what i do. I think if i would try to have no skidding at all i would be forced to get more vertical movement. But I do agree that skidding can be too much, like you said if you're putting too much power into it
Great video, completely mind boggling pace to run sub 2 hour marathon. Most people couldn’t keep up with him on a road bike. Very informative explanation of running form, don’t think enough people give it the consideration it deserves in their training. Amazing to think he’s so good he’s causing the 4th place finisher to over-stride. Exciting times on the horizon in distance running I think.
my fastest “marathon” on a bike is 2:00:55. kipchoge truly is a beast
@@hunterbruyere5052 holy shit
Shoot you're right! In high school I averaged 9mph on my cheap walmart bike and that was a 1.5 mile ride. No way I could've maintained 13.1mph for 26.2 miles, not even close. I'd be hours behind
James, you probably have no idea how much of influence your videoes make on a new runner living way far from you. Thanks a tonne, mate. Keep helping us. We need you.
Thanks!
James, I want to thank you for this video. It has helped me recover from crippling shin splints.
Since training for my first marathon a year ago, I've had shin splints (posterior/inside of my leg)
I tried lots of rest, but after only a few runs, I would be in pain again. If I kept running or training for a week, it would flare up to pain so bad I couldn't run, and I'd again be back at square one.
I've tried everything, and I am sure everything helped a bit (insoles, stretches, strengthening exercises, less asphalt running, etc) but it was my FORM that had to change for my shin splints to actually heal.
I was an under-pronator and a heel striker.
I had someone take slow motion footage of me from the front, back and sides, and compared myself to THIS video. I saved this video in my "Running" playlist and reference it all the time.
Changing my form has been hard, because I always ran how it felt natural to me. But I now have better knee drive, higher knee lift, and I strike mid-foot instead of heel striking.
I'm still working on it, but now I can train 4-5 days a week, week after week and month after month, without debilitating shin pain.
I'm just some random person who, like you say here, can't imagine running a single mile at Eliud's marathon pace, let alone an entire marathon, but you've helped me so much.
Thank you!👍👍👌✌️👍
I love to read this!! I'm right in your boat right now, manhandling my running form to try and get back to running daily, weekly, and monthly. Sure am tired of these dastardly shin splits
This happened to me too. I finally decided to fix my form after a couple weeks of minor shin pain and not being able to run. After just my first run yesterday, I didn't have any shin pain and could run for way longer. Today I ran probably a mile and a half non-stop around my neighborhood (I'm a beginner runner and I could only run for a straight-away or two before something in my core burned and having to rest.) Form completely changed my running!
Ya, I ran for 20 years as a heel striker because my middle school coach said "that's just how some people run, and some of the best in the world run that way". Injury after injury after injury, just couldn't break 5km without getting injured. Finally, after a bunch of reading, I took the winter of 2018/2019 off and just jumped rope to build my calf/Achilles strength. Toe running since (after watching this I'm probably going to get new shoes, I think I've gone as far as I can without going to a mid-strike) and injury free for 4 years now.
Ran my first full length marathon last fall.
I'm currently fighting with crazy shin pain; as you said, I tried stretches, I tried icing, I think I have tried everything that I could, even resting. Whenever I went to run again, my shins would flare up. I will change my running form too. Thank you for the affirmation that it was my form, not something else.
Shin splints are growing pains. Nothing more ! Ive been a runner from age 14 to now.. age 65. I went though two years with shin splints. Theres nothing you can do for them other then grow out of them. No different then side aches. I had extreme side aches for nearly 3 years. Nothing I could do to change it !
Primary......I learned very early....do not do stretches before a race !!!!!!! First........I started following everyone else doing stretches. I always had craps. I though long and hard about it. I tried no stretching before future races. Never had a crap since ! Stretching causes muscles slight trauma........which often flares up mid race ! There is no need for stretches before a race....for that matter to warm up. Thats what the first half mile in the race is about .
Poor Kitata has had a bit of a roasting here hasn't he! Great video!
Thanks, Aaron! Glad you enjoyed the video :) Maybe I could have been a little more delicate in my comparison 😂
@@JamesDunne no, the video was great as it was!
@@JamesDunne A little constructive criticism is welcomed by winners
Thanks to Kitata we have this comparison. Who could run this pace with this technique like Kitata?
Noticed it anyway before he mentioned it. Fantastic comparison so clear. Old mate’s form in second looks pretty good.
Implemented your advice and just race my fastest pace on my usual 5K route this evening. Thanks Mr. Dunne :-)
I've been landing more with the midstrike and it's awesome how it feels. Just felt to change how I landed after many runs on the balls of my feet. Lifting my legs higher helps me to take longer strides and I can use much the same amount of energy but gain more speed. Of course they run so much more and train hard! Not to mention they are skinny as a rail!
Even skinnier when you see them in person.
R u supposed to lift the leg higher at the front or the back of you?
Thank you very much. I've gotten more severe injuries over the years. Case in point, last night another ligament completely tore on my toe shuttering me for yet another 4-6 month rest. It has become chronic. Watching this, I see what I've been doing wrong on foot strike. Next time I am able to run and as I relearn to walk, I will use the mid foot. Let number 20 be the final injury.
Kipchoke’s midsection strikes, alignment of center of gravity along with smaller angles of bend at knees and ankle plus the slight rotation of hip suggest that he is using more of glutes instead of quadriceps and calves.
1:37 look at the 3rd guy. and his landing position of foot. Most of us would named that as bad becase of heel first contact. BUT if he is able to run with eliuds tempo, he cant be bad runner.
Splendid analysis and very informative, I must say. Good job, keep it up.
Thank you, Raymond!
Thanks to this video I ran my first 5'45 pace! I'm a total beginner and learned a lot here. Kipchoge's a legend.
Mo a GOAT too
Very interesting. I did the minimal amount of sports science in school but I love to run and when I get back into it I will remember this advice and work on my strides.
he's incredible! his running gait is truly mesmerizing. if only I could run as gracefully...as a former swimmer, I tend to lean back and be a bit top heavy in the torso area :( working on it tho!
Well whoever is in that picture looks graceful. If that's you at least you've got that going for you.
Amazing breakdown and analysis. Thanks James.
Thanks, Richard! Some food for thought for us all :) What's next for your running?
Thanks
Thanks for the support!
I've improved my running by adopting certain elements of Kipchoge's (and other elite runners') form. Pulling the heel towards the butt just enough to break contact with the ground while dorsiflexing the foot has been particularly helpful.
What a great video. I used to do T&F over 16 years ago and now that I'm getting back, I want to get an idea for what a goot technique looks for. Thanks for the work!
Great analysis James. Very useful for me for aspects to focus and improve on. What a runner Kipchoge is. Thank you.
Perfect analysis. Easy to see why Kipchoge is so efficient.
Look at his foot striking the ground, he also lands on the outside of the foot and then transfers to his big toe to push, a bit like a torsional movement through the metatarsals, I think it's also a way to mitigate and lessen shock to the joints
I’ve been watching lots of videos on cadence and I think the key point I’d missed that you point out well is it’s not just small quick steps picking feet up but important to have limb stiffness in legs so driving force into the ground to push you forward horizontally rather then too much vertical movement. That’s definitely helped me with my pace for same HR effort. Surely sub 2 hour can’t be far off now for me either....
How the heck do you focus on limb stiffness...what are some good cues?
@@denvermartin9656stay on one foot like hopscotch and shuffle back and forth on that one foot running should be like that when u land on each foot
Omg what a great analysis I would never see those details so thanks
As 3km, 5km, 10km Grand Prix I say you have to focus on rolling your hips like an Olympic walker, get your knees high and drag yourself forward starting with heel through to push off with your toes, maybe use your arms throwing them up level with your chin if running around an athletics track throw your left hand as high as the top of your head and right hand chest height around each bend on the track, basically the 3 separate events are sprint at %90 you need to plan on a 1.5 year ready to compete timespan training Mon, Wed, Fri.
These videos are great. So happy they came up in my feed. Really solid info that I feel I can learn from and use. Already watched about 7 in a row and subscribed. Can’t wait to put some of this in practice. Thanks James, look forward to more.
Great to have you on board, Joe! Hope these videos help your running :)
I am a frequent runner. I just finished a marathon below 3:15h with a cadence of about 190 (normal for me). I probably have to work on my rythm which probably will lead to worse results, but I'll take it for long term success. thanks!
He looks like he’s gracefully bouncing.
Yeah...and rolling...
He is 😍
A lot of this is a relief to see, because I've been working HARD on my running form the last two years and seeing huge gains, but I keep feeling like my foot lands too far in front because all the videos I've seen say it needs to be under my body. However, the front half of my stride looks a lot like EK's here. It's landing slightly in front of my body mass but the knee is over the ankle and I'm landing center of foot and not heel or toes (unless it's a steep hill then it's toes). I just need to improve the kick portion of the stride.
Assome! Exactly what I was looking for! Thank you James Dunne!
No problem. Hope you found it helpful!
I am a runner too you real explain it professionaly my friend. Hope to see more of you.
Great info! Love the slo-mo and freeze-frames.
Finally! Some information that I can understand & use to my benefit. You have no idea what this means to me! Thank you 😊👍🏃♀️
The way Kipchoge lands with his foot, it is not mid foot!! because when the sole of the shoe lands straight on ground the foot in side is actually lean forward. so when you see a runner step mid foot in this Nike Shoe which has a huge drop, the runner is in fact running totally forefoot.
He said forefoot but toward the midfoot... don't think he said it was a pure midfoot
That’s because the sneakers these runners are wearing have such high/thick heels. He’s Kipchoge is definitely landing forefoot, but it almost looks midfoot, because of the thick sole on the shoe. I bet if he was in sandals or even just barefoot you’d definitely see the forefoot landing more better. Such a graceful form!
True, but the pressure from ground to shoe is mid foot, that is what ultimately counts
So helpful…. Once I went to get running shoes fitted, and the guy who was helping me said I need to land on my heel and roll my feet…. Since then I had suffered plantar fasciitis and trying to get back to mid foot strike.
I'm curious about Kipchoge's foot landing position in terms of ankle inversion and toes pointing slightly outward at touch down. Looks to me like this results in a pretty pronounced amount of pronation as he carries through stance phase... dare I say "overpronation." I use the quotes because I am a skeptic about the categorization of some pronation as excessive versus a lesser degree as "neutral." It seems a rather arbitrary distinction, difficult to measure quantitatively (since the motion happens in fractions of a second), and may not be altered by various forms of technology in stability shoes such as "medial posting" or "guide rails." I think a large part of it is just a false classification system embraced by the shoe industry to market products, and pushed by podiatrists to sell custom orthotic inserts (both parties have substantial conflict of interest in terms of selling something).
Should we as runners even be thinking about such a small and fast motion at the end of our extremities? Or is it counterproductive to address specifically when there are larger gait mechanics at play up higher in the kinetic chain which may be potential targets to improve running efficiency/economy?
It would be interesting to compare footage of him in marathons pre-vaporfly, when he was using the Nike Streak or other more traditional racing flats, to see if the high stack of soft zoomX foam may be contributing to more pronation.
I don't mean to come off as overly critical -- this is one of your best videos in my opinion. Appreciate all of your great content James, and any insights you may have on Kipchoge's pronation here.
Kipchoges form is heavenly.
I don't even drive as fast as he runs, mind you I'm 80years old next year scary eh! 😂😂😂😂 FROM AUSTRALIA......
Your name sounds like a 20 years old American teenager
Hey old man are you still alive:)
@@hello-nks of course he is his name sounds like he used to be a fit beach boy who surfed a lot
Dude what was it like growing up in Australia back then
Australia is real?
Me: *barley runs 3 miles*
Also me: "What an idiot for having such a bad technique..." (the pacer)
It's so me lol 😁
Good video. Green guy over reaches because his other leg flicks back so the other leg has to set a brake to wait for it to catch up or else he trips. Also why his hips are so bent forward no hip flex can have that much range behind the body . Need to remove wt off the back leg sooner.
One of the best runners in the world but sure you tell him what to do
@@MilanSmore you can see it for yourself.
Id be happy to just be running in the same video with these guys. Ive gotta step my run up!
I cannot thank you enough for posting this video analysis; sooooo useful. Will start utilising all of it on my next run; already looking forward to it :)
If you watch the twin brothers of New Zealand on "Vice" who went to Kenya, they have practiced that motion of running with stride, just like this guy, so it's a 80/20 where the 20% of his running is a slight spring type of stride. It's amazing when you watch some one run with that type of stride. Also your so right the cadance is important too, but one thing is that they actually use a beat/ryhtum type of running. It's amazing learn it.
Link please
I am currently documenting my marathon prep over on my channel and one of the biggest questions I have around form is, How do you keep yourself honest on those long easy runs? What I mean by that is, I find my form gets a little sloppy when the goal is to log those long easy miles.
Hey Matt! Which marathon are you training for? This video addresses exactly what your describe re maintaining good form on long easy runs: ruclips.net/video/R7TpxcNwkgQ/видео.html
@@JamesDunne hey. I will be running the Fredericton marathon in Fredericton, New Brunswick Canada 🇨🇦. Thanks 🙏 I will go check out that video.
Great video, all makes sense, I will be trying the tips on my next run.
Watching the elites reminds of when I “technically” beat Gebresalassie in the 2014 Great Scottish Run - he pulled up at 5 miles, but I finished. 😀
Haha my dads clame to fame also!
Reminders it says run like so you only run like Kipchouge but you never emitate Kipchouge's endurance
While it is important, we generally swoon and analyze form more than it will actually benefit us. At the end of the day it is not going to be nearly as important as your physiological condition and how fit of a person you are.
Awesome analysis James , one more thing to notice is from the front side , the way he runs his foot is always in the mid of his body . As a result of which his centre of mass is always contained in the body , thus more stable run
6:03
@@algt1tan_wolf73 he's talking about, in sideways position because of the knee bend his COM comes down which makes him stable .
But what I'm talking about is how he runs when seen from the front .
Kipchoge and Bekele have almost the same form except for Bekele's pronounced forward lean. I think he does it to compensate for his lesser height in order to cover more ground than his competitors. Am I right, James?
Excellent analysis. I switched to 'barefoot' (Merrell Vapor Glove) about 1,5 years ago and exactly what is shown here happened to my running form. I used to be the guy behind Kipchoge, now I am him (in form, not in speed, although my speed has gone up). Especially the leg flexing somewhat less is very recognizable - the heel strike promotes more of a 'sitting' form while the mid/ forefoot strike is much more upright. In my case, remarkably, my patellar tendonitis which used to be a recurring problem on 'classic' shoes and old form, has now disappeared completely. I currently run about 25 km/ week comfortably and without any soreness afterwards.
excellent analysis of running techniques, i noticed that more knee bend = more rise and fall of the body, which is using energy to combat gravity in a vertical direction , which wastes energy.
Eliuds energy is used more efficiently for forward movement.
Thanks! I’m glad you enjoyed the video 😃 You’re absolutely right about the vertical movement!
How to run like Eliud:
Be Eliud.
Simple right ?
Always enjoy your analysis and tools to help runners, thanks for sharing James :)
Thanks Marc, I appreciate the support :) Hope this quick analysis helps!
@@JamesDunne It's excellent. We can always improve and learn from the best in the sport. I'll link this video in one of upcoming videos, it was so great and insightful.
Terrific video, thanks. Great comparison between Kitata and Kipchoge.
Great analysis video. Really appreciate this.
This is awesome. 4 minutes down the video and it already showed heaps of valuable concepts. Cheers! :D
Thanks for the video! I'm 32 years old and trying to run ONE mile at Kipchoge's marathon pace (Sub ~4:34), current PR 4:44 this is very helpful. I'm 5' 5" but probably a little shorter legged than him but I feel that we have a similar frame, shorter legs high turnover. He and I are nearly identical in our toe strike. Valuable to consider relaxed form and the center of gravity.
Why not try to maintain that pace for a whole marathon?
The stiff limb discussion is very interesting. It's kind of like by having a lower ground contact time you're putting less energy into the spring (leg) and therefore waste less in storage / release.
I'd argue that short contact time = increased stiffness = less energy lost. This is quite an interesting watch to learn more about limb stiffness: ruclips.net/video/HnMoi98AbI8/видео.html
Fun fact: in marathons place 1-200, it look like this: healstrike about 2/3 landing on heals. 1 of 3 landning on mid fot. About a few 1-5% landing on front foot.
So interesting to see the great differences between Kipchoge and Kitata. And both world class.
love this kinda content, learning from the pro
The VMA of Eliud is simply amazing!!! He's running like a GOD!!!
I think its interesting that Kipchoge clearly goes through the heel strike motion with his foot but his foot sort of hovers for a bit so he touches the ground with the balls on his feet. Rolling your feet is effective to keep high speeds for long durations, but it has downsides, like it can be harmful for the foot and a longer duration of friction. Eliud must have trained his running technique for years to hit it with such perfect timing every step he takes. Incredible to see
Excellent comment and analysis on his running, helpful, thanks.
Thank you JAMES, miss your Vlogs so much!!
Seems a lot of people doscussing the "heel strike" of the other runner. Watch the video closely and focus on him. He has the greatest dorsiflexion of any of the runners and even though the heel of the shoe hits the ground you can see he is still airborne when this happens and the foot falls in time with his body to essentially land the same as the other runners. I think its a bit of an optical illusion to compare what his feet are doing to a casual runner who has heel strike.
I agree, his heel softly touches the ground earlier but by the time his weight actually hits the ground his forefoot is taking it
I think it’s because of the thick sole - he’s not actually putting force into the heel
Glad to have stumbled across this video.
Hope you found it helpful!
Awesome analysis! Thanks James. Really enjoyed this. :-)
Thanks, Bee! Hope it helps :)
Amazing videos! You have made us a big fan!
Useful tips for long distance runners... thank you
if focusing on footstrike and cadence works for you, more power to you. But I think the "real" secret to his form and any optimum running form is up higher, in the back, particularly the mid and lower back. Mis-alignment aka tightening in the mid-back will have a chain effect into the lower back and screw up everything on down. Focusing on footstrike, in this context, is futile. For those of you who don't suspect any problems here, you can skip the rest of this. I used to take a yoga stick and hold it in the crook of my elbows across the upper , mid-back. It first made me aware of all the tightness there. Holding the yoga stick horizontally, apply a little forward pressure, across the mid back aided me in feeling the tightness and releasing it. And as soon as I released there, in the mid-back, I could feel a release in the lower back. Of course you don't run this way. It's just a way to get a feel for what's happening.
Every one of the runners I see every day landing on their toes in minimalist shoes need to watch this slow-mo footage of his mid-foot landings in well-cushioned shoes.
Thanks for sharing. It's nice to watch this a day before my 10km race.
Thanks for the all work and sharing it. This is one of the finest running videos I have seen so far. Thanks again.
His arms are so high which helps to pull him along. His elbows aren’t flaying about. His upper body posture is great which provides a downward base for his legs to work from. His upper body hardly moves from a slightly forward lean.
His whole body is being used in a coordinated way like a ballet dancer, even till his fingers.
Great Insight!!!! Gonna try this very soon
Good video,so glad You made it Thank you.🙂
Thank you for this video 👏👏
No matter how ur body n leg structure is it's all about practice practice and practice
Yesss good contents i usually run 5kms but this video helps me a lot
Thank you 🙏 In fairness, Kipchoge was pretty handy over 5,000m too 😂
All these people are amazing runners, surely. Don't you think that the fact that some of them are "overstriding" and "heel striking" points to it perhaps not being as detrimental to good running as often thought?
Completely agree in terms of heel striking at least not being all that bad. I wrote this a while ago to elaborate: www.kinetic-revolution.com/dont-believe-the-heel-strike-hype/
@@JamesDunne But at 2:56 you're describing Kitata's form as "breakes being slammed on stride by stride". Sure Kitata is like whole 2 minute slower than Kipchoge, but talking about breakes regarding his running sounds, well "interesting".
Its not about which part of your foot, its about where do you land your foot. Theres no right or wrong with fore mid or rear foot as long as you land under your body.
The idea that running heel is bad running forefoot is good but you have to be Usain Bolt, uid foot is better. all that is shit. scientists got it wrong. the kenians ethiopians proved that running fast is all about putting work and incredible momentum . relentless pushing the body.
If you have flexible ankles, you wont be taking all the impact on your heel. The force wont travel up and jarr your knee or hip, it won't "decelerate" you. You already have forward momentum so as you roll your foot forward, it will help with the push off.
He keeps his knees bent to keep the power cycle🔄 going
Can you even run with straight legs? 🤔
Brilliant analysis James, do you do analysis for us mere mortal runners? I'm a fair runner but would like to get better and improve my running form.
Dude this is appreciated I have been running forefoot but it makes sense you said it maximizes landing time to to run midfoot.
I meant to say appreciated lol
😂
Stunningly good analysis and content James. Thank you! 🙏
Amazing analysis thank you
The back of the heel almost hitting the buttocks is sublime control
The feet have a slight forefoot strike. The shoe has a midfoot strike. The feet are positioned with a heel to toe drop inside the shoe.
I'm quite amazed to see an elite runner (Kitata?) run with what seems to be really bad form: over-extended heel-strike, butt-kicks (compared to Eliud whose foot is much lower before his next step), i.e. lower cadence, right?
I'm no elite runner, but I think my technique is very similar to Eliud's :).
Incredibly informative. Thanks!!!
sir, your analysis is so perfect
the best running lesson I eve got!