ARM MOVEMENT
A question of arms' movement comes up very often. What should I do with my arms? How should they move? Should I pump them hard? Should they be held at the level of my chest? Should I move them back and forth to help myself move forward and run faster? Should I put my hands in fists? And on and on.
The answer to this is very simple and people familiar with the
Rules of Good Running Technique already know it.
Arms performance is a natural balance for legs movement.
Don’t drive with your arms You’re not carrying a football toward the end zone, trying to shed tacklers; you’re trying to move smoothly down the road.
The main function of your arms is not to drive the body forward but to
provide balance and equilibrium as gravity pulls you forward.
As your hamstrings do all the work, there is an easy, natural, rhythmic flow to your arms that provides the balance that keeps you comfortably in stride, but nothing more. Don’t force the issue. Let your arms and hands remain relaxed while you conserve energy and move forward.
Sometimes the most important part of doing something right is to not do everything wrong. That’s certainly the case with running, where it’s doing the wrong things that can kill you. It takes a lot of mental focus to do only that which is necessary and let everything else be relaxed, but that’s exactly what it takes to run further and faster.
