???Mile and 2-mile striding!!!?

Question

In your opinion and hopefully in fact... does striding save energy or what, how does it help you, or is it better just to run it out (mile, 2 mile and 5k etc.

Answer 1

run relaxed, in your natural stride.

Answer 2

Well actually striding can save you some energy but will do an insane amount of damage to your body.  when you stride it puts a lot of pressure on your hips due to the long pounding.  If your in your high school years and it isn't a habit i would strongly recommend your don't do it.  If your not running a serious competition i would say dont stride.  Just quick steps, when you plant your foot down it should be flat and you should have a center of gravity.  So if striding is not a habit i recommend you short step not like a sprinting on your toes stay flat footed.   I ran striding all my high school years and i had to have recronstuctional surgery on my hips.

Answer 3

Long strides do not help you in long distance races...

In fact, it hurts you.  When you over extend and your foot hits the ground in front of your body, you are actually slowing yourself down.  The goal is to have your foot strike directly beneath your body.

As you increase your training your stride naturally develops into the most efficient running form.  Having a high cadence usually indicates a fairly efficient stride.  Elite runners generally have a turn over of about 165-180 strides per minute.

Don't adjust your running form at all.  Your body will develop and make adjustments to make you a more efficient runner with training (mileage).