Heel or forefoot?

[GreenRunnerBean]

Just hit week 5 run 1 and I'm concerned about my knees after watching a video online explaining that landing on your heel can cause bad knees injuries 🥲 Is this worth worrying about? I think generally I land on the mid/front of my foot as I tend to feel it in my calves. (Maybe subconsciously trying to land there now) thanks 👍👍

[Beachcomber66 Graduate]

It doesn’t sound to me as though you have a problem GRB. I did get a bit carried away with stride length at one stage; I developed a really long loping stride which helped me to pick up pace, but gave me runner’s knee too…..because I was landing on my heel. Now, when I look down, I can see that my foot is landing squarely underneath my body. You learn to feel the difference. I also keep an eye on my running watch which shows my stride length after a run..Just to make sure that everything is ok. To give you an idea, I am 5ft 10 ins; my slow stride length is 88cms, my normal pace produces a 95 cm stride length, and the stride length which gave me an injury was a crazy 1.14 metres on a speed trial (I have given them up!). Good to adopt good habits early though. Avoids learning from mistakes later. Week 5 is great 👍

[GreenRunnerBean in reply to Beachcomber66]

Okay, great! Thanks for the advice

[Oldfloss Administrator Graduate]

This is a tricky one, because many of us, just run as we run... and if we are comfortable and remain injury free, it just work

As Beachcomber66 says, if that foot is squarely underneath your body... you will know

[MissUnderstanding Administrator Graduate]

Some great advice already. You might like to listen to this week’s Runner’s World podcast which is all about runner’s knee. They talk about heel strike and the conclusion was that heel strike per se isn’t bad but overstriding can be. Rather than trying to change how your foot lands (which can make you prone to other injuries), they suggest increasing how quickly you take your steps. It’s a really good listen.

podcasts.apple.com/gb/podca...

Are you actually having problems with your knees or is it something you’re just concerned might happen?

Podcast screen shot

[GreenRunnerBean in reply to MissUnderstanding]

I'll check out the podcast thanks! No problems yet, just trying to be aware of it before I start running for longer

[nowster Graduate]

Landing on the heel with a ruler-straight leg is not good. This is a sign of overstriding which is actually an inefficient way of running.

Ideally, the foot should land directly under the body with a very slight bend in the knee. This reduces the impact forces and spreads them more evenly between the bones, the joints, the tendons and muscles. Getting slightly sore calves is a sign you're using them for this purpose. With time, as your body adapts, that soreness will disappear.

[GreenRunnerBean in reply to nowster]

Awesome thanks 👍👍