I’m convinced I have the worst running form of all time.
The few pictures I have featured on GMHO of me running have been carefully selected to not expose my hideous form. The worst part? I have never realized that I look ridiculous when I run until I saw the pictures of me running my marathon.
It’s embarrassing to think of how much I have run in the past and how many people have witnessed the wretched sight. Since I have become a consistent runner over the past three years, I’ve grown to feel comfortable in my terrible form, which I am not okay with anymore.
This is how I run:
- Wrists bent.
- Fingers making some sort of accidental gang sign?
- Hunched over.
- Arms crossing my body.
- Hands facing down.
Like…I don’t even understand how this feels normal to me. And BELIEVE me — that picture is BY FAR not the worst one. (I have banished those. No one should witness them.)
Somehow, I have run multiple races with my “unique” form, getting through them and even improving my times. Within this past year, however, I have made a conscious effort to improve. This goal of looking “normal” when I run is now a top priority for me as I train for my half marathon.
No more “t-rex arms,” as Matt calls them. And no more looking like an old lady hunched over.
I will become a normal-looking runner if it’s the last thing I do! It has been difficult to improve, since I can’t actually see myself running, but with the help of my man friend, I’m making some progress. We did my 10-mile run on Sunday together, and I think it’s the most progress I have made so far. I’m usually pretty bad with accepting advice when I run because I often go to an angry place because running is uncomfortable. (That’s another thing I’m trying to improve upon.) So a big thank you to my wonderful boyfriend for helping me out and being patient.
Overall, I guess my running form isn’t the worst…
It’s still pretty bad though. To become a “normal”-looking runner, I’m trying to stay aware of certain things from now on, such as:
- Standing up straight, especially when I’m feeling fatigued.
- Keeping wrists straight.
- Maintaining a loose fist, so my fingers aren’t making strange symbols.
- Positioning my hands vertically, not facing down.
- Actually using my arms by pumping them to help propel myself forward. (I have a feeling treadmill running has led to me not doing this enough.)
On top of just looking “normal,” I know correcting these problems will help me become a better, faster runner because I won’t be wasting energy overcompensating for the discrepancies in my form. I have a feeling a lot of my problems are tied together, too, so hopefully if I correct one or two of them, the rest will follow suit.
Questions for you:
Do you struggle with maintaining good running form?
Do you have any ridiculously bad race photos? For real, guys, I have some really ugly ones…
Katie, you crack me up. I swear I feel like I have the worst posture and form while running. I feel so heavy when I run, I can’t stand it. Like my legs are just heavy sausages. Your profile pic here on the blog looks really good, I don’t think you have bad form at all, you are being hard on yourself 🙂 I am a fellow SPA sister
Haha what! It’s bad. I assure you. And running with “heavy sausages” as legs sounds complicated. Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
T-rex arms! I laughed so hard about this!
I think running form is more important for overall posture and body health than just how it looks, but yeah, I would work on it either way.
Thank you for this post, it really made my day! Wish you lots of luck
Haha oh good!!! That makes me happy. And sadly, how weird I look is my main motivation for fixing my form, but I’m definitely looking forward to the health and performance benefits too.