One of the fundamental parts of your training as a runner is the career technique. With it not only run better, but also do it more safely, avoiding possible injuries that may occur during training or racing.

Normally for an amateur runner it is sufficient to include one day of career technique training per week. You do not have to dedicate exclusively that day just to the technique, but you can combine it with strength training (which we remember is essential to be a good runner) or with a smooth shoot.

To put the simplest things we leave you eleven exercises of technical career that can not miss in your workouts. Inclúyelos in your routines and enjoy the results.

Tiptoe race

We try to raise our heels as much as possiblewhile we are walking with short steps. Our back is erect and the arm is measured to our steps. This exercise helps us to improve the musculature of our feet , in many cases the great forgotten of the runners.

High Skipping

There are different ways of doing skipping, the most common being high skipping. In the high skipping, we run forward supporting only on the tip of the feet, and raising the knees above the height of our hips . We try to maintain the verticality activating the muscles of the middle zone . We increase the cadence of the steps of our career and coordinate our arms with the movement of the legs to gain momentum.

Low skipping

Within the variations of the skipping, the skipping low forces us to take small and very fast steps without hardly lifting the knees . It is a good exercise to improve the entrance of the forefoot and to improve the coordination of the legs and of these with the arms.

Skipping on one leg

In addition to varying the height of the knees when doing the skipping, we can also work the two legs at the same time or only one unilaterally. This is the skipping to one leg, more difficult to coordinate since the two legs do not perform the same movement , but equally important for our workouts. Try that in the case of the leg that is performing the skipping, its period of contact with the ground is as short as possible.

Side race

It serves us above all to work the coordination of the legs and arms and to improve their mobility. We made a movement in a different direction to the one we are used to when we run and it helps us to improve the power of our stride and to work different muscle groups.

Heels to the buttocks

Another of the classic techniques of running technique is to run while we take the heels as close as possible to the glutes. To do it well, as in previous years, we must keep our back straight, not too leaning forward, activating our internal musculature of the middle area. We always land with the tip of the foot on the ground and we are in contact with it for the shortest possible time .

Metatarsus-fingers or multi-bumps

We jump with larger than normal steps landing on the forefoot area and looking for a quick impulse through our fingers . We performed a large extension of the ankle and knee in the flight phase of the stride.

Russian steps or Russian skipping

Similar to the skipping we have done previously, but this time we keep our knees stretched throughout the movement. We always land on the tip of the feet and try to maintain the verticality of the back and the coordination of the legs with the arms.

Pedaling to one leg

Similar to single-leg skipping, only in this case we perform a pedaling movement with the leg we are working on. The leg that works must describe a circle in its trajectory , instead of a straight line as it happened with the traditional skipping. We always land on the forefoot and keep the hips high and the back straight.

I pedal to two legs

Similar to the exercise we have done previously, but in this case there is not one dominant leg and another that simply accompanies , but both legs work equally. It is important to maintain the circular movement with both legs (not allowing one to work over the other) and to stay upright throughout the movement, without leaning backwards.

Backward race

So far we have moved forward or to the side, but it is also good to include some exercise technique that involves running backwards. First of all, it is best to make sure that we move in a safe environment and that there are no more corridors or obstacles that could lead to a fall. We run a few meters back, flexing the knees, always entering with the forefoot and coordinating the movement of the arms.