Heel Strike or Ball of the Foot?

by Neil
(Birmingham (UK ))

Hello again !
So many questions, hope your not too busy.
When I first started running in February, I remember reading that heel striking was good form, and this allowed your foot to roll naturally etc etc.. however, I have since read articles contradicting this advise suggesting that a mid foot / ball of foot landing sends less reaction to the upper body preventing injury.
I had tried to modify my form to heel strike and now I read this.... confused ? ! ?

Please help.

Regards
Neil (UK)

Answer by Dominique:

Hi Neil,
Thx for your running training question. I should start charging for this service (no worries, I won't)...
It's a great debate isn't: what is better, ball of the foot landing or heel strike?
Another good one is about whether cross-training is good for you or not. Everyone seems to have an opinion.

I am a "heel striker" as well, as many other runners are. Some others land on the ball of the foot and they feel that that comes naturally to them.

Heel striking is the more traditional running form.
In the last few years the Pose Technique, the technique which uses ball of foot landing, has been getting quite some publicity.

There are some interesting books out on the Pose Technique, e.g. the Pose Method of Running and the Pose Method of Running Companion Drill Book. They teach you about why this type of running would be better and the types of exercises you can do to learn this technique.

I do not have sufficient knowledge about running form, sports physiology etc to tell you to use the one method or the other.
The truth is probably in the middle.
Do what makes you feel best, do what comes naturally to you and that is probably the right running technique for you.

Hope this helps.
Looking forward to your next question!
Cheers,
Dominique

Heel Strike or Ball of the Foot?

Check out The 100 Day Marathon Plan

Need to Lose Some Weight?