GQ_South_Africa_2017

Body FITNESS

106 GQ.CO.ZA OCTOBER 2017

Edited by Paul Sephton

The key to being a better runner is

not just putting one foot in front of

the other and hoping for the best

• here’s what Puma shoe specialist
  Rae Trew-Browne suggests paying
  attention to if you’re looking to
  improve your swift-striding prowess

It’s all in

the hips

The foot will always

follow what the

rest of the body is

doing. If a runner’s

hips are out of

alignment, their

body will always

try to compensate

for the imbalance.

To che ck how

balanced you are,

stand with your

hands on your hips

and your back

against a wall. Slide

your right hand

down your leg while

keeping your back

against the wall.

Get a friend to

mark how far you

can go. Do the

same on the other

side and compare.

Build

your core

The goal of any

runner should be to

be as balanced and

strong as possible in

their core and hips,

since this is where

the actual running

motion is stabilised

and controlled. The

more balanced the

muscles in these

areas, the more

neutral the runner

will be, resulting in

fewer form-related

injuries. It’s thus

imperative to train

your core and

hips, focusing

on the weaker

side to

minimise any

discrepancy.

Analyse those ankles

Get a friend to film your feet from behind

(ideally in slow-mo) as you run on a treadmill.

If your ankles stay straight your form would

be classed as neutral. If they collapse inward

you would need to look at a shoe with

added support. This doesn’t always fix the

problem though, as the ankle is collapsing

because of weak supporting muscles and

ligaments. A stability shoe will just give the

runner a temporary fix whereas the ideal

approach would be to train and strengthen

the ankles and supporting muscles in the

calf and shin area with targeted exercises.

Ways

to step

up your

running

game

Pace your lace

With a shoe like Puma’s Netfit, you can

adjust the lacing to help support the

ankles, while still doing the

strengthening exercises in conjunction

with your running. As the muscles

strengthen, the runner can then

transition to a more neutral or standard

lacing system. By providing minimal

support it forces the foot to become

stronger over time, yet with the various

lacing options it can still provide some

support where needed.

Far too many runners

try to change the way

they run before making

their bodies strong and

flexible enough to

handle it long-term

Usain Bolt swears

by the fit of Puma’s

running gear