Falling in love again: Addendum

Following up on this post, it would be remiss of me not to mention the mid-foot strike. As you would imagine, this is when the first part of the foot that hits the ground when running is the middle.

It's ironic to think that I have to learn how to run all over again, but the school of life is always in session, no?

In any case, mid-foot striking inflicts less impact on the knee compared to heel striking, and less on your toe joints compared to forefoot striking. This is of course based on my own experience, and shouldn't be considered the textbook form for running under any circumstances. In fact, just run using the form(s) with which you feel most comfortable. If it feels like too much strain, slow down, shorten your stride, or walk real fast.

As for me, I start out with heel striking before going on to mid-foot striking. The effect is that the pesky ankle twinges that made running such a pain in the ass have disappeared, as has the infuriating heavy calves feeling.*

I feel like I can clock up some serious mileage now that I've tweaked my running form. To think that I'd been putting this all down to advancing age.

* Some say it's due to lactic acid buildup, which is supposed to stem from anaerobic exertion and which you can train to overcome; others insist that it's compartment syndrome, which involves pain, is scary, and doesn't bear thinking about.