Natural Running Center

This instructional article/video is part 3 of a 3-part series.  See part 1 and part 2 here with video. We hope that your glutes will enjoy becoming smarter. And why is that?  As was explained in part 1, runners often have under-performing glutes that can lead to big trouble. When your behind is slow and [Read more...]

This instructional article is part 2 of a 3-part series.  See part 1 here with video. We hope that your glutes will enjoy becoming smarter. And why is that?  As was explained in part 1, runners often have under-performing glutes that can lead to big trouble. When our behinds are slow and fail to do [Read more...]

by Jeniffer Pilotti, M.S and  Sarah Young, M.S. –Runners might not like to admit it but most of them have under-performing glutes. When they get left behind in a race or workout by faster runners, the likely culprit is often their inefficient glutes! In other words, many runners have stupid glutes, or to use a more polite term, [Read more...]

*** The balance beam is one of women’s gymnastics toughest and most difficult events. There is almost zero margin for error. As we have seen in the London Olympics, even the most talented gymnasts often slip, stumble, or fall off the narrow wooden beam.  But the balance beam is more than just about maintaining one’s [Read more...]

The April 2012 issue of Running Times, in part, was an homage to a bygone era…the late  70′s when shoes were flat, thin-soled, and non-bulky. Moreover, the cover recreated the iconic image and cover pose of Jim Fixx’s “The Complete Book of Running,” which came out in 1977 and eventually sold over one million copies. [Read more...]

I’ve often heard it said that you can’t fire a cannon from a canoe. The phrase seemingly dates to naval warfare from the 1800s, but the expression has been popular with fitness instructors and personal trainers who maintain that to “fire a cannon” (build strong arms and legs) you can’t do it from “a canoe [Read more...]

As we “comfortably” situate ourselves into the off-season, reducing our training mileage and racing, this is an ideal time to work on balance and form. A runner will typically average 1,200 steps a mile on one foot. And the gravity force on the body structure is 2.5 times the body weight with each step in [Read more...]

by Dr. Mark  Cucuzzella. This is a nice stretch for hip extension which critical joint mobility for efficient running.  Most of us sit all day which shortens the iliacus, psoas, and hip flexor mechanism.  To run with efficient elastic recoil, the upper leg most be able to extend behind the hips and naturally recoil forward. Notice [Read more...]

Why is the running community so divided on this topic?  Your junior high gym teacher probably required you to do a series of stretches at the beginning of each class. These exercises might have included toe touches and hamstring stretches. Proper form was usually neglected. But did these exercises actually warm up your muscles and [Read more...]