Activate your glutes and add power to each stride
Your hips play a key role in producing power and drive to your runs. Focusing on building hip strength and flexibity has a direct impact on your running technique and subsequently your performance.
When running, when you are pushing off one leg to propel you forward for the next stride, your hip is in extension. While in this position, your glute is an important force that helps push you forward and take that next step.
But as we know in modern life, we spend a lot of our time sitting. Whether were are at home relaxing, working at a desk or travelling, we spend a lot of time sitting down. This position is actually leaving our hips in flexion, the oposite of what we would need during our runs (hip extension). These daily habitual movement patterns can have a big impact on how we run. If we spend a lot of our time sitting with our glutes lengthened, when we actually need them shortend, it is not suprising that generating power in our glutes to propel us forward when we are running will be more of a challenge.
Today’s video talks through how activating your glutes will help you gain more power in each stride you take. Check out this simple yet effective exercise below and learn how to activate your hips to maxmise your running results.