While I was in Disneyland last weekend for a social media conference, I had the chance to go on a Fun Run with RunDisney. I ran through both Disneyland Parks! It was one of the highlights of the weekend for me. I love to run and when it’s warm, I’m out on my local trails a few times a week. So when I heard we had a Fun Run as a part of the conference, I was all over sign up.
The run was co-sponsored by New Balance and RunDisney. I got to test out a pair of shoes from New Balance for the run which was cool. More on them later (they were great; I got fitted for a pair of stability shoes – they felt good but it was only 2 miles so time will tell how they do and I’ll report back after a few more runs.)
But what I wanted to tell you guys about today was some great information we received from New Balance before the run. A woman from New Balance spoke (forgive me, I can’t remember her name) about good running practices. It was SUPER early at this point (like 5:45 am) and I went into this thinking, “I run all the time, do I really need to hear all these newbie running tips?”
The answer is YES. She had some helpful tips and points that even the advanced runner could afford to hear.
1. Proper posture. First, the had us stretch and put our arms straight into the air. It was not just for the purpose of stretching that she did this but for posture and alignment. Did you know that if you run hunched over, you are basically carrying 10-15 lbs of body weight more on your legs with every step? How tiring does that sound?
I immediately thought of the two times I was pregnant, and how hard it was to just walk in the end and climb hills. Or how about carrying one of my new babies when they were around 10 pounds? Or how about taking a 10 pound baby with you in your arms on a run? Talk about exhausting! It really made me think about my posture when I run. I am somewhat confident that I run with pretty decent posture but it was something I was happy to hear and I will be taking note of my posture and stride on future runs.
And when in doubt, stretch your arms straight up into the air! It will help realign you and cause you to stand and ultimately think about running in a healthy, upright posture.
2. Relax. If you stiffen up, it’s going to hurt your neck and your posture.
3. Run on the balls of your feet. Next, how are you stepping each time you place your foot down? The New Balance rep had us test out a few different ways of running – running on our tip-toes, running on our heels and running on the balls of your feet. It’s that last one that you want to aim for. If you’re on your toes or on your heels, you could end up messing up your knees.
4. Another: Look ahead. Don’t look down. If you look forward and ahead, you’ll help with that posture thing.
Editor’s Note – all of the awesome photos in this post were taken by Josh Hallett, you can find him on Twitter @hyku
YAY I do all that. 🙂 I think it was the barefoot running shoes that got my form right. Why my dumb foot is still injured, I will never know, lol. Although it is doing well right now. I hate to even SAY that for fear of jinxing it. Looks like SO much fun. I wish I’d been there!!!
I loved when she gave these tips! I knew nothing about running! What a great way to start!
She was great, right? And I got a ton out of what she had to say and I run all the time! It was an awesome start for sure.
Great tips! The Disney run looks like a lot of fun!
Oh hey! There’s me! It was so fun running with you Whitney! Hoping we get to do it again soon. Maybe a Disney half? 😉
lol Nadia, I was going to tag you and tell you that you were on there 😉 If I ever did a half, I definitely think it would be a Disney one – SO MUCH FUN. I actually just got back from running 7 and felt awesome! Focused on making sure I had good posture 🙂