Running Mechanics

A couple of weeks ago I was watching a high school soccer game – it was a regional playoff and a girl SAPT trains plays on the team. Someone mentioned to me that there is a girl on the team who will be playing for a D1 program this fall and she has been having a great deal of lower back pain. While I was watching the game I played very close attention to how this player moved. Honestly, even if I didn’t know her name and number, I could have picked this girl out of the crowd on the field. Why? She had the telltale sign of chronic lower back pain: the excessive forward lean of the trunk while running.

This girl will be heading off to an extremely rigorous pre-season program in roughly 8-weeks and it is critical for her to get this problem improved or solved as quickly as possible. If it is not addressed more aggressively with strength training and/or stretching, the condition will surely worsen during the endless sprints, fitness drills, and multiple practices per day.

Now, it is natural (and needed) to lean forward during acceleration. But once top speed is achieved, the trunk of the body should be fully erect. The problem of excessive forward lean is usually caused by weak lower back and hip-extensor musculature OR shortened (tight) hip-flexor muscles.

To begin working on this problem, first identify the root of the problem. Back raises, good mornings, glute-ham raises, and Romanian deadlifts can be used to strengthen the lower back and hip-extensors. While a long lunge with a 2-3 count isometric hold at the bottom can be used to dynamically lengthen the tight areas.

Remember, when all other things are equal the stronger player ALWAYS wins.