Trail running is harder than road running. Duh! Of course, running a marathon up and down the side of Pikes Peak is harder than 26.2 of flat roads. That’s not what I mean. Isn’t an hour on the trails the same as an hour on the roads? No. It’s harder to run a steady pace or effort on trails than on roads. However, with some simple tips, practice, and focus, you can become faster and more efficient on trails.
Several years ago, I did a trail ½-marathon in Florida (yes, they do have a few trail races there, though not necessarily a lot of good trail runners). After 4+ miles of wide and open trails, the course entered forested single-track. I was in 5th place with 6th on my heels. After we entered the forest, I noticed the 6th place runner was repeatedly yo-yoing, dropping back when the terrain changed, then back on when it smoothed out. With some subtle and conscious changes to my technique, I quickly dropped him.
Nimble
The key to efficient trail running is maintaining momentum through varying terrain. That requires being light and nimble on your feet so that you can quickly adapt to terrain changes without losing speed or using much extra energy.
Being nimble starts with having dynamically strong feet. Start here. I will be updating this and adding a video soon. https://runuphillracing.wordpress.com/2013/08/28/building-strong-feet
Keep your stride short, quick, and light, as if running on hot coals. Focus more on lifting your feet rather than putting them down. Think of it as dancing on the trail with the rocks and roots as your partner. Short, quick steps allow you to quickly and efficiently adapt to terrain.
This is a learned skill that requires practice. Start on trails that aren’t too technical or steep. Practice striding a little faster than comfortable. Practice dancing with the rocks and roots, running on hot coals. Gradually progress to steeper and more technical trails.:
Trail running is not all straight. You need to develop the strength and reflexes for both lateral and medial stability. Here are a few lateral motion drills:
- Lateral skaters – In a slight squat, hop sideways, back and forth, from foot to foot. Pause briefly when you land to check your position. Can you land stabile on one foot? Are your feet pointing straight forward? Is your knee forward in line with your foot?
- Diagonal skaters – Hop from foot to foot, in a slight squat, as above, but hop diagonally at about a 45° angle. Pause as above to see if you can land stabile on one foot and to check your body position. Start slow and small. As this becomes easier, first go faster, spending less time on each foot as you land. Then, increase the distance of the diagonal hops.
- Diagonal bounding – Similar to above, but in a vertical, running position. Bounding is done with an explosive drive off the ground, exaggerating the hang time in the air. Start slow and small and pause briefly when you land. As this becomes easier, first go faster, spending less time on each foot as you land. Then, increase the distance of the bounds.
- Run a slalom or zig zag on flat and smooth ground.
- Do the grapevine (aka carioca). Standing, with your arms out sideways (arms are optional but help), feet about shoulder width apart, rotate your hips to the left with your right foot crossing in front of your left. As you do, rotate your shoulders (and arms) in the opposite direction for balance. Uncross your legs by bringing your left foot from behind, continuing to move left, back to the starting position. Rotate your shoulders back to neutral. Cross your right foot behind and rotate your hips (and arms) right while continuing to move left. Uncross your left foot and rotate your hips, shoulders and arms back to neutral continuing to move left. Repeat about 10 times. Then reverse directions so that you are moving to the right.
Picking lines
While the shortest distance between two points is a straight line, the fastest way may not be on trails. Sometimes it’s better to alter your line to maintain momentum. Going uphill, straight is generally better. However, if there’s something like a big rock or ditch that would make you significantly change your stride, it may be better to go around.
Going downhill, it’s more important to pay attention and pick lines that will allow you to maintain your speed. Brake, slow down as little as necessary. Similarly, on flattish terrain, go over obstacles where you can maintain a fairly normal stride. Consider going around where you might have to alter it significantly. It’s not that you may lose much time on a single step, but the accumulation of such repeated momentum changes will affect your fatigue and time.
Stride Management
When approaching terrain changes, use short, stutter step to adjust your stride. A stutter step is a short series of very quick strides. This is more efficient than suddenly braking at terrain changes.
Minimize switching between hiking and running. Each switch takes saps energy and momentum. Where there is just a short terrain change, like one or two step-ups, it may be better to stick to running rather than switching to walking for a few strides then back to running. Conversely, if you’re hiking a steep section and come to a flatter part that’s just a few strides, it may be better to walk that short section rather than switch back and forth. In an ultra, you are more likely to walk slightly longer runnable sections than vice-versa.
If you’re going to be racing where hiking is involved, practice hiking. A good runner isn’t necessarily a good hiker (and vice-versa). Practice will develop power, speed, and efficiency. Focus on short, quick strides, and reducing time on the ground. In an ultra, your stride won’t likely be as fast. However, try to reduce the ground time.
I’m not a fan of bending over to push on your thighs. It may make sense for some (not all) when the slope is well over 20%; e.g., the Mount Marathon race, in Seward, AK, averages 50%+ for ~1-mile. Even there, some of the elites stay upright with quicker strides. don’t do this. Your arms don’t add much power. And, when doing this, there is a tendency to collapse your chest and drive your feet into rather than up the trail. If you do push on your thighs, keep your shoulders open, and look up the trail rather than down into it. If you stay upright, exaggerate your arm swing back (as if you’re elbowing someone behind you). The extra arm power back will add forward power to your legs.
Train like a cyclist
Bike racing involves a lot of steady riding, interrupted by a series of hard sprints. Bike racers need to be able to respond to those sprints then recover quickly or get dropped by the peloton on the road, or lose momentum on mountain or cyclocross. While a steady effort works best on roads, quick surges can help you maintain your momentum over short hills and get you around another runner on a narrow trail. In your training, incorporate a series of short, 5-8 second surges, followed by a slightly slower than normal pace for recovery. Some examples of training:
- 6x 8 sec surge with a 52 second recovery, starting again at each minute.
- Running in single file with a group, the runner at the back surges to the front of the line then drops back into pace. Continue rotating through until every runner has had several surges. With runners of different abilities, the weaker runners can skip a turn every so often.
- Fartleks where you surge to fit the terrain.
Ultras: The longer the race, the more subtle the changes need to be. I’ve mentioned a few of these above. You’re less likely to surge and more likely to slow down in an ultra.
Later in a race, pay attention to your stride rate. As you fatigue both physically and mentally, it can be easy to let your stride slow down and spend more time on the ground – the ultra slog. One way to address this is with embedded striders. After an hour or so, on a long training run, about every 30 minutes, do 3-5 striders where you stride quickly for 20-30 strides (left-right = 1 stride), then back to normal for 30-60 seconds. Strides are about a fast stride rate, not running speed. Think about running on hot coals with short, quick footstrikes.
What happened at my race? As we entered the forest, the trail twisted and turned through the trees, and up and down the side of berms and ditches. I would open a small gap whenever we climbed up and down the berm, but that he would catch back up when it flattened out. I realized that I had been slowing around curves – natural, but unnecessary. I changed my technique so that I leaned into and carried my speed through the turns. Within 30 seconds, I dropped him, never to be seen again. A couple of miles later, I caught and passed the 4th place runner. This change probably saved energy as I no longer slowed and sped up as much.
Have fun. Train smart. See you dancing on the trails.
Runuphill Racing 